Oct 20
adminUncategorized media buying, Mobile Advertising
A new study on consumer response to mobile marketing suggests that the market may not be ready for the new technique, even if the technology is. While mobile marketing is definitely going to be a part of the future of marketing techniques, it may not be wise to put all your eggs in that basket while consumer spending is still way down.
The recession is going to make mobile marketing much more difficult for several reasons, one of the most important being that it’s going to be hard to judge the effectiveness of a campaign when consumers don’t have money to spend, period.
A campaign that might be very effective when consumers are doing a little better may tank when they don’t have extra cash to spend on luxuries, and that misinformation is going to mean bad money thrown after good.
Keep it simple
The best strategy for the moment, the study concludes, is to keep it small and convenient without breaking the bank. Make sure your website is mobile-optimized and get included in mobile searches, but campaigns like mobile video are best left on the back burner until the economy takes a turn for the better.
Jul 14
adminUncategorized social marketing
Facebook is signing up nearly a million new members every day, has over 70% of its users overseas, and is a favorite time-killer for everyone from soccer moms to tweens to working professionals to college kids to the elderly.
It links people in ways that were never conceived of before, and it targets advertising so precisely that buyers are seriously getting their money’s worth. So it’s doing great, right?
Maybe not.
Facebook started as a tool for college kids. Indeed, initially to sign up you had to have an email address with an educational institution’s .edu. As it’s expanded, Facebook has been trying to keep up with the needs of tech-savvy youth as well as the seriously not-tech-savvy older generation – and it’s losing people at both ends of the spectrum.
Facebook may find some restitution in being useful as opposed to being trendy. Twitter is already becoming tiresome to many, but Facebook has continued to grow and expand as it helps families keep in touch, business entrepreneurs interact and even connects people who have been far-flung by major events such as the Holocaust.
We’ll see if being useful will keep Facebook afloat while the next trends come and go.
May 03
adminUncategorized email marketing
The retail industry is using e-mail to personalize its messages to consumers.
“It’s not just putting the consumers name in the subject line. We want to speak to the customer in a more intelligent way,” said Ryan Phelan, director of email marketing for Sears Holding Corp.
Marketing additional services
More companies are realizing the value of integrating the personalized message through all channels of communications. Retail marketers create an individual customer profile based on customer purchases.
For example, if a customer buys a new flat-screen television, a mobile message containing information about how to sign up for a warranty could follow.
Sears’ coupon campaign
Sears took steps to promote its new e-mail program by running a coupon campaign offering customers who signed up for the program a coupon for 10 dollars off their purchase. Since starting the promotion last June, Sears has experienced 50 percent increased participation in its e-mail list.
The takeaway from this trend is that there are many effective, newer means of reaching target markets in a highly relevant, personalized and cost-effective way.
Dec 16
adminUncategorized
On its 30-year anniversary “microsite,” AdWeek tracks ad spending from 1978-2008.
Here’s what we can see:
• Television has had its ups and downs but is decidedly up over 30 years (about 7 ½ times up)
• Newspapers up and down, and up about 3 times overall, but down for sure in recent years (over the past decade)
• Magazines just slightly higher than flat over the entire 30-year period
• Internet tracked only since 1998 and only one direction (up) with the exception of a dip in the 2002-2003 period
Oct 23
adminUncategorized
A new study by Nielsen Mobile says that over 20 million U.S. households rely solely on mobile phones from home landline service. The findings suggest one in five U.S. households could be wireless by the end of this year.
Reducing household spending. Is there any surprise that so many are choosing to go wireless at home considering the current economic climate? Consumers are using every strategy possible to reduce overall household spending. The desire to trim away excess expenses is spurring this trend.
“Landline wireless substitution may be just the start,” says Allison LeBreton, Vice President of client services for Neilsen Mobile.
“As wireless data networks improve and speeds become more and more competitive with broadband, some consumers may cut the Internet chord as well, favoring wireless data cards and other access through carrier networks.”
Who’s going wireless? The Nielsen study revealed more important information to consider:
• The U.S. households most likely to abandon traditional landline phone service tend to fall into a lower income category. 59 percent have household incomes of $40,000 or less.
• Small households, with one or two residents, are more likely to eliminate landline phone service.
