Open Market is a podcast about building companies in the advertising space. This is not another news podcast. Rather, hosts Eric Franchi and Joe Zappa will dive deep into the stories of successful companies and growth strategies to help listeners understand how to replicate that success. For example, how did Eric build Undertone to a $180M exit? How would you reverse-engineer a $10M adtech exit? Why do you need a chief audience officer? Entrepreneurs, execs, and GTM professionals in advertising should walk away from each week’s episode with new ideas on how to build their companies.
Attention, Adtech Hype, and Getting Denied a Raise with Eric and Joe
Eric Franchi and Joe Zappa talk about the the formula for generating more attention, where we are in the adtech hype cycle, the time Joe got denied a $650/month raise, and weeks where decades happen.
Debate! Outcomes Era vs Quality Era with Erez Levin
Adtech influencer and product guy Erez Levin joins Eric Franchi and Joe Zappa on the pod to debate Joe's thesis, the Outcomes Era, and present an alternative, the Quality Era. They debate whether Outcomes or Quality is the dominant paradigm of digital advertising, what constitutes a quality or real outcome, and whether media should be primarily valued based on its quality or its propensity to drive sales, among other points. Eric leverages his experience refereeing fights in his dojo gym to mode
The AI-Inflected Future of Ads with OpenAds Co-Founder Michael Bishop
OpenAds co-founder and CTO Michael Bishop joins Eric Franchi and Joe Zappa to discuss how AI will transform static ads into personalized experiences, the multi-hundred-billion-dollar AI "search" ad opportunity, the challenges and advantages of building an adtech AI startup, and the irrational, gut-oriented disposition tech entrepreneurs need to go after huge but hard opportunities.
The Future of AI and Customer Experiences with Crosshatch CEO Soren Larson
Crosshatch CEO Soren Larson joins Eric Franchi and Joe Zappa to discuss how AI will improve customer experiences, why first-party data isn’t enough to power personalization, the intersection of AI agents and advertising, and the role of the agency in an AI-driven advertising industry.
How Adtech GTM Is Changing with Peer39 CEO Mario Diez
Peer39 CEO Mario Diez joins Eric Franchi and Joe Zappa to discuss why publishers banding together failed 11 years ago and still hasn't worked, the advantages of a GTM CEO and the gaps they need to fill, how adtech GTM has changed over the last 15 years, and the future of advertising data companies in an AI-driven world.
Live from CES: What's Next for Viant AI with Viant CEO Tim Vanderhook
Viant CEO and co-founder Tim Vanderhook joins Eric Franchi and Joe Zappa live at CES to discuss what's next for ViantAI, how AI will disrupt advertising, the ramifications of Google's dominance, and CES vibes.
Building a Community with AdTech God
The mysterious deity of adtech, Adtech God, joins Eric Franchi and Joe Zappa on the pod to discuss how to build an audience and community, why most adtech companies are still approaching marketing with a 2005 playbook, and what individuals and organizations can do to capture the precious attention of their audiences.
Lessons from 2024 and Predictions for 2025
It's just Eric Franchi and Joe Zappa, your humble hosts, on this episode as they break down the ever-increasing power of content to influence your reputation and relationships, the companies that dominated adtech in 2024, and the adtech and advertising sectors to watch in 2025. Plus, Eric hates dogs (if you know, you know).
Inventing Performance TV with Jason Fairchild
tvScientific CEO and co-founder Jason Fairchild joins Eric Franchi and Joe Zappa to talk about the lessons he brought from OpenX to tvScientific, inventing the performance TV category, and which big players, including The Trade Desk and AppLovin, might get into performance TV (or not).
Rising from the Ashes of MediaMath with AdLib CEO Mike Hauptman
AdLib CEO and co-founder Mike Hauptman joins Eric Franchi and Joe Zappa to tell the story of meta DSP AdLib's reinvention after the collapse of MediaMath in 2023. We go deep into the story of the day MediaMath was shut off and explore how AdLib reoriented itself and came back stronger in the wake of that event. Plus, Joe makes fun of Eric for being old — replete with nautical metaphors!
Charting New Territory for DMPs with Permutive CEO Joe Root
Permutive CEO and co-founder Joe Root joins Eric Franchi and Joe Zappa to discuss the evolution of the DMP category and how to evolve the identity of a company as market forces shift around it. Eric and Joe put Joe Root in the hot seat, too, as they workshop Permutive's message in real-time.
Getting in the Arena with Matt Barash
Matt Barash is perhaps the best example of an adtech influencer. The master networker and content creator joins Eric Franchi and Joe Zappa to discuss what most people get wrong about building influence, his theory of attention, why executives shouldn't be afraid of controversy, and the opportunities Matt is excited about today in the advertising industry.
