IceRocket - New Graphical Search Engine: Are Customers Going to Choose to Land on Your Site?

There's a new search engine blasting through the web - it's called IceRocket. What's so cool about it? The search results are shown with an image from each found site. You get an idea of what's out there - before having to click through to each found site.

What does this have to do with online marketing? Search engines are changing - your site and your search marketing efforts better keep up with the changes. IceRocket's graphical listing shows how important the look of your landing page is to search marketing. Is the look of your landing page going to encourage or discourage clicks to your site?

Another really cool thing about IceRocket is each found site also has a link to Archives - a listing of the site's old, forgotten pages back to 1996. Kind of like dumpster diving on the Net. (The Archives are actually from WayBack Machine by Internet Archive - 30 billion old pages.)

Check out what people see when searching for your products/services: www.icerocket.com

Then dig through some digital trash: www.archive.org

Mobile Phone - Personal Interactive Media Points

Seana from MediaPost posed the questions:
As brand marketers and advertisers, we must pay close attention to how the mobile phone fits into everyday life. I'll leave you with a question. Are mobile devices taking time away from our media?

Here is my response:
I agree that mobile phones are just a new form of media - but a better, more targeted, always on, always there form that have eclipsed PCs in world-wide use - and will soon eclipse PCs in over-all functionality.

Because mobile phones are "always on, always there" they are the ultimate tool for geo-targeted daypart advertising. Consider this: On his morning commute, a person receives an ad for a free coffee with purchase of a bagel. During lunchtime he receives an ad for a lunch special from a nearby restaurant. While grocery shopping, receives an in-store reminder to buy milk and gets an ad for an instant special on produce that the store has overstocked. That evening receives an ad for discounted theater tickets for an undersold show. 2 days later receives an ad for an "escape the city weekend special" from a nearby resort that has open reservations. The target agrees to receive these ads because his phone bill is part-paid by the ad network (similar to agreeing to receiving online ads from the GAIN network in order to use the file sharing service Kazaa.)

And the amazing thing is - because a phone is delivering the message - the person can easily take action - whether it's making the reservations, buying movie tickets - or walking over to the produce section and buying the overstocked oranges.

Mobile phones are not just phones that are mobile - they are personalized interactive media points.

There is a great article on the site PDA Today about the explosion of mobile phone use and the future of mobile phone technology: Mobile Phones Could Make Your PC Obsolete
http://www.pdatoday.com/pdaviews_more/1647_0_4_0_C/

Mobile Phone Marketing: The Always-On Always-There Ultimate Device For Geo-Targeted Daypart Advertising

Seana Mulcahy of Brand-Truth wrote:
It is my firm belief that there has been a shift in consumer media/device consumption from PC-first to mobile-first. Look at just about anyone from a kid to a colleague to a taxi driver. Most people go to their phone first. Phones allow for controlled, quick bursts of communication.

As brand marketers and advertisers, we must pay close attention to how the mobile phone fits into everyday life. I'll leave you with a question. Are mobile devices taking time away from our media?


My reply:
I agree that mobile phones are just a new form of media - but a better, more targeted, always on, always there form that have eclipsed PCs in world-wide use - and will soon eclipse PCs in over-all functionality.

Because mobile phones are "always on, always there" they are the ultimate tool for geo-targeted daypart advertising. Consider this: On his morning commute, a person receives an ad for a free coffee with purchase of a bagel. During lunchtime he receives an ad for a lunch special from a nearby restaurant. While grocery shopping, receives an in-store reminder to buy milk and gets an ad for an instant special on produce that the store has overstocked. That evening receives an ad for discounted theater tickets for an undersold show. 2 days later receives an ad for an "escape the city weekend special" from a nearby resort that has open reservations. The target agrees to receive these ads because his phone bill is part-paid by the ad network (similar to agreeing to receiving online ads from the GAIN network in order to use the file sharing service Kazaa.)

And the amazing thing is - because a phone is delivering the message - the person can easily take action - whether it's making the reservations, buying movie tickets - or walking over to the produce section and buying the overstocked oranges.

Mobile phones are not just phones that are mobile - they are personalized interactive media points.

There is a great article on the site PDA Today about the explosion of mobile phone use and the future of mobile phone technology: Mobile Phones Could Make Your PC Obsolete
http://www.pdatoday.com/pdaviews_more/1647_0_4_0_C/

Rich Media Jabberwocky

Jim from MediaPost wrote:
In the go-go dotcom days, the less something made sense, the more successful it was supposed to be. But after Ooga ooga and Shoshkele fell by the wayside, why are rich media companies following their footsteps?


My reply:
The Forest:
The online industry would definately benefit from standardization of rich media technology formats and names - just as offline advertising has standards (for example print has standard file types, dimensions, and print resolution).

The Trees:
Companies need to differentiate their products - but realize the importance of using names that build a brand and enhance consumers' perception of what the product is.

TomBoy, TowelBoy, and BadBoy actually make sense to me and build the brand.

