Justin Ruiss Archives

Justin Ruiss is the SVP of the Media Sector at BWG Global, a knowledge-sharing network hosting in-person and virtual industry events. In his role, he hosts Q&A forums with executives from various sectors, including social media, advertising, connected TV, streaming, and gaming. Before joining BWG Global, Justin was the Investor Relations Activations Developer at Cision and an Equity Analyst at The Benchmark Company.

Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn:

[2:56] Justin Ruiss shares trends in the CTV space
[9:02] How brands are meeting multi-platform content demands
[14:52] Amazon Marketing Cloud (AMC) as a cost-effective ad tech tool
[20:22] AI Overview’s impact on search behavior and traditional CPC models
[25:39] How AI agents are enabling voice commerce and shifting the focus back to human-driven creativity and storytelling
[33:45] The uncertain future of the eCommerce space

In this episode…

Retail media, CTV advertising, and AI-powered search are evolving faster than many brands can adapt. Marketers are grappling with fragmented content strategies, fluctuating CPMs, and uncertainty around how to allocate budgets effectively across platforms. With performance expectations rising and consumer behaviors shifting, how can brands stay competitive without overspending?

According to media and eCommerce analyst Justin Ruiss, now is an ideal time to invest in CTV due to oversupply, lower CPMs, and advanced targeting capabilities. He recommends increasing production budgets to create modular, high-quality content that can be repurposed across channels like TikTok, Amazon, and streaming platforms. Brands can also adopt centralized content planning and leverage tools like Amazon Marketing Cloud to drive enhanced targeting and performance while planning for economic volatility and regulatory changes.

In this episode of The Digital Deep Dive, Aaron Conant interviews Justin Ruiss, SVP of the Media Sector at BWG Global, about the future of digital media buying and AI in eCommerce. Justin explores CTV trends, the rise of agentic AI, and how brand guidelines shape content in gaming environments.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

Quotable Moments:

“It's a great time to be a buyer for CTV — really good trajectory there from advertisers.”
“Our promotional budgets are down, but our production budgets are oddly up.”
“The left hand is starting to know what the right is doing; that’s a huge unlock.”
“Amazon is creating more tools, and I think AMC is one of those points.”
“AI is getting to scary types of effectiveness; it’s three guys or gals running three dozen agents.”

Action Steps:

Consolidate your content strategy across platforms: Aligning creative efforts under one plan helps maintain brand consistency and maximize production efficiency. This is especially critical as content is repurposed for CTV, social media, and eCommerce channels.
Leverage Amazon Marketing Cloud for targeting: AMC offers powerful tools for building custom audiences and analyzing performance across platforms. Using it effectively can drive ROI while keeping ad spend efficient.
Increase investment in production over promotion: High-quality, reusable content can stretch further across campaigns than one-time promotional efforts. This shift enables brands to stay nimble in fast-changing media landscapes.
Plan for multiple economic and regulatory scenarios: Scenario planning prepares brands to respond quickly to changing tariffs, costs, and retail behaviors. It ensures teams remain adaptable rather than reactive.
Monitor ad experience and frequency: Ensuring viewers aren’t overwhelmed with repetitive ads improves engagement and brand perception. Thoughtful frequency capping supports better campaign outcomes and user sentiment.

About BWG Connect...

BWG Connect provides executive strategy and networking sessions that help brands from any industry with their overall business planning and execution. We network and knowledge share together to better understand and adapt to the newest trends, strategies, and pain points shaping growth in the digital space. BWG Connect, in conjunction with BWG Strategy, has built an exclusive network of 125,000+ senior professionals and hosts over 2,000 virtual and in-person networking events on an annual basis.

In addition, we have had 1x1 conversations with over 5,000 brands and have a real-time pulse on what digital strategies are successful and why. This in-depth knowledge allows our team to operate on the cutting-edge and provide our clients with best-in-class guidance on how to win in the digital world. We have provided free consultations and strategy sessions for companies of all sizes, from start-ups to Fortune-100, to enable growth, resolve issues and make curated service provider introductions that can impact your digital footprint.

