Jan
27th

The Idiot Box – Redux

Posted by Lawrence on January 27, 2010 at 10:05 am

When my 10+ year old DVD player started showing its age, I realized that it was time to take the final walk and put it down—just like Old Yeller. In its place now sits a beautiful, smartly equipped Wi-Fi internet-enabled Blu-ray player (a gift from Santa). Just a few seconds after plugging it in, I was greeted by four company logos on the home screen, each with a corresponding color-coded button on the remote control.

The first two companies, Netflix and Blockbuster, are familiar names. And the available video streaming download potential they offer is exciting. These two companies primarily work on a subscription-based model for their main source of revenue, passing the service fees onto the consumer.

The other two companies that appear on the Blu-ray’s home screen are Pandora and YouTube, whose services have been traditionally free to the user—as they primarily function on the income derived from the advertising on their sites. And now that these ads are also making their way directly to people’s TV screens via internet-enabled products (like my Blu-ray player), there lies a virtually untapped new source for business ads to appear—offering viewers a whole new time and place to soak in the products and services that they can’t live without.

Through the use of widgets and other simplified connectivity features, many internet-enabled devices also come in the form of TVs, gaming systems, mobile phones and e-book readers, as well as a slew of new products from companies like Roku and Boxee. These niche products and the enhancements to existing consumer devices are establishing a whole new way for users to access internet features and stay connected, without the need for a PC.

A study by IMS Research stated that “by 2015, more than 473 million homes will have these internet-connected devices. However, the biggest growth will initially be in the Blu-ray sector, where the players are estimated to hit 28 million units in 2011.”

A company that is really extending their advertising reach across these new mediums is NBC Universal. To promote their new movie, The Wolfman, NBC placed audio ads on Pandora, created a Boxee Wolfman application and started running banner ads on mobile phones. Their efforts display a targeted approach across the three screens to reach consumers on their PCs, TVs and mobile phones. It’s hard to escape The Wolfman.

I like what Harry Gold had to say about the subject in a recent ClickZ Article on January 19, 2010:

“In conclusion, the way to think about interactive TV is this: anything you can do on a Web site you will be able to do with interactive TV. Ads will become much more action oriented to encourage viewer/user behavior and shows will have new revenue opportunities with product placement and embedded calls to action (really saving them). Finally, tracking will be extended to television in a whole new way and will really raise the bar on marketing and advertising performance and accountability. So, what is the good news for online professionals? Online marketers already work under this kind of atmosphere!”

If some of these new developments have you thinking about the potential display advertising can have for your business, let Oneupweb help you spice up your online media campaigns within with our display advertising services. We can help you bring your products and services to your audience, wherever they may be. Whether they’re searching for that YouTube video sensation or listening to their custom-made Pandora station on a new internet-enabled TV, PC or mobile phone, why not put your ad right in front of them?

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Sep
21st

2010 Display Advertising Wishes

Posted by Maureen on September 21, 2009 at 11:09 am

I’ve made a list, I’ve checked it twice and now comes the task of contacting almost 100 different media outlets to request advertising information for 2010. As I dig through websites looking for information on what advertising mediums are available (website, e-newsletter, podcasts, etc) or simply contact information for an advertising rep, I realized that just a few things could make this process a lot simpler. So I’ve put together my display advertising wish list for 2010:

Have Appropriate Contact Information on Your Website. I can’t tell you how many times I find an outlet that I would like to consider placing advertisements in, but can’t seem to find contact information for an ad rep. I don’t want just an online form – I have no idea who that is going to, or if it even got through. I need to have a good relationship with your sales rep, and if I don’t even know their name, that can’t happen. Please, give me a name, a phone number and an email address. It’s the first step, and one of the most important.

Respond In a Timely Fashion. It may seem simple, but please, just drop me a quick email to let me know you received my request for a media kit. Do it that day, even if you aren’t ready to talk to me in depth quite yet. Some sort of confirmation that my request got through is greatly appreciated.

Provide All of the Information. Don’t send me a media kit just for print when you offer digital advertising as well. I want to know all of the different options that are available with your outlet. Do you have an e-newsletter? Do you have a podcast? Give me all of my options, give me a day or two to look through them, and then let’s have a phone call to see what would be the best for me.

Make Creative Suggestions. Do you think one plan would work better for me than another? Do you think a combination of podcast advertising, a banner ad on your home page and a print ad would be the best? Are your editors coming out with a new webinar that I could sponsor? Don’t be afraid to make creative suggestions – if it can increase qualified leads and ultimately, ROI, I’m all for it.

Give Me a Rate Card. Yes, I understand you want to make the sale. So you tell me about your advertising options, why they are all right for me, and then ask me what my budget is so you can create a plan to fit it best. That’s great, I appreciate it, but please, send me a rate card. I need to know what the price is. I understand that could change, I know we can work out a plan, but I need to see the numbers.

Example of a Media Kit with Rates and Other Important Information

Give Me Audience Demographics. I want to know exactly who my ad will be reaching, how many people and any other information you can provide me with. That way I can be sure that I am in the most appropriate outlet, with the most appropriate option, to really impact my target audience.

