Trae Nickelson

Startup founder and CEO @Qadabra_Qorp. AI-Improved Phoenix/Elixir hack. Passionate about data-driven growth, consumer data privacy, and ad/media tech. Go zero!

[Trae Nickelson @traenick]

Wow. Dude is a straight up communist and not even attempting to hide it. He’s the angel that knows best and will protect us all. He’s the leader of a potential mob that forms up to steal from others. Nothing noble about it. Tragically, this will likely resonate with many voters. The ill-informed takers probably do outnumber the makers. Very sad and scary.

Is the American experiment really over this quickly? Where will the makers go next? Where will the builders go to build? What will the map look like if the US starts nationalizing resources and innovation and the government controls the means of production? Secessions? New countries altogether? Who is John Galt?

[Gavin Newsom @GavinNewsom]

It's time for a national billionaires tax and a new social contract.

10% of Americans own two-thirds of the wealth. Wages have stagnated. The cost of living has skyrocketed. 

The system is fundamentally broken.

The federal tax code, a corporate code, and an inheritance code were written for a different set of Americans. 

It’s time for an economic reset.

https://t.co/nrRXzlFLKy

[Trae Nickelson @traenick]

Wow. Dude is a straight up communist and not even attempting to hide it. He’s the angel that knows best and will protect us all. He’s the leader of a potential mob that forms up to steal from others. Nothing noble about it. Tragically, this will likely resonate with many voters. The ill-informed takers probably do outnumber the makers. Very sad and scary.

Is the American experiment really over this quickly? Where will the makers go next? Where will the builders go to build? What will the map look like if the US starts nationalizing resources and innovation and the government controls the means of production? Secessions? New countries altogether? Who is John Galt?

[Arielle Garcia @ArielleSGarcia]

I’m just going to leave this here.
The chart is plotting the reallocation of spending against Google’s Pmax launch and international antitrust scrutiny.

[qadabra @qadabra_qorp]

Dear AdTech,

We need to talk.

Actually, no. I need to talk. You need to listen for once.

This isn’t working anymore. I’ve tried. I really have. I accepted your cookies. I clicked “I agree” 4,000 times. I sat through your pre-rolls. I let you follow me around the internet like a desperate ex who “just happened to be in the neighborhood.”

But I’m done.

You say you know me. You don’t. You think I want hiking boots because I googled “hiking” once. That was for a work email. I don’t hike. I barely walk.

You say you’re personalizing my experience. My experience is 47 ads for the thing I already bought. I own the mattress. I don’t need six more.

You say it’s a fair trade: free content for my data. Fair enough, but I never saw the trade. I just saw the ads. You saw my location, my searches, my health questions at 2am, my political curiosity, my bad shopping decisions.

You sold all of it. I got a sidebar ad for toenail fungus cream.

You say you’re connecting me with relevant brands. You’re not connecting me with anything. You’re selling tickets to my attention and keeping all the money.

So here’s the thing: I’m not looking for someone new. I’m done being in that kind of relationship.

I’m taking some time for myself.

From now on, I decide what I share. I sell my own attention. I buy the media I actually want, when I want it. No subscriptions. No commitments. No one tracking me in the background.

My data stays mine. My attention has a price. And if brands want to reach me, they can ask.

It’s not me, AdTech. It’s definitely you.

Don’t call. Don’t track. Don’t “re-engage.”

I’ll be fine on my own.

Me is mine.

Sincerely,
Everyone

#AdTechBreakup
#DataPrivacy
#ConsumerEmpowerment
#AttentionEconomy
#FutureofMarketing
#AdTech
#DataOwnership
#DigitalTransformation
#AdTech
#Privacy
#NoTracking
#DigitalBreakup
#MeIsMine
#ZeroPartyData
#ZeroParty

[Trae Nickelson @traenick]

@TRHLofficial My favorite joke clip! He was so good in Conan. Gotta watch the full long version (find it on YouTube) and follow along with Norm’s beautifully warped rambling. The joke is that the joke is on us. I miss that guy.

