In a discussion with NDA Editor Justin Pearse, Richard Ottoy, the new UK Country Manager at TripleLift, shares views on his journey into the company, the future of adtech, and how TripleLift plans to tackle the changing landscape. We dive into why he joined, how he views the company’s market positioning, and the role of creative identity in building a brand.
So, what drew you to take on this new role with TripleLift?
TripleLift offers a tremendous opportunity, not only in the UK but also internationally. Having worked with several SSPs, I’ve seen firsthand the unique position TripleLift occupies in the market.
It’s well-regarded as a pioneer in native advertising, offering unique ad experiences for publishers, advertisers, and consumers alike. Our products have a real edge; they’re differentiated, particularly with our retail media products, which is essential in today’s competitive landscape.
Triplelift recently set up a new office in London. How’s that going?
Yes, we got the keys in August. It’s actually the first office I’ve been in since the lockdown, so it’s exciting to be back in a physical workspace.
Being in the office fosters collaboration, something that’s hard to achieve with remote work alone. We’re focused on creating a culture where the team works closely, learns from each other, and celebrates wins together. I’m passionate about building our market identity, and the office plays a key role in this.
How do you plan to build that identity in such a competitive market?
It starts with a clear brand identity and consistent messaging. When clients think about creative SSPs, I want TripleLift to come to mind.
We’re positioning ourselves as the “creative SSP,” leveraging our strong history in native and creative ad formats. Our team is aligned on this narrative, from marketing and communications to client-facing teams. A unified message internally and externally will help reinforce our identity and foster a strong culture.
Speaking of unique products, what’s exciting about TripleLift’s offerings?
TripleLift has built its reputation on native advertising, and we continue to innovate in that space. Native advertising outperforms standard display ads because it integrates seamlessly into the user experience.
For example, our video ads now have captioning capabilities, addressing the “audio off” issue as many users consume video content on mute. We’re also enhancing user engagement by meeting the new expectation for captions, which makes it easier for people to follow the creative message.
We’ve also introduced data-targeting capabilities through our TripleLift Audiences, thanks to our acquisition of 1plusX. This allows us to harness first-party publisher data to create audience segments and improve targeting for buyers. Plus, our recent partnership with Amazon enables us to integrate elements from product listing pages into native placements, offering responsive commerce ads that resonate well with audiences.
Native advertising seems to have lost some of the attention it once had.Is it still growing?
Absolutely. While it might seem like native advertising has blended into the larger marketing landscape, it’s still distinct.
Some perceive it as requiring bespoke creative builds, which isn’t always true. Our turnkey solution allows advertisers to use existing assets, be it social media videos or display ads,
to create native placements effortlessly.
You previously worked at Sharethrough. What are you most proud of from your time there?
Despite only being there for about two and a half years, I’m proud of helping the business become profitable within that time.
We launched in the UK at the start of 2022, during a challenging economic period. But even with the difficulties, particularly in 2023, the team’s hard work paid off, and we achieved profitability by June 2024. It was validating to see our efforts turn into results.
Looking ahead, what challenges do you see for the industry, and how will TripleLift address them?
SPO (Supply Path Optimization) and consolidation remain big challenges. There’s been a narrowing of partnerships, which makes it harder for adtech companies without differentiated offerings to stand out.
For TripleLift, having unique products and a clear identity in the market gives us an edge. We’re focused on showing that differentiation by leveraging our creative and native-first approach.