Names like Shoshkele and Ooga Ooga are not clear. Maybe Ooga Ooga means that the technology is large and takes control of the nav bar like a gorilla? Is a Shoshkele a very petite little ad that you don't see enough of because you spend too much time concentrating on your work, but soon grows into a teen-age ad that you worry about?
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Marketing to 18-to-34-year-old men

Sean from MediaPost wrote:
While I certainly don't claim to be an expert on 18- to 34-year-old men, I have raised an eyebrow to them lately. A while back I wrote about this on the Spin board. At that time, Nielsen came out with some revealing little ditties on the most coveted 18- to 34-year-old male market. In a nutshell, these guys get bored easily; think 30 seconds is a heck of a long time; and like porn, MP3s and music downloads, games, and sports. Who comes to your mind when you think of agencies, brands, or creative that's successfully captivating this demo?

Here is my response:
Man do I have some things to say about this topic, considering I’m part of the demographic.

Problem reaching us? There’s no problem – just give us what we want – something cool to look at with great music.

Example of an effective offline campaign?
Target Stores – very "video-esque", cool visuals combined with cool music (almost makes me want to shop there – almost). They stopped selling products and started selling a lifestyle.
Effective online ads?
The return of Napster. Very cool online placements, cool use of the ad delivery technology, and fun creative from Venables, Bell and Partners.

What is the wave of the future? Integrated offline and online advertising and breaking myopic marketing boundaries. Broadband has a long way to go to compete with TV’s instant access to hundreds of channels. We’re not simply going to turn off the TV for the Net – but we will increasingly tune out considering we typically watch TV and surf the Net simultaneously. This is why companies need to understand how much more effective a creative campaign can be that integrates offline and online advertising. If you have an offline ad appearing on TV series, test the waters and run an online campaign on that channel’s site.

Breaking the Myopic Marketing boundaries. Look beyond your core business and develop new marketing opportunities that can synergistically enhance your business. What common traits do your customers share with other industries’?

Blogacracy?

Mark from MediaPost wrote:
Did you know that there was such a thing as Blogocracy? I didn't, until I began researching blogs and the bloggers that blog. Sure, much has been written about blogs and their significance. Weblogs are what bulletin boards became when they grew up and got digital, right? Well run blogs that have specific targets and audiences can even become a kind of media all their own.

To me, blogs are an extension of that, but primarily a more insular one. Of course, I regard something like Rock Bruner's blog from Ad:Tech as valuable. But, that's less about the value of a blog and more about the witness on site providing insight. Regarded from a greater distance, I just don't get what the hubbub is about today's blogocracy, and why anyone should care if bloggers get media credentials for the conventions and the like.


My reply:
Why has blogging become so popular? Simple. Low cost and ease of use. Same phenomenon happened with desktop publishing.

Why has it gained so much attention? Magnet theory - all of those disparate writers and self-promoters are now condensed into communities.

Brands vs. Bargains

Cory from MediaPost wrote:
Did anyone else see the article that was in The New York Times Sunday edition about two weeks ago regarding the topic of brands versus bargains?

When you develop your messaging and write a strategic brief for the next campaign you work on, think about these concepts and attempt to demonstrate rather than tell. Attempt to show the consumer, rather than proclaim your values. If you do this consistently through your messaging, your long term growth will be guaranteed without sacrificing your short term metrics for success.

My reply:
Yes! I think an important point here is that "Actions speak louder than words, but words of those actions travel fast and far."

Before the Internet, if a customer were angry about a company's action, or lack of action, they had very little chance of publicly voicing their opinion. Conversely, a satisfied customer also had very little ability to impact other customers' opinions.

Times have dramatically changed. We now have industry forums and community portals such as craigslist where it is very easy for a customer to instantly voice his or her opinion to a large portion of the target audience.

A company I worked for implemented a 30-day no questions asked unlimited exchange policy. Those were the words. We backed it up internally with 100% action, and minimized policy abuse by contacting customers, which also gave us product feedback and more customer care credibility. Yes, it cost money implementing this policy - but we received a great ROI. We soon found that customers were talking about this policy on industry forums - undoubtedly sending new customers our way.

Companies need to realize and take advantage of this ability for the customer to take instant action - and take action themselves to insure that those words are positive before they get too far.

Olympic Integration!

So I'm watching the Olympics on NBC - the gymanstics are on - and like any other ADD filling his fix with TV and the Net, I check out the nbc.com. There's a big skyscraper for TJ-MAXX reading "2004 Tour of Gymnastic Champions" - its linked to the site for the TJ-Maxx sponsored 38 city tour of the men's and women's 2004 Gymnastics team.

The site is very interactive - with streaming video clips and many active roll-overs.

Now this is a Olympic Integration!

http://www.tjmaxxgymnasticstour.com/index.asp

Interactive Internet and RFID

Seana from MediaPost wrote:
So I've got another acronym for you as I write on this rainy Monday. It's RFID. It stands for radio frequency identification. I believe it will be the next generation of wireless technology.

I'll leave you with a couple things to think about. Would you consider tagging your pet in case good old Rover ran away? How about your car? Or maybe your baby? I'd love to get your take on this as well as how we could use this in our business in the short term future.

