During his presentation at ad:tech, Rob Davis, partner and leader of the online video practice at OgilvyOne, outlined these challenges facing brand marketers in the online video landscape:

• The marketplace is expansive and undefined
• Confusion over what can be achieved
• Lack of common vernacular
• Management of social aspects
• Muddled metrics messages
• Industry obsession with innovation

With this in mind, Davis laid out the following three framework goals for success in online video, while recognizing that many of the challenges facing video marketers will continue to persist.

Goal 1: Reach desired audiences with information relevant to their lives, needs, or pain points. This could be achieved through in-stream video or content-oriented video, depending on the audience.

Goal 2: Increase visibility in search by creating content that explicitly addresses what the target audience is searching for.

Goal 3: Cause a direct, intended post-play interaction. Getting people to watch your video shouldn't be the only goal. Rather, you should use video to drive people to a specific action, whether that is visiting a landing page, viewing more video, or taking advantage of an offer.

During his presentation at ad:tech San Francisco, Boettiger provided tips for making more time for yourself, being more focused, and using email more effectively.

Consider the following tips.

Making time for yourself

• Go dark for one hour a day. Shut down your mobile devices and become unreachable.
• Breathe. Schedule time for solitude.
• Learn the art of minimalism. Identify the things that are most essential to you and eliminate the rest.

Getting more focused

• Eliminate distractions. Employ "elective connectedness," which means you choose when you want to be connected.
• Stop multi-tasking. It's a productivity killer. Try "single tasking," which means you do one thing at a time until it's done. Don't have everything open at once.
• Focus on digital minimalism. Strip away the non-essential digital elements of your life.

Using email more effectively

• Send fewer emails out. You'll get fewer back.
• Train others. Don't condition them to expect that you'll always reply in 60 seconds.
• Practice digital minimalism. Again, less is better. If messages aren't in line with your essentials, unsubscribe from them.
• Brevity is king. Long emails tend to get ignored.
• Use text email.
• Always, always follow up.

The session itself was both fun and informative. For your own PPT purposes, consider these bits of advice from the two presenters:

• Don't use all caps. According to Kawasaki, it's "typographically retarded."
• Keep your presentation length in check. Thirty-four slides for a five-minute presentation? Not going to happen.
• If you're using colors, create contrast. In fact, use contrast in all aspects of your presentations.
• Get your contact information on the first and last slides. If you're in a ballroom situation, include Twitter handles or hashtags.
• Don't use the first piece of cliché artwork you can think of.
• Make one point per slide, and make it really clear.
• If you're making diagrams, use shapes to convey things that are different or the same, and use lines and arrows to show connections and flow.
• Don't use full sentences -- and certainly not full paragraphs.
• Use color and font size to show hierarchy and emphasis.
• If you read a slide and think "duh," get rid of that slide.
• If you're creating a presentation, it needs to have a narrative. It should not read like a document.
• Consider whether your presentation will be printed and plan accordingly.
• Always travel with your own remote -- don't let the folks behind the curtain advance your slides for you.
• If you give presentations regularly, own and carry your own microphone of preference.
• Follow proper editing style and terminology, according to your audience. For example, don't randomly capitalize words or phrases unless your audience would expect it.
• Titles should have verbs and be emotionally charged in some way. Pretend like the audience is only going to read the titles and ensure they tell a story.
• Only use animation if it adds value or reveals information over time.

"We are increasingly going to need to disconnect from our hyper-connected existence," she said. And, she noted, this starts with getting a good night's sleep. After all, sleep fuels creativity -- something that our societal obsession with sleep deprivation is squashing.

Her other equally compelling predictions for the future of media and our lives in general included:

An increased emphasis on humanity
As evidenced by the significant rise in cause marketing, humanity is now good for the bottom line. And that means something dramatic is happening. Competition has been eclipsed by collaboration, and that's an exciting world to live in.

A move toward the local level
Our human existence is local. And the local level empowers us as people because that's where we can get things done. We're increasingly detached from national media and the hype machine. Instead, we're committing to our local communities and making real, tangible differences.

More real-life connections
While we are seeing a great explosion in everything digital, we are also seeing a greater need for real-life connections. In fact, the immersion in the former leads to the craving for the latter. We don't just want to talk to friends via Facebook. We want to see them. We want to shake their hands and hug them. This need should fuel our marketing and our media. Don't just talk facts. Talk (and show) real-life human impact.

Email marketers are all too used to hearing that barrage of pessimistic questions. But several presenters at ad:tech were on hand to assure attendees that rumors of email's death have been greatly exaggerated.

