Dan Best is SVP Clients at DAIVID, an AI-powered creative effectiveness platform.
His career spans significant roles across major media organisations including Discovery Channel, The Independent, and The Telegraph. He was also part of the leadership team at Unruly. At DAIVID, he is working with Unruly alumni to help the industry measure and make better content at scale.
Who is your digital hero?
Ollie Shayer, Boots UK Omni-Media Director,
What has he done to win hero status in your eyes?
I’ve known Ollie from my early days at Unruly when he was at Diageo leading marketing innovation. He was a real supporter of us and helped build meaningful relationships across the organisation, which can be make or break when you’re in pure startup mode. He’s always been a great client and has supported me professionally and personally. Ollie is also a genuinely decent person and an example of why good guys don’t finish last.
How has his heroism helped drive digital?
He leads from the front and has a knack for getting everyone on board, which is essential in large organisations that are often slow to embrace change. He really knows his stuff and he’s passionate about the media industry. He’s not afraid to take on new challenges, as can be seen by his move into retail media at Boots and the number of awards he’s won. At this rate, he’s going to need a bigger mantelpiece!
What are the biggest challenges in digital we need another hero to solve?
Creative effectiveness.
It has fallen to a 20-year low (IPA), and AI isn’t the band-aid for it. We’re falling into the bland trap. When everyone’s using the same AI tools and following the same best practice rules as to what works, then the output is in real danger of being homogenised. The sea of sameness is real, and I think we all know it.
What is your most heroic personal achievement so far in digital?
I’m pretty proud of Unruly, the biggest UK ad tech exit to date. It wasn’t just me though; it was an amazing group of people (many of whom have featured here) who have gone on to do great things in the industry.
