Invite colleagues
There is a war taking place in online advertising, one that will determine what the industry will look like for years to come. This battle is being waged on multiple fronts, but the outcome will be based on a couple of questions: What is the strategic use of paid, earned and owned media within digital campaigns? Additionally, what is the technology will marketers use to create, target, deliver and measure their ads, Communities and search programs?
The Agency that can provide a magic mix of media and software will become rich and powerful. The Agencies that fail will become losers will fade into history. It is crystal clear to me that online advertising is already inexorably linked to the technology and going forward the application of technology into a media strategy that can reduce costs and increase overall ownership/message control and brand development will take the high ground.
Some of my comments may surprise and go against conventional wisdom for many in the digital agency game. Here is someone coming out and talking about shifting the media strategies that have proven to work time and time again. Specifically, for the Media Agencies where they have negotiated competitive rates on media (paid media model). Under this model, it is much easier to tie together great ROI models with impressions to clicks to sales ratios, so it may seem odd that an industry colleagues puts his hand up and say's wait; lets revisit this model.
It is right now for Agencies to move with the times and leverage the newer technologies to bring an end to convention and to start questioning how we can do better for our Brands. Lets not just drop a percentage down to the media line producing media plans that have us purchase banners on sites (that attract our target audience) but shift more budget towards an 'owned and earned' model. This won't be so straight forward for many as they the Agencies will need to justify a shift with their clients and then stand by while they 'work out' the metrics, operational impacts and approaches to including 'owned and earned' media into their strategies.
Before I go more into the argument for broadening your media programs, I want to make it very clear I am not advocating stopping all your paid media, simply consider additional or supplementary media types. But in fact, if your Agency does not do this they will most likely become obsolete. I am a strong believer that all of the “middle-men” -- agencies, ad networks, etc. -- will be made redundant once the technology platforms are in place and Brands hold their Agencies more accountable for costs/benefits.
Most marketers are becoming quite sophisticated when it comes to data and technology and you would assume this just given the use of self-serve ad-buying platforms like Google, Yahoo, MSN and Facebook etc (and soon with Sina Weibo here in China) Moreover, I am seeing marketers -- retailers, in particular -- appear to be bringing some eMarketing activities in-house thanks to platforms such as Taobao and 360Buy.com etc. It is now much easier with these systems to operate and therefore develop in-house promotion activities around them.
Meanwhile, the next-generation of digital marketing Agencies (such as Digital Jungle) are launching their own assault on Adland. By reducing paid media buys (purchased through self serve platforms and by traditional brokered deals direct with media) too increasing the budgets being put towards social media (earned). But this too, won't be the end. Over the course of the previous year I have started to sense many Brands/Marketers are becoming increasingly cynical about the benefits of seeding/feeding in Weibo or having a fan pages in Renren/Kaixin001 etc - what are the results that these activities are really having? I am being asked increasing about the 'water army' or fake fan techniques that are being employed by many Agencies in China. How do you reconcile the costs of using 'key opinion leaders' to the benefits being derived. These are all questions driven by doubts in using an earned media channel. However, much doubt in the channel can be put down to poor understanding, poor execution, over ambitious goals or unrealistic budgets ... not all and I would say some concern is justified.
I predict that we will see some budget move towards owned media, where consumer based brands leverage the notion of "branded communities"and move into having their own site that has community type elements to encourage 'engagement' and 'stickiness'. This approach also has it's own set of issues (around the community development -technically and socially) but having some alternatives to the 'lets buy a banner' or 'lets get a verified account on weibo' gives the Agency greater flexibility in approaches put forward.
We do know one thing right now; the use of paid media is becoming harder to justify as the only medium for online promotion, earned media (as the proxy of social media) is gaining budget share and becoming increasing leveraged in campaigns and more consumer brands are looking at their own communities or online VIP sites. Time for Digital Media Agencies to broaden approaches...
Written on Tuesday, 14 February 2012 08:38 by Matt McDougall
