Taboola embraces performance as open web ad tech counters walled gardens
This article discusses the shift in advertising towards outcome-oriented models, driven by Google and Meta, which presents an opportunity for open web ad tech companies. It highlights Taboola's pivot to a "Performance beyond search and social" message as an example of embracing this 'Outcomes Era.' The analysis suggests open web ad tech can compete by offering transparent outcomes, independent verification, and data control, differentiating themselves from walled gardens.
Key Takeaways
- Taboola’s homepage copy changed from “Reach your customers on websites they trust” to “Performance beyond search and social” over eight months.
- Adam Singolda said on the Marketecture podcast that Taboola is “all in on performance,” and that advertisers are moving toward that model.
- Google’s Performance Max and Meta’s Advantage+ are presented as the templates for the Outcomes Era.
- Viant co-founders Tim and Chris Vanderhook and tvScientific CEO Jason Fairchild argue that Google and Meta are black boxes that cannot be independently verified.
- Jeff Green told DMS by LUMA the open internet is the No. 1 place for ad investment because it offers more competition and a deep content library.
Why It Matters
For open web ad tech, the immediate implication is that outcome-driven messaging is now table stakes: Taboola has already replaced a quality-first pitch with a performance-first one. The competitive angle is sharper than that, though — Joe Zappa argues open web players can differentiate against Google and Meta by emphasizing transparent measurement, independent verification, and advertiser data control, not just outcomes. That matters in streaming-adjacent monetization because the open internet’s pitch is now tied to both performance and trust. Watch whether more companies echo Taboola’s exact framing — “performance beyond search and social” — or add transparency and control language to their own positioning.
Read full article at sharppenmedia.com
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