Opt In to Advertising’s New Age

Posted on October 4, 2005 by Tom O'Leary

THE NY Public Library, together with the Online Publishers Association, is hosting an interesting exhibition which contrasts advertising vehicles over the last 200 years. Ads from print, radio, television and the Internet are featured side by side, showing the evolution of advertising across different mediums.

“What does a Coke ad look like online in 2002? No more “pause that refreshes” (print, 1929) or “real thing” (television, 1969). On the screen you see a horizontal straw that slowly fills with dark liquid and bubbles. After a few seconds, the straw slowly becomes clear again. It is beautiful and purely visual.

That is the major difference. With radio and, oddly enough, even with television ads, the humor is largely verbal. With online ads, the wit is almost always visual. In this way they have the most in common with their oldest cousin, print advertising – another medium that doesn’t have a captive audience and must therefore rely on grabby graphics.â€?

Full Article: NY Times (you might have to register to view articles)

One online ad showcased at the exhibition shows an endless flow of milk pouring into a cup of Pilão coffee This demonstrates the visual potential of Internet advertising. The World Wide Fund, an environmental non-profit agency was also represented. Here is a good example of the use of interactivity in one of their ads:
Experience Being a Wild Bird

To see more award-winning online ads, go to: One Show Interactive

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Organic Content: King of SEO

Posted on October 3, 2005 by Tom O'Leary

EVEN WITH ALL OF THE TRICKS AND SHORT-CUTS to search engine optimization (SEO) available today, organic content is still king. Recent studies confirm the importance of organic, content-rich search engine listings.

“Over the past three years, independent research has consistently confirmed that search engine users tend to click on the center column organic (free) results far more often than on paid ads. Earlier this year, search marketers benefited from a number of published studies that clearly demonstrate the higher value of organic placements.� Full Article: WebPro News

With so many approaches to optimizing search engine placement available today, we often overlook the importance of providing good, old-fashioned, relevant content as the cornerstone of our SEO strategy. Let’s face it, as Search Engine users ourselves, we want the meat of content when looking for information. And no matter how crafty SEMs might be, you can’t fake meaty content.

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Insourcing Communications

Posted on October 3, 2005 by Tom O'Leary

RICHARD BRANSON’S ATTEMPT to refine his own oil in order to cut costs at Virgin Airlines teaches us a few things. For one, it teaches us that Richard Branson is an extremely wealthy man! More importantly, however, it teaches us that it is important to take another look at elements of our business that are currently being outsourced. As Branson illustrates; when possible, it just makes good sense to do something in-house if possible. We should consider this not only to save money, but to have control over the quality, efficiency and access to those elements which are critical to our operations.

One thing that small businesses can do themselves today that they paid others for yesterday is managing their communications. It wasn’t too long ago that we outsourced our marketing campaigns, press releases, and relationship management strategies. Affordable bulk email tools like GroupMail make managing our communication efforts easy. The ability for small businesses to communicate with unlimited lists of contacts in a segmented and personalized fashion is empowering. Small businesses can also track the success of their communications’ campaigns easily today with software like GroupMetrics, another Infacta product. GroupMetrics allows users to monitor deliverability, open rates, and click-through rates. These important tasks were far too technical for most of us to manage ourselves yesterday. Technology rocks! Perhaps one day, we’ll be able to refine our own oil too?

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Online Marketing: Teenagers Talk Back

Posted on September 29, 2005 by Tom O'Leary

BECAUSE 97 PERCENT of American teenagers use the Internet, spend more time online than they do watching television, and set trends in the market; it is essential for marketers to understand what turns them on. Last week, online advertising agencies tried to gain real insights into the teenage market during an event at the Millennium Hotel in Times Square, New York. The Interactive Advertising Bureau invited 10 teenagers to the event to evaluate the effectiveness of major online campaigns in front of hundreds of industry executives.

The teenagers watched demonstrations from Nike, Coca-Cola and the video game Halo 2 before providing frank reviews of each. Grant McDonald, founding partner of North Castle Partners, moderated the event. He said, “This is a very tough audience.â€? “They’re so sophisticated, more than anyone else. It takes a lot to turn them on.”

After the teenagers disbanded, Mr. Gnecco winced at the reaction to Coke Studios. “They destroyed me,” he said.

One thing that the teenagers echoed throughout the event was the desire for customization. James Del Guidice, 18, said, “The fact that you actually get to do it yourself is good.â€? “I definitely think the more custom, the better.” Mildred Arteaga, 17, said, “Everybody is looking to be different.”

For the full article and more comments from the trend setters, go to: NY Times: What’s Cool Online, Teenagers Render Verdict

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Online Efforts Outpace Traditional Media

Posted on September 28, 2005 by Tom O'Leary

A RECENT REPORT from Pricewaterhouse Coopers suggests that US online advertising and marketing efforts continue to grow, up 26% to $3 Billion in the second quarter. This can be categorized as a “duh� for those of us who regularly use the Internet to conduct business today. The growth stems from the awakening of corporate marketers to the fact that there are just under 1 Billion Internet users today. In marketing terms, that equates to almost 1 Billion Internet Customers. Also fuelling the increase of online spending is the availability of new and emerging platforms for messaging, to include affordable email marketing software, high-speed digital video, and bandwidth-friendly audio. Because of lower costs, better connections and more functionality on line, consumers are spending more time on the Internet than they are on other media today.

In a report from the LA Times, David Silverman, a partner at Pricewaterhouse Coopers, says, “The consistent growth in overall revenues shows marketers may be shifting more of their total advertising budgets to online.”
Full Article: LA Times

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