You almost always hear discussions about “digital” when walking into an advertising agency – but what is it? Depending on the department, experience and ambitions, you are sure to hear a myriad of descriptions. At OH, we thought it would be best to hear it straight from the guy who leads our digital team into success each day. Jason Prentice, OH’s VP of Business Operations & Digital Solutions is giving us an inside look into his team and how it is an invaluable part of our agency.

So, what exactly is digital?

The digital world is a tough department to tackle and I realize there is fear of the unknown. While this is true, the people who are experts will tell you it’s not too difficult to get a good grasp of digital development. The key to learning more about digital is pretty simple – just ask questions and get involved in any way possible. You’ll quickly realize that digital work is not too different from traditional projects, but you’ll also find some substantial differences between the two.

Let’s start with the similarities.

Digital projects share many of the same foundational elements with their tried and true predecessors known as “traditional” projects. The best ones have a defined objective, a set of goals, a specific strategic purpose, are compelling, and most importantly produce measurable results.

When starting a project, we need to know who we are talking to, what the message will be, how to reach our audience and what action we want them to take – much like a traditional project.

What are the key differences between digital and traditional projects?

For starters, when designing a billboard, or a piece of collateral that has fixed dimensions, we know exactly how everyone will “see” it. It’s a bit trickier with digital. Materials can be served on many different device types with a range of sizes, colors, and font choices, which can make digital design slightly more complex – since there is more to take into consideration.

When it comes to results, digital projects can create results quickly and more effectively which puts us at a huge advantage. Most digital assets can easily be re-worked or refined with only marginal expenses while making adjustments to printed pieces and radio spots can take just as much time as creating the original.

Digital helps provide very granular reports down to single users, specific locations, devices, demos, and technology. It is a proactive way to see a call to action campaign happen immediately.

What makes the digital team such an integral part of OH’s success?

Of course, we couldn’t have as much success as we do with digital without our team. This team is responsible for developing websites and other software driven marketing tools that support our business and make it great!

Like many departments at OH we are rapidly growing in capabilities, projects, and team members. Each member of our team is an expert in their craft whether it be design, software development, testing or project management. This team is passionate and committed to producing the highest quality work possible.

Because of this passion, nearly all cases exceed client expectations. We love what we do and we love when people take interest in our craft – it drives us to create our best work. This team is all about experience and that makes us excited to help train or answer questions from any of our “daytime roommates”! We love being able to create, but we also want to teach others why digital is so awesome.

You mention that the digital team often goes above and beyond in its projects – can you tell us about a campaign that your team is really proud of?

One of our biggest success stemmed from a campaign that challenged us, pushed us to our creative limits, and ultimately continues to inspire our team each day. To help OH get the attention of Airbnb CMO Jonathan Mildenhall, we were called upon to make it happen.

In less than two weeks from idea to execution, OH created an Airbnb room, planned more than 24 hours of live content, booked over 50 guests, and installed a six-camera system to capture the action. The digital team created a #JonathanCallScott microsite, similar to an actual Airbnb listing, which was full of “reviews” from our client partners.

When the 24-hour livestream came to an end, our team couldn’t help but sit back and realize what we had just accomplished – not on our own, but with the help of the entire agency. Through our combined efforts, we landed about $600,000 worth of earned media, reaching more than 30 million people. Social media added another 3 million people worldwide with 40 million impressions – and counting.

Your team has accomplished an immeasurable amount of success, and is clearly a key part of what makes OH stand out in a sea of agencies. Where do you see OH’s digital team heading next?

Digital is a growing and rapidly changing part of advertising, and we’re committed to being on the leading edge. Every day we fulfill our commitment to provide best in class digital solutions to our clients, and along with this, we are committed to the future. Our projects challenge our technological and creative abilities and force us to push ourselves, our clients and the industry as a whole.