My reply:
Is RFID a technology that will make for an interactive internet? Possibly. But what about using the technology to create interactive products for the blind? An RFID reader with audio could tell a blind person what is in a can (chicken soup, lentil soup...), what color a shirt is...

Craigslist, E-Bay and the Value of Localized Marketing

A few years ago, a site called Craigslist started gaining notice with its massive LOCALIZED postings of jobs, apartments, and services - and forums discussing what locals would discuss - from places to eat, to places to work out. Internet Yellow Pages with local interaction. E-Bay just announced that they bought a 25% stake in Craigslist - which to me is just another signal that companies realize the importance of localizing your marketing and advertising.

Rich Media, Eyewonder and the Return of Webmercials

Video has always captured more attention than static images. Back in '96 when I first started designing web sites, I came up with the idea of Webmercials - very long, animated GIFs. Clients and site visitors loved them because they did not require a plug-in. They were limited, no sound - but very effective and very entertaining.

Then, as Quicktime/Real/Windows Media started gaining momentum, clients asked for commercials in these new formats. The problem was multiple media formats had to be created (hi bandwidth and low bandwidth for each player) and the plug-ins were continuously being updated. What better way to lose a customer's attention than send them off to download a new plug-in version and hopefully, successfully install the new version and continue with the experience. The sites no longer were entertaining - more a test of patience.

But now we have Eyewonder - streaming rich media that does not require a media player upgrade, download or Flash plug-in. Eyewonder is a stand-alone streaming solution that works and The platform supports multiple rich media formats:
Video Banner Ad
Video Multi-layer Ad
Video Expandable Ad
Video Pop-out Ad
Video Pop-up Ad
VideoStitial Ad
Video AOL AIM Ad
Video Website Ad

The EyeMedia for Advertising platform also provides online tracking of:
Serving Statistics at Campaign and Site Level
Video Interaction Metrics
Reach and Frequency
Duration of Video Play
Time and Date.

Eyewonder is a very cool technology - and one that will keep your visitors where they should be - on the site looking at the content.

Budgeting for Interactive Media

Cory from MediaPost commented:
All of these arguments speak to the increased role of interactive in the media mix. All of these elements point to the need to increase the slice of the pie dedicated to interactive, though the relative percentage certainly differs from category to category and target to target. I have heard/seen that some companies spend up to 25 percent of their budgets in interactive, and I have heard/seen that many obviously spend less, but the question is answered by factoring in the questions above. If your target spends 15 percent of their time online, should you spend a 15 percent minimum in the medium? If you factor in the influential nature of the medium into a weighted average, does it make the case to spend slightly more?

You obviously need to run these analyses for yourself and measure the data against internal opinion, but I'm sure you will come to the same conclusion: interactive is more important now than it ever was before.

My reply:
I agree with the points you make in "Forecasting Your 2005 Interactive Budget" - specifically on the points of an online primetime. What I find interesting is that with dayparting and geo-targeting, advertisers can now create online advertising campaigns that enhance television campaigns with improved ROI. Many people simultaneously watch television and surf the web during night hours, often going to the show's website/fansite. An online ad timed with an offline ad can dramatically increase the impact and also provide ability for direct response.

Improving ROI With Dayparting and Geo-Targeting or How to Take Advantage of ADD

There is great phenomenon happening with young males - they surf the web and watch TV at the same time. What does this mean to advertisers? The opportunity for highly targeted, cross-media advertising campaigns that will have greater impact and greater ROI with the use of online advertising dayparting and geo-targeting.

Consider this: Every Tuesday night, Jack watches the Discovery Channel series MythBusters from his apartment in San Fancisco (Pacific Time Zone). While watching, he is also online surfing a number of web sites including the MythBusters fansite hosted on Discovery.com. Unfortunately this means that he is paying about 1/3 of his attention to the TV and 2/3 to what is on his computer. He pays even less attention to the TV when a commercial is aired.

Now imagine a commercial airing for a product that he is the target, which, thanks to great creative, regains 1/3 of his attention. It registers slightly. A few minutes later an online ad appears for that same product, delivered through the Discovery web site. Chances are the online ad will catch his attention, creating more of an impact - and he will be more apt to take action. Better yet, the online ad can be an interactive rich media ad allowing him to take action.

This is all possible with dayparting and geo-targeting: placing online ads when and where they will be most effective, while controlling the cost.

With dayparting, an advertiser can specify when they want their online ads to be delivered - for example 10 to 11PM West Coast.

With geo-targeting, advertisers can specify the geographic area for the online advertisement (by city, state, zip, DMA, etc.) - for example the DMA San Francisco/Oakland/San Jose.

Combine the dayparting and geo-targeting, and advertisers can specify an online ad delivery on the Discovery site to correspond with a West Coast TV commercial placement that will air during the 10PM episode of Mythbusters. This controls the number of impressions, improving ROI - and allows for direct initial measurement of the campaign.

Cross-media synergistic marketing at its best.