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It’s been almost 21 years since the premiere of the first web banner ad, hearkening an era of constant innovation in the digital marketing field. So what are these latest revelations? The IAB (Internet Advertising Bureau) Engage conference this week probed this question, with experts revealing their findings about some of the biggest brands in the world.

Superfans tell all

Online lodging behemoth Airbnb wants to ensure its “superfans” shape the future of the explosively popular company. Airbnb recently invited its top 6,000 property listers to Airbnb Open, the first conference for hosts, to learn how to keep the gigantic brand personal. UK country manager James McClure said Airbnb wants its one hundred millionth customer as happy as its tenth. The company experienced its biggest night ever just a few months ago when one million people stayed at Airbnb properties. With those numbers, keeping Airbnb personal proves to be a challenge. At Airbnb Open, company execs will gather valuable takeaways from those who know the company best. “These guys are our superfans,” said McClure, “But they also don’t hold back from telling us things we can improve on.”

Data: Enhancing or overshadowing consumer feedback?

The topic of data prevailed at IAB Engage. Analysts cautioned brands against relying too heavily on data lest they lose sight of the creative process and connecting with consumers. However, Disney CMO Anna Hill said data can be an asset as long as brands place importance on prioritizing its consumers’ interest. At this UK-centric conference, Hill said Disney employs 30 Europe-based brand researchers who speak to more than 70,000 consumers a year, all in the name of learning what resonates with the public.

For example, the company discovered an untapped market of adults interested in its brand in Japan, leading to new partnerships with fashion brands like Jimmy Choo. However, Hill believes even numbers can’t replace simply listening to consumers. “A brand like Disney is ultimately about the kids. You have to get a balance between what the science and data and what your instinct and gut tells you,” she said.

Convenience over content

From Netflix to Uber to Spotify, the hottest brands may be captains of their respective industries, but all share one thing in common: convenience. That’s right: content isn’t king – convenience is. “Brands that can help consumers easily book a hotel room or order a taxi or listen to music will win out,” said consumer psychologist Dr. Paul Marsden. Brands and agencies alike should be investigating how they could be improving their consumer relationships. How can you make your customer’s life easier? “The future of advertising is in business model innovation,” said Marsden. “It is not about the next great ad format that changes everything or the next way to interrupt people. You have to change the value proposition.”

It is certainly a brave new world for the digital marketer, all of whom can trace their origins back to a single source – that first web banner:

What does the future hold for digital marketing? Only time – and apparently consumers – will tell.

Speakers from four of the biggest companies in the digital sphere – Facebook, Pandora, Snapchat, and Twitter – offered expertise on marketing to those elusive millennials during a panel at ZenithOptimedia Group’s Mobile Day in New York on Tuesday.

Why the specific focus on this age group? While earlier generations were receptive to traditional print, radio, and television marketing, today’s young adults have eschewed regular channels in favor of social and streaming media.

The speakers at Tuesday’s event suggested learning about millennials’ digital media preferences would assist companies in building more effective ad campaigns.

Here are some of the panelists’ insights:

1. Maintain authenticity by marketing locally

Young adults hate feeling like they’re being marketed to, according to Steve Hwang, Snapchat’s Director of Operations and Strategy. Instead, they want to follow content their friends post.

“Authenticity is really important, and I don’t mean in terms of pretending to be [someone’s] Facebook friend,” said Hwang. “There’s a ton of opportunity for brands to be involved on a more local level in the real world.”

Snapchat’s Live Story feature, for instance, curates users’ similar content into a single stream for other Snapchat users to follow. Earlier this week, the company presented “Mecca Live,” combining content from users who traveled to Mecca during Ramadan and allowing non-Muslims – who aren’t permitted in the city – a rare glimpse inside.

2. Determine your creative strategy with data

Tamara Bedrosian, Pandora’s SVP of Consumer Packaged Goods Sales and Strategy, opined that data should determine the direction of an ad.

Should a campaign run on mobile or desktop? To answer this question, advertisers could learn that young millennial women like to listen to YouTube violinist Lindsey Stirling on Pandora, and the vast majority are listening on Pandora’s mobile app. By tracking data like this, a company can gauge the best platform for a campaign.

“We don’t go out with mobile-first or mobile-only strategies,” said Bedrosian. “Tailor your creative message to the environment and mindset.

3. Seek out new social celebs

“[Social media stars have] followers and a social graph that is far bigger than any celebrity out there,”  said Stephanie Prager, Agency Development Lead at Twitter. She added that these are the figures with whom brands should align when advertising.

Big brands get it. This year, Toyota tapped YouTube stars Rhett & Link to film stunts in its redesigned Camry. In about six months, the video had garnered a mere 75,000 views on Toyota’s YouTube channel, but the online celebs further increased brand awareness when they mentioned the new Camry during six episodes of their daily Good Mythical Morning YouTube talk show, gaining an additional 10 million views.

4. With video, think seconds, not minutes

Videos on Facebook are set to auto-play by default, so advertisers have precious few seconds to grab users’ attention. “You have maybe the first three seconds to stop people in their feeds to get them with a piece of content,” said Trevor Johnson, Director of Facebook’s Global Agency Team. Because of this small window of opportunity, Johnson advises marketers to create four-, eight-, or 10-second videos. Users activate volume once they click on a video, making it more likely they will watch longer clips if interested.

While all the panelists had varying methods of targeting young adults, one of Johnson’s sentiments summed up the direction of marketing in this era: “Millennial behavior… is really driving social and technology behavior going forward.”

It appears the coming years will bring audiences ever more innovative ways to consume advertising.