For the past several years almost all Internet users have learned how to “instinctively” avoid online ads – especially banner ads. At least that is the general assumption. Display-related advertising, which includes display ads, rich media, digital video and pop-up/under ads have long been the norm and most online users continue to do everything they can to ignore or block out this annoying clutter. That’s why it was surprising when reading the following article in Ad Age:
“Ads on TV are ignored 14% of the time, but this looks rosy once compared with internet search ads, which are ignored 20% of the time, and internet banner ads, ignored a whopping 43%.”
Really? Only 43%?
Are we to presume this means online search ads are not ignored 80% of the time and that banner ads are actually noticed and reviewed 57% of the time? Those percentages seem extremely high. Just ask yourself when was the last time you had actually clicked on a banner ad that wasn’t directly related to the content you were seeking?
As far back as 2007 there have been studies for Banner Blindness that showed “users almost never look at anything that looks like an advertisement…” Many of us have read that the banner ad click-through rates are very low at 0.10% in the US and, similar to spam emails, there must be some financial return on this practice or we wouldn’t see any of it. Again, from a purely anecdotal perspective, most everyone from this writer’s perspective has always complained about and avoided the advertising clutter on websites.
Will there ever be a day when the content for online advertising truly adds to our experience rather than detract from it? With URL location and all the personal information we seem to willingly give away (regardless of any privacy concerns), logic dictates that behavioral and contextual ads will become even more personalized. And of course with the proliferation of mobile technology and iPad’s the forthcoming changes will include all formats. But there must be something more that we’re missing if we really want to connect with online consumers?
Currently advertisers face the problem of either being too passive (and ignored) or just out right obnoxious by ambushing the viewer with full or partial screen takeovers. What to do?
Much of what Science Creative has previously written about is the notion that advertisers should be providing useful and smart content that online targeted users will want to gravitate towards. Becoming part of the content and utilizing social media to expand on what consumers are saying about a brand is far more engaging than a banner ad or those annoying interruptive ads.
Understandably, a brand that sets out to become an integral part of a blog, video or user website may experience some backlash if it’s perceived to be too commercial or contrived; however just like any good PR campaign that is focused on producing tangible results that truly help the consumer, a well crafted campaign that is rich with genuine content may yield positive dividends.
Here’s a sad and unfortunate example of an advertiser who was caught in the trap of thinking that more is better. This billboard has too many words, too many elements and uses a type size that is way too small. There is a word to describe this kind of bad advertising – Tragic!
Less is Better
Remember, outdoor advertising can be a great and profitable way to showcase your product, service or location.
When using outdoor, keep it simple and definitely under 7 words. The less the better – seriously.
Why is it when we’re in the midst of a “crisis” we tend to think this event is somehow unique in human history? At first there is a tendency to panic and then, after way too much hand wringing, the vast majority of people eventually pick themselves up and move on. It’s only months (or years) later with the benefit of hindsight that historians are able to clearly see who the innovators were based on their courage and ultimate success while the rest flailed about in fear of change.
This scenario could easily be about politics, war or business since a “crisis” is often the result of a human endeavor that involves similar emotions, reactions and ultimately – solutions. In this case the subject matter isn’t about the auto or banking industry or even the manufacturing sector that’s under siege, instead it’s about the advertising industry. At this very moment, while many insiders are worrying about their agencies, a few brave souls are charting new paths to success while also employing basic principles that still work.
Shift in Advertising Industry
A recent Fast Company article about the future of advertising did a clever job of evaluating and assessing the current state of the business. Clearly, the old business model is on the way out and that sentiment can be summed up well with these two gems: “In the ad business, the relatively good life of 2007 is as remote as the whiskey highs of 1962.” And as Brian Collins, a former Ogilvy exec, stated, “People who [still] think that way are supremely well equipped to work in a world that no longer exists.”
Okay, so we’re all aware that the advertising industry and consumer behavior is facing a huge tidal wave of change with all kinds of new technology and two-way customer conversations – all of which were practically non-existent a few years ago. However, there seems to be too much shouting and noise about what’s wrong in advertising and for that matter, with life in general. Change happens to all industries and therefore it should be no surprise that the ad agency business is having its turn.