Ryan Tuttle, VP of strategic services at BrightWave Marketing, noted that email still tops Facebook in terms of how people are communicating with each other. Likewise, many people point to low adoption of email among young people as a signal of its imminent demise. But, by that reasoning, one might conclude that because teens aren't drinking red wine, red wine will soon be dead, Tuttle noted.

In fact, Tuttle said, email is alive and well. Social and mobile aren't email killers. Rather, they are email boosters, as evidenced by the adoption of email-powered social buying sites and mobile email platforms.

Matthew Kirsch, director of email marketing for Walgreens, concurred that email's power remains strong. Following his presentation of a Walgreens case study, Kirsch noted that growing email lists remains a constant challenge for email marketers today. To combat this challenge, Walgreens has leveraged organic list-building techniques, eAppend, and in-store sign-up boxes.

Hayley Osher, director of member engagement at HauteLook, noted that email is vital to her business -- as well as the bane of its existence. While email drives 50 percent of her site's traffic, cutting through inbox clutter and ensuring near-100 percent deliverability is becoming increasingly challenging. Thus, adhering to email best practices is more important than ever, she noted. But the hassle is worth it. "If Facebook were to disappear tomorrow, we could still survive," she said. "If email were to disappear tomorrow, that would be the end of HauteLook."

With these numbers in mind, it's obvious that many brands are missing out on opportunities to reach engaged consumers in a meaningful way. During his introduction to the social gaming session at ad:tech San Francisco, Silva outlined the four levels commitment that brands can make to social gaming -- and encouraged marketers to consider upping their investments.

Level 1: Branded virtual goods
Branded virtual goods represent the lowest level of commitment that brands make in social gaming, Silva said. And while they represent a valuable opportunity to reach scores of gamers, they're just the tip of the iceberg.

Level 2: Branded game interactions
Branded game interactions work within existing game mechanics. For example, consider Bing's branded game interaction within FarmVille in which the brand rewarded those players who planted its logo in their fields. The result? About 425,000 new fans for the brand.

Level 3: Branded interactions
Branded interactions require new game mechanics. These are large, custom builds -- not just a product or a power-up. Consider Gatorade, for example. Within EA Sports, the brand built out the ability the dump a Gatorade cooler on the coach following a win -- a powerful brand alignment.

Level 4: Multi-channel integrated campaigns
Multi-channel integrated campaigns represent the highest level of commitment to social gaming -- and potentially the most valuable for brands. For example, 7-Eleven forged a large-scale partnership with Zynga. The promotion included specially marked items in 7-Eleven stores that enabled gamers to earn codes for virtual gifts and other rewards. The campaign, Silva reported, affected nearly every key performance indicator monitored at the retail level.

The Industry Achievement Award honors individuals in the digital marketing space who have demonstrated consistent outstanding service, generated breakthrough ideas and fostered industry growth.

Ramsey co-founded digital intelligence firm eMarketer in 1996 and became CEO in 2001. He built the company with the mission of providing a comprehensive view of the digital marketing landscape, helping businesspeople make sense of often conflicting numbers, trends and best practices. Under Ramsey's leadership, eMarketer has grown to become the go-to authority on digital marketing, media and commerce.

A highly regarded speaker with a memorable presentation style, Ramsey speaks at major digital, media and corporate events including ad:tech, the Online Publishers Association (OPA), the American Association of Advertising Agencies (4A's), the Association of National Advertisers (ANA), Magazine Publishers of America (MPA), the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), the Economist Conferences and Google. His engaging presentations even inspired a Facebook fan group titled "I Love Geoff Ramsey's PowerPoints."

Ramsey's forthcoming book, Digital Impact: The Two Secrets to Online Marketing Success, co-authored with Vipin Mayar, EVP of McCann Worldgroup, is due out in June (available for pre-order now).

For Visa, such a gradual meandering path was not acceptable. Thus, the company undertook a radical transformation to drive engagement with its customers through digital channels.

During his morning keynote address at ad:tech San Francisco, Antonio Lucio, CMO of Visa, outlined the six principles that drove his company's digital transformation:

1. Dismantling the digital team: The company embedded its digital resources inside its core brands so that digital efforts could move the needle for the total brand.
2. Changing the process to guide decisions
3. Stealing best practices from the market
4. Requiring much more from agencies
5. Co-developing with media partners
6. Developing new offerings to guide engagement

Ultimately, Visa's approach to the social web broke down into three steps, Lucio said:

Step 1: Think "Audience First"
The social web has changed how consumers engage with brands. The days of "yell and sell" are over. Today, the path to transaction is paved with an army of advocates.