We have held to the philosophy of providing high-level insights and actionable knowledge with no sales pitches in order to provide to our network the ability to listen, learn and act to improve themselves as well as their organizations. Our ultimate goal is to be the resource out there to help digital executives find the research they need to excel in the modern marketplace.

If you are interested in getting involved with any of our current or past events, you can find them here. If you are looking for help & would like to set up some time to chat with our team, you can schedule a time or reach out directly to Aaron@bwgconnect.com or Tiffany@bwgconnect.com.

Justin Ruiss is the SVP of the Media Sector at BWG Strategy, a knowledge-sharing network hosting in-person and virtual industry events. In his role, he hosts Q&A forums with executives from various sectors, including social media, advertising, connected TV, streaming, and gaming. Before joining BWG Strategy, Justin was the Investor Relations Activations Developer at Cision and an Equity Analyst at The Benchmark Company.

Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn:

[2:21] Justin Ruiss describes community-based marketing
[4:31] How search has evolved to include social platforms
[9:01] Content creation strategies to generate community feedback
[17:58] Aligning brand goals with consumer preferences
[24:08] How to leverage community commerce to define your target audience
[29:40] The rise of connected TV streaming in the next year
[37:00] What is the future of retail media?

In this episode…

As consumers search for curated answers to specific questions, community-focused platforms like Reddit and TikTok have gained prominence over Google. With content creation shifting, how can brands engage with consumers to meet their expectations?

Social engagement expert Justin Ruiss notes that consumers seek answers to complex questions from other community members on their chosen platforms, initiating what he terms community-based marketing and commerce. By leveraging these platforms, brands can tap into high-intent communities and gain access to conversations that blend social and search attributes. This approach fosters brand loyalty by collecting and adapting to consumer feedback and community insights. The shift toward community-driven engagement allows brands to identify their target demographics and create content that resonates.

In this week’s episode of The Digital Deep Dive, Aaron Conant chats with Justin Ruiss, the SVP of the Media Sector at BWG Strategy, about community-focused marketing and commerce. Justin also shares insights into the evolution of search, the rise of connected TV streaming, and the future of retail media.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

Quotable Moments:

"Community management is why that word continues to come up in conversations: What does your audience look like? It really kind of looks like a community."
"The journey for personalization starts at the community level."
"Amazon would do everything they can to automate logistics, essentially ripping a lot of human element out of it."
"The brands have more power than they realize at this point, heading into 2025 with so much data being available."
"It's this idea of, ‘How can we be better aligned with the consumer’s thoughts and opinions and build that into loyalty?’”

Action Steps:

Engage in community listening: Participate actively on platforms like Reddit or TikTok to gather authentic customer feedback and insights. This approach allows brands to understand their audience’s preferences and pain points, enabling more targeted and personalized marketing strategies that build stronger community ties.
Diversify content creation: Move beyond traditional photo shoots and create varied content tailored for different platforms and communities. By aligning content with the unique consumption patterns of each platform, brands can increase engagement and relevance, thereby enhancing their visibility and influence.
Leverage influencer collaborations: Use influencers not only for brand promotion but also as a source of authentic user-generated content. This strategy helps tap into niche communities and provides relatable content that resonates with the target audience, making marketing efforts more effective and efficient.
Implement real-time feedback mechanisms: Establish immediate customer feedback collection systems, like social listening tools or community platforms. This enables brands to swiftly adapt and optimize their products and messaging, aligning closely with customer expectations and enhancing customer loyalty.
Integrate data-driven strategies: Utilize advanced attribution and analytics tools to measure the effectiveness of marketing campaigns across various channels. By understanding which strategies yield the best results, brands can allocate resources more effectively, optimize marketing spend, and improve overall ROI.