Moving Marketing to the Boardroom with Goodway Group CEO Jay Friedman
Jay Friedman, CEO of Goodway Group, joins Eric Franchi and Joe Zappa to talk about elevating marketing within organizations, developing a distinct marketing philosophy, driving incremental returns on advertising, and carving out space for yourself and your business with bold, provocative takes.
Preaching in the Desert with ID5's Mathieu Roche
Eric Franchi and Joe Zappa interview Mathieu Roche, CEO & co-founder of ID5, about evangelizing identity solutions before it was cool, driving urgency, competing with big players, bringing a European business to market in the US, and managing a remote-first workplace.
Expanding CTV Access to SMBs with Vibe’s Arthur Querou
Co-hosts Eric Franchi and Joe Zappa speak with Vibe founder and CEO Arthur Querou about an unconventional adtech product launch, aligning product with marketing and sales, and the differences between enterprise and SMB sales.
Deep Dive on Acquisitions with LUMA’s Terry Kawaja
Co-hosts Eric Franchi and Joe Zappa interview Terry Kawaja, founder and CEO of LUMA. They cover the existential importance of marketing to acquisitions, the role of the CEO in building the brand of a startup, and the optimal conditions for exiting.
“The Most Anticlimactic Moment” and Other Lessons from Undertone
Joe Zappa interviews co-host Eric Franchi about the biggest lessons he learned building and selling Undertone. Eric talks about his best-ever hires, the biggest challenge Undertone faced in his tenure, and how he approached life and business post-exit.
Why Sincera Is So Bad at Marketing with Sincera Founder Mike O'Sullivan
Eric Franchi and Joe Zappa interview Sincera founder Mike O’Sullivan about the category Sincera is creating, marketing early-stage startups, and the risks of playing it safe.
Taste as a Differentiator, Hiring a Head of Growth, and Zuck
This week on the pod, co-hosts Joe Zappa and Eric Franchi dig into the new frontier of taste in Silicon Valley, whether you should hire a head of growth and what they should focus on, the MrBeast memo, viral adtech social posts, and Mark Zuckerberg’s live interview on stage with the Acquired pod.Links:Taste is Eating Silicon Valley. by Anu AtluruAndrew Yeung’s LinkedIn post on “Head of Growth”MrBeast memo
Building Businesses on Thought Leadership with Eric Seufert
Co-hosts Joe Zappa and Eric Franchi chat with Eric Seufert about how he's used thought leadership, especially via his blog Mobile Dev Memo, to launch successful tech, media, and investing businesses and become one of the best-known voices in mobile.
The Vanderhooks on the Best Adtech Product Launch… Ever?
Eric Franchi and Joe Zappa chat with Tim and Chris Vanderhook, co-founders of Viant. They discuss the Vanderhooks’ creative approach to the extremely successful launch of ViantAI, their take on “founder mode,” and how their approach to adtech entrepreneurship has evolved over 25 years. (Note: Viant is a client of Joe’s agency, Sharp Pen. This episode was not sponsored.)
The Common Traits of Eric’s 3 Most Successful Investments
Joe Zappa interviews co-host Eric Franchi, a general partner at the venture capital fund Aperiam, to identify the three traits his three most successful investments have in common. They discuss Kevel, Transmit.live, and tvScientific.
Founder Mode with mParticle's Michael Katz
Michael Katz, CEO and co-founder of the customer data platform mParticle, joins Joe Zappa and Eric Franchi on the pod to discuss his take on founder mode. Michael argues that founders can most effectively build organizations by focusing on two factors, context and culture, but most leaders optimize for the wrong factors when they make key hires.
Building a Dynamic Culture and Tackling Big Problems with Brian O’Kelley
Eric Franchi and Joe Zappa interview adtech entrepreneur Brian O’Kelley. The former Right Media and AppNexus executive turned co-founder and CEO of marketing sustainability company Scope3 discusses how his approach to leadership has changed and how to inspire boldness and drive as organizations scale. Brian also touches on whether he’d do the AppNexus acquisition the same way today and responds to common criticisms of Scope3.
The Non-Founder Path to CEO with Lauren Wetzel
This week on the pod, Joe Zappa and Eric Franchi interview the sharpest-tongued CEO in adtech, Lauren Wetzel. Newly minted as the CEO of InfoSum, Lauren talks about her journey to the position, including:
How her consulting background launched her into the adtech C-suite
The Venn diagram between a COO and a CEO
Why a company should hire a chief of staff (or not)
Why CEOs shouldn’t be afraid of speaking out about industry issues
PR Is Dead. Long Live PR!
Joe Zappa and Eric Franchi mourn the death of PR as we know it. Listen to the episode to learn how PR and other forms of marketing are becoming more entwined — and how CEOs should assume the mantle of PR on social.
How Do You Become an Investor?