Step 2: Let three social principles be your guide

• Sharing is the new giving
• Participation is the new engagement
• Recommendation is the new advertising

Step 3: Activate paid, owned, and shared media
Visa no longer approaches marketing from a campaign-driven perspective. Rather, in the new marketing reality, the brand's message is "always on."

Håkan Eriksson, CTO of Ericsson, reminded us of the implications of the continuing connectivity revolution. Broadband, cloud computing, and mobility will transform our lives in a near future where more than 50 billion devices will be connected. If marketers aren't thinking of their brands in the terms of a fully connected future, they're ignoring the reality that they already live in.

Wendy Lea, CEO of Get Satisfaction, spoke on the topic of corporate leadership in our dynamic industry. She reminded attendees that business success today relies on imagination, innovation, and initiative -- not just raw work and efficiency. "As a leader in these creative times, please observe and don't judge," she advised. In addition, leaders must engage -- not demand. And they must lead with their influence.

Renny Gleeson, global director of interactive strategies at Wieden + Kennedy, encouraged marketers to embrace the brand hackers who -- initially unbeknownst to the companies themselves -- are using their brands as tools to create value in unexpected ways. "Let your brand voice be your guide," he advised when it comes to deciding who to partner with. Innovation can come from everywhere, and the best ideas for your brand are increasingly likely to spring up outside the walls of your own organization.

I See Hawks, a band from Los Angeles, was formed during the early stages of the digital music revolution. While other musicians struggled -- and failed -- to adapt to the new business reality, I See Hawks embraced social networking and the power of digital to build its fan base. The band performed at ad:tech as a reminder that the open-minded and innovative are the ones who will survive and thrive in the face of dramatic industry shifts.

Tom Deierlein, president and CEO of ThunderCat Technology, is a real-life hero. A digital marketing executive since 1996, Deierlein was called up to serve in the U.S. Army in combat. During his time overseas, he dedicated much of his time and effort to supplying local needy children and families with the supplies they need for healthy lives. After he was shot in Baghdad in September 2006, his recovery coincided with the development of the TD Foundation, which continues his work to improve the lives of Iraqi and Afghan children. He reminded ad:tech attendees about the critical differences that the digital advertising industry can and does make in the lives of needy children. Everyone can do something.

Equity analyst Michael Knolla reminded attendees that skills gained in the unlikeliest of places serve us later in life. He made a compelling argument that his childhood spent reading comic books and science fiction novels equipped him for his life as an equity analyst. After all, reading comics in a serialized form requires you to retain knowledge and draw on it for later use. It's also effective in developing the ability to separate the signal from the noise. Such is the case for all of us. We can't rely simply on our educations or professional experiences to prepare us for life in the digital marketing industry. Every aspect of our lives feeds our abilities.

Michela O'Connor Abrams, president of Dwell Media, discussed the importance of design, not just in the architectural world, but in life. "Design is not a language or profession," she said. "It's something we each have in our DNA." Think about ways in which good design can improve lives -- including those of your employees and your customers.

Mark Joyner, founder and CEO of ConstructZero.org, is looking to build "dirt cheap decentralized distribution devices" (DC3D).  Joyner believes that DC3Ds will solve most of the world's major problems -- and he expects to produce them without venture capital or any "corrupted" sources of investment. He reminded attendees about the importance of developing technology that enhances our liberties.

Gourmet Live
Condé Nast rolled out Gourmet Live on the iPad, a unique approach that married content with social gaming mechanics. Rather than delivering content once a month, a user's activity unlocks new content. The app presents limited but high-value opportunities to marry sponsorships with valued content.

Kraft
After the success of Kraft's iFood Assistant app for the iPhone, The Hyperfactory worked with the brand to bring Kraft's Big Fork Little Fork app to the iPad. It offers an immersive experience that serves as a parental resource for feeding, teaching, and engaging children in the kitchen. As of today, users now also have the option to make in-app purchases of premium recipe bundles.

NPR
National Public Media's NPR iPad app enables users to create a content experience unique to them, by building playlists, viewing stories, and socially sharing content. The app has been downloaded about 700,000 times, representing 10 percent penetration of the iPad market. As NPR listeners have come to expect of the station, sponsorship interruption on the app is minimal -- but when users are interested, the ads enable them to take a deep interactive dive into sponsored content and functions.