NONE: Re: ONLINE-ADS>> Mass Medium? Targeting?
Re: ONLINE-ADS>> Mass Medium? Targeting?
Jim Meskauskas (Jim_at_HAWKMEDIA.com)
Wed, 24 Jun 1998 14:21:11 -0700
Marlena Schwarz writes:
>I don't care what anyone says, I'm going to recommend
>another medium for awareness (branding). The power of the
>Web doesn't currently lie in its ability to create
>awareness. It lies in its ability to engage consumers in
>a dialogue, so that's what I'm going to do with my
>clients. Let them do print or TV for branding. And, rich
>media is an oxymoron in 1998. Maybe it'll happen soon but
>in my work I'm still dealing with 28.8 modems.
You're right. In the here and now, the Web probably isn't the best
place to initiate a effort to raise awareness. Unless, of course, you
are a netcentric entity initially interested only in those who spend a
decent amount of time online. By maintaining a ubiquitous presence on
the Web, e-commerce businesses like Amazon and CDNow were able to
generate some kind of awareness of their name and trade. This isn't to
say they haven't always been motivated first and foremost by a direct
response objective, but the awareness has come as a by-product of their
efforts. I also agree that rich media isn't the answer to boosting
overall awareness, but it does have noticing value that the basic banner
doesn't. As you say, this is still a 28.8 medium and advertisers must
be sensitive to that.
>
>What I think is going on with declining click-through is
>consumers are tired of the gimmicky banners that end up
>disappointing the user once s/he clicks on it. The
>gratuitous use of "FREE", obnoxious colors and other silly
>techniques that used to work are over as click-through
>boosters. People are tuning out. What I think needs to
>happen is marketers have to start branding their banners.
>If a consumer sees a recognizable, trusted brand name that
>has some relevance to them AND the banner is positioned
>somewhere relevant, you can still get some decent results.
> If the brand is unknown you need a compelling offer or
>message without stupid bells & whistles. Works for us.
>
Declining click-rates are a different issue. That has more to do with
the acclimation of adoption. The novelty of the Web is wearing off. At
the first formal Society for Internet Advancement _at_ San Francisco event
last night there was a panel discussion dealing with client enthusiasm.
Ellen Comley, GMD at A&LSF stated that the CTRs are going down in
Europe, too, reflecting the same kind of adoption curve the industry has
seen here. Ultimately, people are people, whether on the web, watching
TV, or flipping the pages of a catalogue. The world of Direct Marketing
doesn't expect anything better than a 1%-2% response rate, and they're
paying far higher CPMs for traditional collateral. Why should we expect
more from this medium? And given the efficiency, who cares? At the end
of the day (anyone else getting tired of that phrase?), it's efficiency
that matters. At this stage of the Web's development, if you want
low-CPM mass branding, stick with broadcast. But if you're interested
in efficient one-to-one marketing efforts, the Web's got your name
written all over it.
[clink, clink] my two cents
Jim
~~~~~~~~~~
Jim Meskauskas
Media Planner
Hawk Media
731 Sansome St., 5th Fl
San Francisco, CA 94111
PH: 415-777-4645
FX: 415-777-1062
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