Give Me Some Time. I know that this one can be the hardest. You want to make the sale, and be able to focus on the next possible advertiser. But I do need some time. I need to make sure my plan, overall, is absolutely correct. I have to present it, as a whole, to get final approval. Sometimes a few other reps may not move as fast as you, or maybe I simply haven’t been able to schedule a meeting with my CEO to present my plan. I will let you know as soon as I hear anything, or if I have any more questions. I understand you have needs as well. But please, don’t send me a proposal and request that I have it signed and return it to you that day. It’s just not possible for me to do that.

Tell Me If Your Outlet Is Not a Good Fit. This will save us all some heartbreak in the future. If your outlet doesn’t have the audience that I’m looking for, or won’t help me reach my goals, please tell me. Don’t try to make it work. Your honesty will win huge points with me, and odds are I’ll be more likely to contact you again if anything should change.

Do you have anything you’d like to see added to the list? Leave a comment to let me know.

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Feb
6th

Dynamic Display with Tumri's AdPod

Posted by Luke on February 6, 2009 at 2:52 pm

Tumri, a company located in Google’s home base of Mountain View, California, has developed a technology which automates the creative elements of display ad units.

Unlike the traditional, self-contained display ad unit, Tumri’s AdPod has been developed to construct display ad units in real-time. The ad unit is broken down into a template with various subcomponents. These subcomponents could be brand logo, background image, product image, offer/price, call to action, etc. Each of these subcomponents has the ability to be changed in real-time.

Last month Tumri announced Google’s certification of AdPod, which allows the platform to be used to display ads across Google’s content network.

If you are unfamiliar with the content network, here is a video explanation from Google:

Tumri’s President and CEO, Calvin Lui explains the benefits:

The obvious benefit is much greater relevancy in front of the consumer and a higher lift in response rates. Even more, there’s lower cost of production. In the traditional paradigm, the advertiser would need dozens of versions of hard assets. For example, if there’s an attempt to geo-target 30 DMAs, a male and female demographic, and numerous sub-demographics within each category, then you have multiple messages and format sizes. You put that all together and do the math, [and] you have hundreds, if not, thousands of possibilities; way too many to leverage effectively.

In actual practice, Tumri’s AdPod will serve as an advanced filter for Google’s content network. As a display ad is served on the content network, Google will pass along keyword information to Tumri, who will then adjust the subcomponents and messaging based on behavioral, contextual and demographic information related to the content. By analyzing the contextual information and mapping it with past search and behavioral patterns, Tumri believes to have a more relevant ad unit.

Ultimately, Tumri has developed a technology that renews the concept of contextually-placed display ads and with falling CPM prices, perhaps Tumri offers a solution to help those large networks more efficiently monetize content.

Clearly Google believes Tumri’s AdPod technology will boost click-through rates on the content network and more importantly drive revenue. Regardless of Tumri’s claim of greater relevancy and ability to rapidly A/B test, this doesn’t change user behavior. More often than not, consumers in the content network are in research mode or the initial stages of the buying cycle. The value would then seem limited to brand awareness and attempting to generate demand rather than capture it.

The click is only the initial step. I can drive all the traffic I want to my website, but if my site is not user-friendly, they’re simply not going to convert.

My point is that while the AdPod technology sounds impressive, an advertiser should be more concerned with investing in website usability. It’s not enough to get users to a website. Understanding how users interact with your site and why, helps marketers reveal those messages and elements with the most selling power.

While it starts with the click, post-click analysis leads to conversion improvement.

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Sep
29th

The Silver Lining In Advertising's Perfect Storm

Posted by Vern on September 29, 2008 at 10:20 am

I don’t have to tell you we live in challenging economic times.

Talk of a U.S. recession has permeated the news for well over a year. It seems that every measure of business and economic activity paints a picture of gloom and doom. In fact, a recent study from TNS Media Intelligence, found that total advertising expenditures fell in the first half of 2008.

silver lining by theakshay on flickr A careful read of the study confirms the ongoing deceleration of spending on newspaper, television and magazine advertising.

There are some bright spots in the report, however. Internet, cable TV and syndication TV saw gains in ad spending. Internet display advertising jumped 8%. Some may argue that’s a no-brainer. Advertisers are spending in these channels because usage is increasing. They’re just following the eyeballs.

But look beneath the surface and you’ll see why smart marketers are moving more of their budget to internet display advertising.

Internet display advertising shares important benefits with internet search advertising.

The first benefit is targeting. The internet allows advertisers to target their market with a laser-like focus. No matter what you’re selling, you can get your message in front of those with a predisposition to buy. The scattershot approach of traditional media means marketers will certainly overspend to reach the same audience. This approach wastes precious dollars and hurts the bottom line.

The second, and equally important, benefit is measurability. Just knowing how much you’re spending isn’t enough in this tough economy. Knowing what ROI you’re getting on that ad spend is critical to maximizing profitability. The very interactive nature of the internet makes this possible. Clicks are a wonderful thing!

Now, this isn’t ground-breaking information. But it is more important than ever before.

As companies react to tough economic times, those that better target their ad spending and measure and analyze the results will prosper. Those that don’t are in for a stormy future.

Image: theakshay

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