Australia – Val Morgan’s digital publishing arm Val Morgan Digital has expanded its team to establish new appointments for its agency partnership and content management functions.

Two account management experts – Alyce Thomas and Claudia Pearce will be joining as agency partnership managers, while Nicola Laing and Jack Revell were roped in to assume the roles Strategy & Content Manager and Branded Content & Weekend Editor of VMD’s platform TheLatch—, respectively.

Laing was a former strategy and response manager at Pedestrian Group, the company behind publications POPSUGAR and Business Insider, while Revell is a writer having covered arts, culture, and politics for titles SBS Voices, VICE, Rolling Stone, Pedestrian, and The Urban List.

Meanwhile, Thomas boasts an extensive online media experience, with previous positions in sales and account management in formerly Bauer Media, Are Media and at media site The Urban List. Pearce on the other hand, joins from lifestyle and travel online publication Time Out, having worked across a variety of publications and brands, building partnerships with both top-tier clients and media agencies.

VMD said that the expansion comes as it continues to experience a rise in demand for its digital offerings as well as increased demand from the audience of its media site TheLatch—for more entertainment, wellness, and lifestyle content.

“With consistent MoM growth, we’re carving out a solid space in market, with thought-provoking content that helps our audience dig deeper on issues like sustainability and mental health. We’ve learned a lot from our readers over the past six months, with those learnings driving some exciting brand developments at the end of this year. Watch this space,” said Amanda Bardas, executive editor of VMD.

Managing Director of VMD Brian Florido also commented, “I am extremely proud of the tenacity shown by the digital sales and editorial team this year. Under Adam and Amanda’s leadership, they have navigated unprecedented challenges, and have evolved our digital arm from ‘new kid on the block’ to a sophisticated and legitimate digital offering. In turn, we continue to attract phenomenal talent to our expanding business. Alyce, Claudia, Nicola, and Jack each bring their own set of skills to their roles which will be valuable assets in helping us continue to grow VMD.”

Australia – Australian-based digital-out-of-home (DOOH) solutions Val Morgan Outdoor (VMO) has now extended its programmatic outdoor services to include New Zealand in its office buildings-targeted ad placement offering, VMO Work.

VMO’s VMO Work is a full-on digital office building network consisting of 135 screens across 75 locations reaching working professionals as they enter and exit work. 

The network integrates full-motion digital advertising with localized content such as news and sport, financial information, and weather and building directory information with an aim to engage workers. 

To ensure the complete VMO Work network, VMO has partnered with leading out-of-home exchanges: Hivestack, Vistar Media, and Broadsign Reach.

“The ability to deliver these audiences via programmatic exchanges offers clear benefits to advertisers seeking access to premium inventory. Advertisers [will] have the flexibility to up-weight, down-weight, pause or stop campaign activity in real-time with the option to adjust campaign targeting or update their creative,” said the company in a press statement.

VMO Managing Director Paul Butler said, “VMO has made programmatic a business priority and we are excited to bring this capability to New Zealand where there has been so much interest shown by the market.”

Australia – As the summer season in Australia is coming to a further close, digital ad solutions Val Morgan is prepping up outdoor cinema, Moonlight to procure brand sponsorships as the niche cinema venue expects higher buy-ins during the hot season. 

As Moonlight’s 25th anniversary coincides with the entry of the summer season, the cinema sets to showcase a round up of new blockbusters, cult classics, and family favorites, presenting brands with a fresh space to reach their target audience.

Val Morgan’s already established sponsorship ops at the cinema remain, and Moonlight encourages brands to leverage the projected influx of cinema goers in the upcoming summer. 

Such offers include exposure during preshow dwell time, and a range of national and state-based packages such as product sampling, activations, and signage based on the breadth of exposure brands are eyeing.

Brands can also opt to integrate with Moonlight Cinema advertising by sharing in its radio, social media, website, and print advertising placements.

Marketing and Communications Manager, Nicola Whiteside of Moonlight Cinema said, “There has been an explosion of [Australian] audiences to drive-in cinema both locally and internationally over the last four months and we can’t wait to make the most of the warmer nights to stage cinema in a safe outdoor environment [amid COVID-19].”

Moonlight’s location expands major cities in Australia, where operations are said to recommence in November 2020. For its reopening, a line up of brand new films is scheduled for their premieres such as movies Tenet, Wonder Woman 1984, and Black Widow.