adtech

Peter Blackshaw, the moderator for the "Measuring Word of Mouth Effectiveness" session, opened with a story about his Honda.

Allison Johnson is the Senior Vice President, Global Brand and Communications for Hewlett-Packard and she delivered a keynote address this morning on "The Changing Role of Interactive in Global Marketing."

I flew into sunny San Francisco this morning and first thing I scoped out the Ad:Tech venue - the ultra-swank Palace Hotel (marble escalators - enormous sunlit atrium with jazz band for Sunday brunch). I tried to get a sneak peek at the vendor's section too, but their guard dog informed me that only vendors are allowed today.

The focus of this conference seems to be on getting the message through to the influentials. The Google Open Forum was an excellent example of how large companies are working this crucial group of people - this session was an extended ad for Google.