Joe Zappa interviews his co-host, Eric Franchi, a general partner at the venture capital fund Aperiam, about how to become an investor. They cover:
The difference between being an operator and a VC
How VCs decide which startups to fund
What founders should expect from investors
How to get into investing
Whether non-professional investors should do angel investing
Marketing Grab Bag: Attribution, Cookies, and Toad!
This week’s episode is a marketing grab bag! Eric and Joe discuss:
Why most companies misunderstand B2B marketing attribution
How companies should respond to the latest on cookies from a GTM POV
What founders can be doing early on to market themselves
What companies should be getting out of a 20-person marketing team
Building Sales Orgs at Twitter and tvScientific with Chris Riedy
This week on the pod, Eric and Joe are joined by Chris Riedy, former VP of Global Sales and Marketing at Twitter and current CRO at tvScientific, to discuss how to build sales organizations. Chris has the answers to all your sales development questions, whether your business is an early-stage startup or tech behemoth.
What Does Strategic Marketing Actually Look Like?
Joe gets his Bill Simmons on in this quick solo episode on how to do strategic marketing.If you go on B2B marketing LinkedIn (God help you), you'll see tons of people talking about strategic marketing. But what actually are the components of a marketing strategy? How do you put one together?Joe explains how he writes a strategic marketing plan in this episode so that you can do the same — or know what to expect from your marketing colleagues.
How Eric and Mike Built Undertone to a $180M Exit
Joe interviews Eric Franchi and Mike Cassidy to unearth the story of Undertone, the ad network company they sold to Perion for $180 million.How did Eric and Mike get Undertone to about $3M in revenue as an agency? Why did they switch to the ad network model? And how did they scale it from there to $100M in revenue, including key hires, GTM, and taking on private equity?Check out this deep dive to hear two founders' take on the steps required to produce a massively successful adtech outc
Creating an Audio Behemoth with Vox's Ryan Pauley
Joe and Eric interview Ryan Pauley, President of Revenue and Growth at Vox Media, to uncover how the digital media company moved into audio with great success. They cover the best practices for expanding to audio, how to exploit what makes audio unique (think: talent, personality, and intimacy), and what differentiates audio as a marketing opportunity. Check out the episode to learn insider tips from someone who did it right!
4 Ways to Win with AdTech Marketing
Co-hosts Eric Franchi and Joe Zappa discuss the four ways to win with adtech marketing (including great detail on how to pursue each strategy).1. Differentiated story 2. Original data/insights3. Thought leadership4. Being prolific, present, and personableCheck out the pod to learn about how to grow your business with each approach!
What Makes a Great AdTech CEO?
Co-hosts Eric Franchi and Joe Zappa dig into the evergreen question of what sets the great CEOs apart in the adtech world. Whether they’re a CEO/founder or a hired gun, a great CEO has to balance:
Product expertise
A GTM strategy
Company culture and values
Talent acquisition
We rattle off a few “shiny” CEOs that come to mind and analyze what made them so successful. If you’re curious who made the list, this episode is for you! By the way, click here to read Auren Hoffman’s blog post on
What to Do If Your Market Isn’t Big Enough
Co-hosts Eric Franchi and Joe Zappa cover what to do if your market is too small to achieve your business goals. For example:
How to launch a new product or enter into a new market
When and how to involve your customers in market expansion efforts
What sales/marketing and product teams need to do to get aligned
How to derisk your transition by enlisting customer champions
If you’re eyeing a pivot to retail media and/or CTV right now, this is for you!
How to Grow Adtech Companies from $1M to $10M
Co-hosts Eric Franchi and Joe Zappa dive into the details of how adtech startups grow from $1M to $10M and what pitfalls to avoid along the way. They cover:
What your team should look like around the $1M / Series A mark
How to transition from founder-led sales to a professionalized sales team
When and how to hire marketers
What to look for and how much to pay key early hires such as a VP of sales
Usually you need to book time with people like Eric to get this info. Now it’s available h
Why You Should Hire a Chief Audience Officer
Co-hosts Eric Franchi and Joe Zappa explain why you should hire a chief audience officer. The discussion includes:
The 3 things adtech customers really care about
Why most adtech companies' theories of victory are wrong
What to look for in a chief audience officer
Who in adtech is a good example of a potential CAO
Also, here is the My First Million episode we discuss on the pod: https://open.spotify.com/episode/4qNgPuS5aePbWSgjdsKn2o?si=PHfj0u_TTEKLAOV67p1QLQ
How to Reverse-Engineer a $10M Adtech Exit
Co-hosts Eric Franchi and Joe Zappa dive into a thought experiment: how to reverse-engineer a $10M adtech exit. They touch on:
What value you need to provide to get bought for $10M
An actual example of an adtech company that sold for low eight figures
The ideal team
Adtech product ideas that could lead to a quick $10M exit right now
As a VC, Eric initially hated this idea, but by the end, Joe wears him down. Check out the X thread that started the discussion: https://x.com/joe_zappa/sta