[George Millo @georgemillo]

Phoenix contexts are simpler than you think

A lot of Phoenix beginners get confused by contexts. They’re not sure what contexts are, how to use them, or what their contexts should be called.

My new blog explains contexts as simply as possible:

1/

[Tom Goodwin @tomfgoodwin]

I kinda think nobody in advertising should be at CES.

The entire world of Advertising seems utterly lost.

Massive opportunities are everywhere.
Existential threats are everywhere.

Performance ads are atrocious
CTV ads are awful
Dig display ads are awful
Attribution is a lie.
Targeting is messed up
Everyone is blinded by data.
Brand advertising is in the gutter.
Nobody has got retail ads
AI is massive but is being fumbled.

So looking at a fridge with a see-through door, or a car that can self drive a bit or a new drone, or a 8K projector, all seems a bit stupid

We need a halt on all daft business trips until we figure out what's going on.

Make advertising great again :)

[Trae Nickelson @traenick]

@andruyeung Yes please :)

[Ana Milicevic @aexm]

"It has seemingly never been easier to (technically) reach a consumer because we’re all online all the time; but it has also never been harder to really reach a consumer when consumers are actively tuning out."

In this week's #SparrowOne

https://t.co/hJJpKHwCKX

[Jason Kint @jason_kint]

500 seconds of absolute must-see (and please share) as Trevor Noah absolutely nails the nuance for the average viewer in calling out Facebook’s empty arguments and making the critical distinction between tracking (problem) and targeting (mostly fine).

[Dr. Fou - FouAnalytics @acfou]

to put it plainly - THIS is the problem, and the root cause of all the "non-transparency" (the euphemism for fraud, waste, inefficiency, missing money, etc.)

[Trae Nickelson @traenick]

@acfou Very true. But it appears now that the default solution to the death of third-party complexity is to cram it all under the “Publisher” tent/category and call it “first-party”. The comical disaster continues.

[Alex Wolf @alexwolfco]

Honestly, if you want your internet experience to explode with value, pay for it.

Pay for the news.
Pay for the content.
Pay for the networks.

And you'll never look at the waste lands of social media the same way again.

[Trae Nickelson @traenick]

@AOC Let's form up a mob and use democracy to violate his (and the other billionaires') property rights and steal what we think we need.

[Dr. Fou - FouAnalytics @acfou]

Would any consumer know who these ad tech servers and trackers were if they asked for consent? Doubt it.

[Trae Nickelson @traenick]

@dyntegradyn Hey Brian. How can I learn more?

[Trae Nickelson @traenick]

For real privacy (and better data for marketers), consumers will need to “corner the market” on their own data with true ownership and control. Then we can all “trust” basic market economics to preserve privacy.

[YouData @YouData]

"42% of users are willing to share their data when the benefits are clearly explained, with another 21% willing to do so if they feel trust toward the brand". Hopefully, we can convince consumers to... https://t.co/nNiLowfxN3

[Qlarius @qlarius]

So encouraging to see @Apple and @tim_cook take consumer privacy seriously. Less encouraging to see more calls for gov't regulation as the solution. The free market can fix this. Privacy and consumer-control are a market requirements - build from there. https://t.co/0VzhTBNy9N

[Trae Nickelson @traenick]

https://t.co/SrWJmAUwvO

[Qlarius @qlarius]

[Zuboff] likens the big tech platforms to elephant poachers, and our personal data to ivory tusks. “You are not the product,” she says. “You are the abandoned carcass.”

https://t.co/ekXrUFiNMo

[Trae Nickelson @traenick]

"...the market for subscription services is getting incredibly crowded with Netflix, Amazon, Hulu and upcoming services from Disney, WarnerMedia and other traditional and digital video programmers; there is only so much money a per…https://t.co/ZvxRT4Z3Rt https://t.co/UiY7BbETu1