• Major life events like moving or changing jobs are directly linked to the decision made by a large number of households to rely only on wireless phone service. It is estimated that 31 percent of those who left landline service moved before doing so. 22 percent made the choice after switching jobs.
• Consumers who chose wireless phone service over landline service tend to use mobile phones 45 percent more per phone, and wind up saving around 33 dollars per phone.
Wireless versus landline phones. Wireless mobile phones aren’t for every household, and some consumers will always return to landline services because they are part of a bundled service they want to receive like satellite television or pay-per-view. And sometimes they will continue with what they know which continues to be the landline.
Feb 15
adminUncategorized
High-end fashion and luxury goods giant Louis Vuitton is set to launch its first-ever television advertising campaign on February 15.
The 90-second spot, which was shot in Spain, India, Japan, and France, features average people unlike Vuitton’s print media campaigns that star such notables as Mikhail Gorbachev, Andre Agassi and Catherine Deneuve. The television ad will be aired on cable and satellite television channels and in movie theaters across the globe.
While Vuitton has always been a well regarded and known name, the company has not until now developed a television campaign. The overall objective of the ad is, of course, to promote the company’s brand. “It is supposed to touch our clientele and views in ways that perhaps other media will not touch, Louis Vuitton Marketing Director Pietro Beccari said. This is a way to say Louis Vuitton is different.
Beccari also said that the company believes strongly that the television advertising will assist in reaching new audiences in China and other Western countries.
Jan 28
adminDRTV, Uncategorized
In today’s highly competitive and rapidly changing retail environment, it’s more important than ever to utilize a multi-channel direct marketing program to maximize sales across retail platforms. There are several proven and evolving marketing models that are being employed by savvy retailers, who understand how to optimize retail sales through direct marketing. We will explore some of these strategies, so you can consider how they can fit into your marketing mix.
Many online retailers are utilizing a combination of offline media including, infomercials, direct response television, print and radio to drive online sales. This type of direct marketing campaign is often referred to as a drive to web campaign. Online retailers are finding that consumers, who initiate a search online, after being exposed to an offline ad, are converting into a sale at a much high rate than those who come to their site through an online media channel. Many online retailers are deploying a paid search campaign that runs simultaneously with a DRTV campaign, in order to capture consumers who initiate a search after viewing a DRTV ad. At the same time, they are also implementing an SEO campaign, to help move up their site organically in the search listings.
Hybrid Campaigns
Another multi-channel retail marketing approach is a hybrid drive to web/drive to retail campaign, to increase both online and store traffic. Frequently, a multi-channel direct response ad campaign is used with this approach. Various media channels need to be tested to find the ones that deliver the optimum ROI. Offline media and online advertising, including paid search, email marketing, affiliate programs, behavioral/contextual and demographic targeting, and rich media can all play a role in a successful multi-channel direct marketing campaign. Social networks and blog networks are newer online mediums being explored by more progressive retailers. Remember that messaging needs to be consistent throughout the various mediums to maximize the impact of the campaign.
Understanding the Target Customer
In today’s more competitive retail environment, it’s increasingly important to understand who is your target customer and to make their retail experience both online and at the store level memorable and enjoyable, in order to increase your sales conversion rate and customer retention. Try to create a retail shopping environment/experience that is easy to navigate, appeals to the target customer and engages all their senses. Remember that online the consumer is always one click away from leaving your site. Retailers also need to understand the lifetime value of their customers and employ customer retention strategies to create customer loyalty and repeat purchases.
Multi-channel retailing is much more complex today, since it often takes place on several retail platforms, in order to gain the optimum results. Direct marketing programs need to be customized to reach target customers in a range of mediums and the shopping experience needs to be tailored to appeal to the target audience. Employing these strategies in your retail-marketing plan will help ensure a more successful 2008 for your retail business.
Oct 01
adminDRTV, Uncategorized
Infomercial media buying is a specialized type of media buying. Infomercial time is sold in thirty-minute blocks on both national cable and satellite networks and on local broadcast stations throughout the U.S. Infomercial time is generally available when regular programming goes off the air during the overnight and early morning time periods and during the morning and afternoon on weekends. Infomercial time is priced based on the size and viewership of the station or network and the size of market where the station is located. The most expensive infomercial time periods are on major cable networks on Saturday and Sundays.