With all the innovation in play and complexity around us in today’s world, it may appear almost counter intuitive to suggest that the fundamentals continue to be the engine of progress while we (the willing and able) adapt and adjust to new media, a new consumer/audience landscape, new competition and the access to fewer marketing dollars to invest. Yet, this is the proven principle, age old or not.
While the advertising business model is facing much chaos and change – with that burden comes both panic and opportunity. Therefore one can whine on and on about everything that is wrong or just go about the business of finding solutions. Getting back to basics is evident all around us – it’s a matter of how we deliver the message and converse and engage with our customers that has altered the playing field so quickly. Just think if someone were to ask you what an App was in early 2007? A what?
The FC article details the dismantling and obliteration of the traditional ad agency model but also shares pertinent examples of how some enterprising industry vets are finding new ways to accommodate the vast and unpredictable changes currently happening.
Do popular brands help define who we are? Do they help provide the visual and iconic clues that define an era or specific moments in time? And do brands need to stick to one image or campaign in order to be successful as representations of moments in time?
Brands that stand the test of time are the ones that are fully ingrained in consumers’ minds. Al Ries of Advertising Age recently wrote an excellent article that argues, “Once a brand is established with a clearly defined marketing position, the brand’s owner should ask a fundamental question before making any significant changes. Why tinker with success?”
Mr. Ries also states, “the way to build a brand is with a consistent message over an extended period of time.” The end result of creating a consistent message is what’s known as building brand equity. Brand equity is created over time through marketing, PR, advertising and more recently social media, and is constantly reinforced by gentle or sometimes over-the-top reminders (ads) that together serve as a ubiquitous force that’s woven into our collective conscience. In other words, we become so familiar with the brand that we recognize it as being a normal part of popular culture and our everyday lives.
A brand’s true usefulness is in how it helps us to participate in culture… brands represent aspects of today’s America: modernity, hope, intelligence, optimism, blindness and decay. These brands are culturally useful to us when we use them or even just have an opinion about them. Because our association with them says a lot about who we are. Significant brands are never just relevant to a category, they contribute to culture at large.
Marking Time with Familiar Brands
Familiar brands from Apple and IBM to Kellogg’s and Colgate-Palmolive often form the backdrop to our daily existence and over time become the icons that help define the present and our past. As we mentioned in an earlier post on technology, “look at any old photograph and it’s the clothes and “products” around the subjects that truly dates the photo.”
Making Films Look Contemporary
And what about movies that take place in present day? Present day is only deemed “present” for a limited time, then the film becomes a representation and a reminder of the past. If you think way back to Stephen Spielberg’s 1977 classic, Close Encounters Of The Third Kind or 1982’s ET the Extra-Terrestrial, these two films were contemporary for the day and each contained scenes where many familiar brands were in view. Yes, what some may call shameless product-placement, was in fact Spielberg carefully setting a baseline for normality. In Close Encounters we see Barry Guiler’s (the little boy) refrigerator filled with familiar brands including pull-tab Coca-Cola cans spilling their contents and later we see a McDonald’s and Shell gas station that all seem to validate the “typical” landscape of Midwest America in 1977. At one point in ET the audience sees the title character looking inside a fridge that also contains several well-known brands such as Coors beer– all of which reinforces the notion that it’s just a normal American household. Of course using Reese’s Pieces is one of the most famous uses of product placement and will forever be associated with ET and the early 80′s.
The point is, Spielberg wasn’t looking to incorporate these well known brands into the script only for the product placement fees, rather, they played an integral role in creating a sense of the familiar and even framing a banal comfort zone for the viewer so that when each of the film’s extraordinary events later took place – they appeared that much more intense. Spielberg employed the use of everyday products and their core brand equity to help deliver realistic scenes that the audience would immediately (maybe even unconsciously) recognize and therefore accept as being ordinary.
For the past several years almost all Internet users have learned how to “instinctively” avoid online ads – especially banner ads. At least that is the general assumption. Display-related advertising, which includes display ads, rich media, digital video and pop-up/under ads have long been the norm and most online users continue to do everything they can to ignore or block out this annoying clutter. That’s why it was surprising when reading the following article in Ad Age:
