Technology Spotlight
A conversation with Charlie Cadbury, CEO of Say It Now brought to you by Ultimate Asset.
“The best way to build a trusted relationship is through a conversation.”
What is Say it Now‘s elevator pitch?
Say It Now is an advertising technology company that enables brands to create interactive voice experiences within audio and video advertising. Using Say It Now’s platform, consumers can engage with an ad by speaking to their smart speaker or other voice assistants, and subsequently receive coupons, links to product information, or even set reminders for relevant products and services.
What business problem does Say It Now solve?
Lack of Real-Time Engagement and Data in Audio and TV Advertising: Traditional audio and TV advertising relies on delayed, post-campaign analysis to measure effectiveness, limiting the ability for in-flight optimisation and offering limited insight into consumer engagement.
Low Conversion Rates of Web Landing Pages: Standard web landing pages, often used as the call to action in digital advertising, have an average conversion rate of 4.3%, highlighting the need for more engaging and effective ways to convert ad impressions. Voice lansing pages convert at around a 27% conversion rate.
Difficulty in Measuring the Effectiveness of Audio and TV Advertising: Audio and TV advertising have historically lacked the ability to provide real-time performance data, relying on econometrics and post-campaign analysis to assess ROI, making it difficult to track individual campaign performance and optimise spending.
Limited Opportunities for Innovation in Audio and TV Advertising: As consumer habits shift towards voice interaction with technology, traditional audio and TV advertising formats struggle to adapt, creating a need for innovative solutions that leverage the power of voice engagement and real time data.
What sets your company apart from competitors?
Actionable Ads: Say It Now’s patented technology enables the creation of “actionable ads” that allow consumers to interact with audio and video advertising using voice assistants. This interactive approach generates real-time engagement data and provides advertisers with valuable insights into campaign performance.
AI-Powered Conversational Engagement: Say It Now’s platform utilises conversational AI to create engaging and personalised voice experiences that facilitate deeper connections between brands and consumers.
Real-Time Attribution and Reporting: Unlike traditional advertising formats, Say It Now offers real-time attribution and reporting through a live dashboard, allowing advertisers to monitor campaign performance, make data-driven decisions, and optimise campaigns in real-time.
High Conversion Rates: Say It Now boasts an average 27% conversation rate for its voice experiences, significantly exceeding the average web landing page conversion rate of 4.3%.
Seamless Integration: Say It Now’s technology seamlessly integrates into the existing advertising ecosystem, allowing advertisers to leverage existing distribution channels and inventory while enhancing their campaigns with voice interaction.
Who is your primary target audience? What are their needs and pain points?
Our primary audience is people listening to the radio or other streaming audio or TV or other streaming video entertainment.
Their pain points are they want a simple way to find out more or avail of the opportunities and incentives advertisers put before them.
How does Say It Now solve these need states of the audience and fill the gap in the market? What is the value you bring to them?
Say It Now addresses these needs by allowing listeners to respond to a call to action at the end of an ad using their voice assistant, such as saying, “Alexa, open Tesco Mobile.” This opens a brand-specific voice experience or “skill” that can provide further information, coupons, reminders, add items to a shopping cart, or even connect the listener with a sales representative. This technology transforms passive audio ads into an active, engaging experience.
The key benefits this offers to listeners are:
- Convenience and ease of use: Using voice commands is simpler and faster than traditional methods of response, like visiting a website or calling a number.
- Extended engagement with brands: Listeners can access more information, offers, and interactions with brands that interest them.
“High Conversion Rates: Say It Now boasts an average 27% conversation rate for its voice experiences”
Describe your company culture.
We are a globally distributed and culturally diverse team, our values are curiosity, egalitarianism, meritocracy, and freedom of conversation.
What are the most common misconceptions in your sector?
People don’t use their smart speakers for anything except timers.
What are some of the key consumer and industry macro and micro economic trends impacting your business?
Recent advancements from leading global players are accelerating consumer adoption of conversational AI, validating Say It Now’s strategic direction. In 2024, the integration of technologies like interactive voice and AI has driven conversational agents to become more personalized and contextually relevant, enhancing user experiences across voice and multimodal interfaces. The demand for AI-powered solutions is expected to grow rapidly, with innovations in emotional intelligence and seamless cross-device interactions becoming key differentiators. This progress positions Say It Now to capitalize on this rapidly expanding market, offering significant ROI potential as consumers increasingly embrace AI-driven interactions.
What are your predictions for 2025?
Continued double digit increases in:
- CTV viewing
- Digital Audio listenership
- Engagement with voice assistants
LLM powered conversational assistants developed and deployed by an increasing number of consumer brands and more advertising campaigns encouraging consumers to have a meaningful conversation with their favourite brands.
A conversation with Charlie Cadbury, Chief Executive Officer at Say It Now
Technology spotlight is a brand new series brought you by the team at Ultimate Asset. Our aim is to highlight brilliant technology across the advertising & marketing industries. From their elevator pitch, to the problem they are trying to solve, we hope you can take something new away from each interview. With over 50,000 new technology businesses incorporated in the UK each year, there will be something for everybody.
Ultimate Asset are a boutique global digital recruitment consultancy, specialisting in hires in adtech, martech, media owners, brands and media agencies. With over 20 years of recruitment heritage in media, we support businesses across the UK, Europe, Asia & North America.
Want to be part of the next Technology Spotlight? Get in touch with
Alex Swain, Managing Director via Alex@ultimateasset.com