Since there are thousands of local broadcast stations and hundreds of cable and satellite networks, in order to buy infomercial time successfully it’s important to work with a seasoned infomercial media buyer. An experienced infomercial media buyer knows the stations and networks that perform best for certain categories of products targeting particular types of audiences. A knowledgeable infomercial media buyer also knows how to negotiate the most favorable rates for their clients. For example, the rate card for an infomercial time slot might be $1,000, but a savvy infomercial media buyer may know that particular time period is only worth $500 and will be able to negotiate a substantial level of savings for a client’s infomercial campaign by utilizing this type of knowledge and expertise.
Sep 18
adminDRTV, Uncategorized
The iProspect study noted that all ranges of age, income and online tenure reported that conducting search engine queries has become more important to their use of the Internet over the last year. Since users report that the activity of searching is growing more important to them, then businesses need to make sure that their website is found by searchers. Exposing your target audience to your ads and url in multiple mediums will enhance their ability to find your website.
Not surprisingly, television drove the highest percentage (37%) of online users to perform searches, according to the iProspect study. Even in today’s more fragmented media environment, the power of TV remains strong and the influence of TV on online purchase behavior is growing. We have found that anywhere from between 30% to over 90%+ of customers make their purchase via the web, when they are offered both an 800 number and a website in a direct response television ad. Why is this happening? Many consumers feel more comfortable making a purchase via the web than through an in-bound telemarketing service. Also, over 50% of people are simultaneously surfing the web while watching TV, so it’s easy for them to log onto your site when they see your TV ad.
The bottom line is that if you’re not using a combination of TV, print and radio and online ads to reach customers, you’re missing a huge share of potential revenue. Infomercial companies that rely solely on one advertising medium are missing the mark. It takes a combination offline and online advertising to make a true impact on today’s consumers. So leverage your marketing dollars by using the synergy of DRTV and online ads to maximize the impact of your campaign. When you do, you will see your company’s bottom line results improve
Aug 02
adminDRTV, Uncategorized
Today, television and the Internet are merging, at least when it comes to advertising and reaching potential customers. No longer are customers using only one medium to learn about new products and services. Rather, customers appreciate and expect companies to take a multi-media advertising approach when selling products and building brand awareness. As such, smart marketers are using the synergy created from the convergence of television and Internet marketing to capture the lion’s share of the marketplace.
For example, many television networks are now selling TV and online ads as part of a marketing package. That is, when you purchase a television ad you can also purchase online advertising, such as a video ads, on a network’s website. The TV networks realize that a company’s online presence is becoming increasingly important, and networks are trying to create better online content to combine with their TV packages.
Taking the merging of the two mediums a step further, NBC is developing a tool called Total Audience Measurement for advertisers, which examines the amount of time viewers spend with NBC programming, both online and on TV. This tool will help advertisers better understand how the two marketing mediums work together and how much the online portion of a company’s advertising impacts their bottom line.
So why is this multi-media approach gaining so much attention? Consider the facts:
The Weather Channel did a study and found that ad recall was 23% higher when people saw a commercial on both TV and the web, versus when they saw the commercial on TV alone.
Additional studies reveal that anywhere from 15 to over 70% of customers make their purchase via the web when they’re offered an 800 number and a website in a television ad.
TV networks have found that people who are surfing the web are more attentive than people watching TV. In fact, web video commercials increased viewer attention rates by 53%, viewer awareness by 52%, and brand consideration by 27% over traditional TV spots, according to Millward Brown’s CTV-1 Study
The bottom line is that if you’re not using both television and online ads to reach customers, you’re missing a huge share of potential revenue. To help you successfully integrate your television and online presence, use the following suggestions to guide your marketing efforts.
Use your existing TV spots to drive people online.
If you watch any television channel, you can see that many programs direct viewers to the web. The website will then give viewers additional information about the show, interviews with cast members and/or producers, or even clips from upcoming episodes. Programs such as Fox’s 24 and MTV’s The Hills are well-known for this approach. According to the Scripps Networks, 80-90% of their online audiences have watched the network’s TV channels within a week. So there’s a lot of interplay between the two mediums and it’s a good idea to run a customized version your TV ad on the network’s website too.
