IMDb’s #1 Ad Product adam lincoln November 27, 2022

IMDb's Flagship Advertising Product

Premium Title Page (PTP)
WHAT

Advertising product design/UX

ROLE

Design lead

At the time, we didn't know we were creating a product that would revolutionize advertising on IMDb.

I led the design side of a small team tasked with the creation of a new immersive ad product that would take over a movie’s title page.

With limited resources and creative use of the ad placements already available to us, we were able to create a truly immersive endemic advertising experience for Disney. The entire page was Thor-flavored; on load, lightning struck/charred the IMDb logo and ‘powered up’ the media player.

One of the most rewarding experiences I can remember as an advertising designer was reading in one forum someone explaining how to turn ad blockers off in order to see the Thor execution properly.

This not only solidified an already positive relationship with Disney, it also prompted a deluge of inquiries from other studios asking how to get this new immersive, 100% SOV ad product for their upcoming titles.

Within a few short years, our team had executed one or more PTPs for most of the major Movie and TV studios in the United States.

One of the most rewarding experiences I can remember as an advertising designer was reading in one forum someone explaining how to turn ad blockers off in order to see the Thor execution properly.

This not only solidified an already positive relationship with Disney, it also prompted a deluge of inquiries from other studios asking how to get this new immersive, 100% SOV ad product for their upcoming titles.

Within a few short years, our team had executed at least one PTP for most of the major U.S. Movie and TV studios.

Still IMDb's Advertising Cornerstone

The PTP became IMDb’s flagship advertising product for both desktop and mobile and still is more than a decade later. As a value-add that required a minimum spend of $200K, it prompted a new era of revenue for the company, while simultaneously allowing us to retain creative control of the title page executions.

Still IMDb's Advertising Cornerstone

The PTP became IMDb’s flagship advertising product for both desktop and mobile and still is more than a decade later. As a value-add that required a minimum spend of $200K, it prompted a new era of revenue for the company, while simultaneously allowing us to retain creative control of the title page executions.

"It’s the most successful ad product, ever, launched on IMDb. Still used today in new form that matches the new site, but the framework and model (value add to drive incremental sales) continues to be the thing propelling endemic advertising forward for that company."
Former Head of Creative Studios at IMDb
Full Screen Native Advertising

When it came time for a “PTP 2.0”, I led the design side for another new ad product – one that gave us the ability to make fully responsive, full-screen sponsored microsites seamlessly integrated into IMDb

This is what drove the concepts around the Despicable Me 3, American Hustlers and The Walking Dead projects, among others.

Moana: A Perfect Goodbye

Just before I switched roles and almost exactly 3 years after Thor, I had the privilege of beta testing our new “PTP 2.0” product – this time with Disney’s Moana.

In short, my last major project was another amazingly fun and immersive product, again for Disney, with essentially the same team that made the original PTP product. I couldn’t have asked for a more fitting bookend.

Moana: A Perfect Goodbye

Just before I switched roles and almost exactly 3 years after Thor, I had the privilege of beta testing our new “PTP 2.0” product – this time with Disney’s Moana.

In short, my last major project was another amazingly fun and immersive product, again for Disney, with essentially the same team that made the original PTP product. I couldn’t have asked for a more fitting bookend.

MoanaPTP 2.0 Beta