Jeff Molander

About Me

I've been involved in online marketing and media since the beginning. After participating in the digitization of audio-visual technologies I moved into the online realm of corporate communications, founding Molander & Associates to help bridge what I saw as a large "techno-knowledge gap." Working with both incumbent marketers and budding dot-com entrepreneurs I brought traditional business planning processes and a sense of stability to what is now known as the "dot bomb days."

In 1999, I joined up with a client and helped found what is now a division of Google... digital customer acquisition agency, DoubleclickPerformics. Here, I brought U.S.-based retailers like Neiman Marcus, j jill and Bose into performance-based "affiliate" marketing strategies. The company not only survived the dot bomb days but grew to a valuation of $65 million in 5 years. Today, I provide strategic advice to early stage entrepreneurs, institutional and private investors, agencies, multi-channel retailers and service marketers. In simple terms, my recommendations serve to build business cases for (and against) investment in digital advertising and media strategies.

I, and my network of colleagues, continue to help today’s decision-makers break down walls, access vital digital knowledge and build financially sound business strategies that leverage the hyper-connectivity of our world.

What Makes Me Tick?

Ultimately, my goal is to redefine the way people view, use and invest in digital media and advertising. Why? Because more of us can, and should, share in long-term, sustainable wealth generation. We can do better and by collaborating with like-minded colleagues I’m challenging commonly held beliefs and practices. In simple terms, I’m using my insider advantage to help people on the outside (common business folk) demystify and gain control over today’s digital media and advertising ecosystem — one that now empowers most of us yet remains purposefully shrouded in hype-and-spin. My consulting practice and forthcoming book, Ignorance Economy, are rooted in a passion for accountability, transparency and authenticity. Make no mistake, these values are under attack in today’s digital business sphere and I’m dedicated to helping change that.

Social media and consumer empowerment is merely the tip of the iceburg. By exposing behind-the-scenes, sometimes "darker" details about how digital advertising really works we have a better change at understanding and taking action to enrich our lives and businesses. The promise of being hyper-connected and 'always on' is an exciting one for marketers and consumers but there are serious roadblocks. There is a powerful superforce threatening to stifle progress. A mysterious, hidden digital sub-economy run by techo-elite opportunists stands in the way.