Realize that you can use this same concept with your company’s TV ads. Make sure all your television advertising includes a website mention and perhaps even web-only specials that people can receive. Use your site to offer people more information about your product or service, coupons, testimonials from real-life customers, and even some interactive features such as blogs or message boards where customers can get involved. When HGTV.com started using their site for customer involvement, they saw a 70% increase in ad revenue. There’s no reason you couldn’t achieve similar increases in sales on your site employing some of these ideas.
If you’re a web-only business, use TV ads to give your online presence a boost.
With all the technology available today, being a web-only business is not just feasible, it can also be extremely profitable. However, web-only businesses that do web-only advertising need to realize that TV is the biggest mass medium and has a proven ability to drive people to the web. So don’t ignore television and think it’s not applicable to your web-only business. For example, eHarmony.com, the online dating site, is a web-based business and initially did web-only advertising. When they added TV commercials to their advertising mix, its been reported that they grew rapidly from approximately $10 million to an estimated $100 million in revenue. So while online ads are certainly effective for online businesses, remember to use the power of television to grow your web-based business even more.
Buy online keywords that match your television advertising.
Since people watching television may not be 100% focused on your ad, you need to make it easy for them to find you later. So even though you may offer a website address and phone number in your TV commercial, don’t expect viewers to always write them down or remember them. However, chances are they will remember the name of your product, or at least a close variation of the product’s name. Therefore, when you buy keywords for your online presence, be sure you purchase not only the name of your product and company, but also variations of your product’s name that not-so-focused consumers can type into a search engine to locate your site. This is one example of how the combination of TV advertising and keyword search works together to improve results.
Customize your message to suit the medium.
Web video advertising needs to be shorter than the typical TV ad. In general, plan your online commercial to be 15 seconds in length. TV commercials typically are anywhere from 15-60 seconds in length, even longer with a direct response spot. If your online commercial is a pre-roll ad that runs before the video segment people are downloading, realize that viewers don’t want to watch a long ad. So in this instance, shorter is better. However, if it’s a freestanding online ad that’s not connected to a video, then you can use a longer format. Many companies who use infomercials, which are typically about 28 minutes in length, shorten it to a 2-minute segment on the web. If possible, have the spokesperson who appears in your TV spot also appear in your web advertising, so there’s a tie in between the two mediums.
Take advantage of web-based TV.
Some TV networks are now creating their own webisodes. These are television-like shows that appear on the web only. For example, FoodNetwork.com in preparing to roll out a web-based show called Cocktails. During each webisode, advertisers will have the opportunity to present ads that thematically tie in with the videos the viewers are watching. As the networks attempt to capture some of the ad dollars that are switching over to the Internet, you’ll likely see more websites with relevant content that engage viewers.
In addition, there’s also an emergence of TV networks that are developing on the Internet. One of the forerunners in this medium is Joost, which offers TV programming online. Some of the programming is original, while the rest is from networks like MTV. Since many big name advertisers are realizing that audiences are migrating over to the web, they are committing advertising dollars to online networks like Joost, in order to capture new audiences.
Another TV network called Ripe TV is taking multi-media advertising to the extreme. Not only do they have traditional television and online ads, but they also have TVs shows online, downloadable podcasts, video on demand, and content people can download onto their mobile phone. It’s an entire network that has developed on the web and has components that cross over into other mediums. Getting your advertising on just a few of these options will certainly increase your company’s presence.
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The Future of Advertising is Now
Companies that are relying solely on one advertising medium are missing the mark. It takes a combination of television and Internet advertising to make a true impact on today’s consumers. So leverage your marketing dollars by using the synergy of TV and online ads. When you do, your company’s brand recognition will grow, and so will your bottom line results.
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Peter Koeppel is Founder and President of Koeppel Direct, a leader in DRTV and direct response television online, print and radio media buying, marketing and campaign management. With a Wharton MBA and over 25 years of marketing and advertising experience, Peter has helped Fortune 500 companies, small businesses and entrepreneurs develop direct marketing campaigns to increase profits.
Peter started Koeppel Direct in 1995 and has built it into one of the leading direct response media buying firms in the U.S.
For more information please visit: www.koeppeldirect.com |
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