Mirriad Advertising outlines new go-to-market strategy

Mirriad Advertising updated the market on its new strategy on Wednesday, following a detailed review by its new chief executive officer, Stephan Beringer.

This AIM-traded firm said the strategy reiterated its “strong” market position and its “exceptional” assets, while addressing the ineffectiveness of its previous go-to-market strategy.

It said the key elements arising from the reassessment of the strategy were that Mirriad had “unique, award-winning and patent-protected” technology for embedding advertising content into existing video, with its addressable market in television and online video described as “large and growing”.

Mirriad said the format was preferred by consumers, making it an effective advertising solution that delivered a strong return on investment for advertisers and their brands, adding that use of its product opened up “significant” revenue opportunities for broadcasters and distributors, and offered strategic benefits to media agencies and their advertiser clients.

The company’s go-to-market strategy had historically been flawed, the board said, adding that there was previously a lack of focus on the demand side of the market, being media agencies and advertisers, with the company spreading itself over too many markets.

To address those issues, the firm said it would implement a revised go-to-market strategy to accelerate demand by engaging with clients and media agencies as channel partners.

It would also build scale by attracting additional linear and digital distribution partners, as well as content producers, to create a “rich and dynamic” marketplace, and at the same time accelerate technology platform automation and eco-system integration.

Mirriad said it would focus on core markets and “the right kind” of revenue, shifting its focus to markets with high per-capita advertising spending, in particular the US, the UK, Germany, France and China.

“[We will] pursue one vision, one strategy and one plan that focuses the company on its path to success and ensures that all resources are aligned to the opportunity,” the Mirriad board said in its statement.

The company said it had already started pursuing its new strategy and, together with the new chief executive officer and president, it had appointed a new chief technology officer, joining in April.

Mirriad had also exited Brazil, and India commercially, as well as streamlined its operational teams, put in place new management in the US and a new organisational structure in Europe.

The board said it had started to implement a new organisational structure in China, and had taken steps to integrate its product and technology teams.

Mirriad said it believed it had a “strong investment story” based on its clear strategy for long term growth, unique technology that embedded rather than overlaid video, a product which audiences accepted, and a “substantial” market opportunity with favourable industry dynamics.

Looking at the finances, the firm said the changes and expected changes would be cost neutral, with the directors saying they believed Mirriad’s core cost base would not alter substantially as it scaled over the next two years.

The company disclosed cash holdings at the end of June last year of £22.1m, and cash consumption in the first six months of 2018 of £6.7m.

It said it would publish full year results in early May, which would show that cash consumption continued at a similar rate in the second half of 2018, with early trading in 2019 said to be in line with the company's budget, and first quarter 2019 revenue surpassing first half 2018 revenue.

“Mirriad has many unique strengths and areas of competitive advantage and its core proposition is more powerful than ever,” said chief executive officer Stephan Beringer.

“Mirriad is the only true in-video solution that offers a cross-platform format which looks as real as the content it integrates with.”

However, Beringer said the business had been taken on a path to market that was “significantly out of touch” with its content and distribution partners, as well as advertisers and their agencies.

“A reset is clearly needed.

“Today I set out a revised strategy showing the path to growth.”