As measured by Nielsen NetRatings in its 2003 Spotlight on Advertising Report, top cross media advertisers such as Ford Motor Company, Johnson & Johnson and Verizon Communications strengthened their online ad presences by at least 30% from 2001 to 2002. Media mammoths AOL Time Warner and Walt Disney Company each increased ad spends by 28% during that period, while DaimlerChrysler increased online ad spending by over 400% as part of a major Dodge campaign.
Here's what's driving this new advertising reality:
Consumers Are Online
It's a simple truth: advertisers must go where consumers are in order to reach them. And more and more, consumers are online.
- By the end of 2002,Nielsen/NetRatings tallied the worldwide Internet population at over half a billion people, and eMarketer projects that number will go up to over 709 million in 2004.
Media Consumption Is Shifting
Your target markets - male, female, young and old -- are now spending time online that they once devoted to traditional media like magazines, TV and radio.
- When the Online Publishers Association studied the overall media usage of at-work Web users throughout a typical 24-hour day, the organization revealed in its 2002 report that "this affluent, highly educated group now spends more time on the Internet on a typical Monday-Friday than they spend watching television."
Online Works When TV Doesn't
How's this for a shocker? Some sought-after markets barely respond to TV anymore.
- As noted in a McDonald's 2002 Cross Media Optimization Study conducted by ARF Research Authority, Dynamic Logic and Marketing Evolution, 27% of McDonald's Grilled Chicken Flatbread Sandwich campaign target market between the ages of 18-49 with online access were either lightly covered or not touched at all by the campaign's TV spots.
So, we know advertising online is essential, but for which campaign goals? The fact is, online advertising can improve ROI no matter what the mission of the campaign:
Brand Lift
Advertisers are finding that shifting dollars online bolsters brands.
- When twelve companies spent at least $100,000 on Forbes.com media buys, including Acura, AT&T Corp., BearingPoint (formerly KPMG Consulting), LG Electronics and Samsung Electronics, market research performed by Dynamic Logic showed message association up 28%, purchase consideration up 14%, aided brand awareness up 11%, and brand favorability up 6%.
- A study of a cross media campaign for Dove Nutrium directed by Unilever and Marketing Evolution revealed that redistributing the media to increase online reach to 60% would have resulted in a 5% jump in branding metrics. The study also found that boosting online frequency from 1.7 to 3.1 would have bumped those branding metrics up another 3%. That's an 8% increase in branding metrics with no increase in spending.
- When The Florida Department of Citrus and Click Here chose Eyeblaster Floating Ads and Full Page Overlays to help introduce the new 'Best start under the sun' theme and educate consumers about the benefits of drinking orange juice, message association jumped 200% and awareness was up 280%. - view case study
Customer Relationship Management
Customer Acquisition and Retention
Advertising online will not only help build your base of customers, it will help retain them.
- According to a November 26, 2002 story on MediaPost.com, a high-end, national department store became the exclusive sponsor of all 2002 Fall Fashion Week coverage on washingtonpost.com. The advertiser chose to use online advertising only; no offline media were involved. The result, based on actual in-store sales: a 125% return on investment with retail sales directly attributed to the washingtonpost.com ads.
* In a study conducted by Atlas DMT to determine whether users click on an advertiser's banners even after they've visited their sites once, it was found that over 13% of users who clicked on ads had previously visited the advertiser's site. Plus, conversion rates of those customers were 250% higher than those of first-time site visitors.
Data Capture
The Web enables advertisers to capture consumer data that can be used to connect with consumers and build strong relationships.
- When Microsoft launched Windows XP in October of 2001, the software giant used online ads to collect the email addresses of 220,000 interested consumers, according to an Interactive Advertising Bureau case study.
- Bandy, Carroll, Hellige Advertising used Eyeblaster Floating Ads in McDonald's Kentucky Derby Promotion in part to generate a regional opt-in email list for the fast feeder. The result? Eyeblaster ads outpaced traditional banner performance by 64,000% while building an opt-in email list. - view case study
BulletWhat Online Does Better Than Offline
- More Messaging
Rich media ads using Eyeblaster as well as large interactive ad units are becoming standard offerings of Web publishers, giving online advertisers the ability to feature more information in ads, thus making messages more relevant to target audiences.
- Better Targeting
Web advertisers have the capability to pinpoint consumers in ways that traditional media could only dream about. They can isolate target markets by zip code or city, by demographics and personal interests, by the context of site content and even by the time of day.
- More Control Over Reach and Frequency
The Web enables advertisers to determine reach and frequency of their ads to achieve specific campaign goals more strategically than offline ever could. Advertisers can increase frequency through surround sessions, limit it through frequency caps, and better control reach through the refined targeting capabilities offered online.
- More Immediacy
Online ads enable direct response like never before. Consumers can immediately click to learn more about a product, register for information, or even buy it right there on the spot.
- Diminishing Returns Recovery
In addition to reaching otherwise elusive consumers, advertising on the Web can jumpstart overall cross media campaign results when offline ad returns begin to diminish "by touching the same consumers in a complementary environment," according to the McDonald's 2002 Cross Media Optimization Study.
- Real-Time Optimization
An array of technologies is now available for advertisers to test and optimize online ads in real time during a campaign run. Not sure which creative will appeal to which market segment? Want proof of an ad placement's performance before it's too late? Online ad optimization can make it happen.
- More Tangible Tracking and Measurement
The Internet takes the guesswork out of measuring campaign results. Unlike traditional media, just about any aspect of an online ad can be tracked, from number of ad impressions to intricate consumer interactions with the creative. Plus, as previously mentioned, even branding impact can be assessed. All of this makes for tangible evidence of ROI when it comes time to measure campaign results.
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