News You Can Use

Where is Video Going in the Future?

• Posted: November 2, 2015

Mike O’Brien, writing for ClickZ, discusses recent research by AOL and Crayon which reveals the direction of video’s future, and he summarizes five areas of focus:

-Mobile video is seeing the greatest increase in ad spending compared with desktop and TV.  From 2014 to 2015, it increased by 75% from $1.5 billion to $2.7 billion.

-Homepage videos are rare, but if done effectively, can have great potential in terms of showcasing brands and introducing prospects to the company.

-High-quality digital video content by brands will continue to be an area of growth.

-Agencies and brands are continuing to increase their purchase of digital video programmatically, and an increasing percentage have also brought programmatic buying in-house.

-More companies are moving away from just using free social video platforms.  Larger companies are undertaking in-house video hosting.

O’Brien offers some tips for marketers planning to use video to reach consumers:

-Do a lot of testing before you invest too much money.

-The potential of videos to generate ROI can be increased by positioning them near conversion points.

-High-quality video can be shot on smartphones; however, consumers expect polished videos.

-Online video content must provide value to the targeted consumers in order to attract and retain their attention.

-Programmatic video buying and video-hosting can be brought in-house, but only if marketers have the trained personnel and the appropriate technology.

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For more on this topic, check out the Advertising Tab in Morning Coffee.

 

 

Video Viewing Time Now Equals TV Viewing Time According to Millward Brown Study

• Posted: November 2, 2015

This Media Life Magazine article presents highlights from a new study from Millward Brown, “AdReaction: Video Creative in a Digital World.” According to this study viewers worldwide watch 102 minutes of TV per day, as well as spending 102 minutes per day viewing videos on digital devices.  Their digital video time is allocated between 45 minutes on smartphones, 20 minutes on tablets, and 37 minutes on PCs or laptops.  These averages vary by generation and geography.

The study also found that only 19% of viewers report that advertising on digital videos is favorable, versus 29% for TV.  Skippable ads are generally viewed more favorably.  Specifically, skippable pre-roll ads have 34% favorability on PCs and 31% favorability on mobile devices.  Non-skippable pre-roll ads have 15% favorability.

The study further reveals that consumers would rather be targeted for an ad that is selling an item or service that they are interested in and have searched for online, but they are not receptive to feeling “stalked.”

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Social Media Platforms Will Rise to a 5% Share of All TV Marketing Dollars In 2016 and 2017 According to The Diffusion Group

• Posted: November 2, 2015

The Diffusion Group, a firm which provides research and advisory services focused on media, reports that social media will increasingly be used by TV networks to supplement their program tune-in marketing. Social media platforms will rise to a 5% share of all TV marketing dollars in 2016 and 2017.  This spending will climb to 10% in 2018, 2019 and 2020, and this increase reflects the growth of OTT (over-the-top) platforms to promote shows.

Alan Wolk, senior analyst for The Diffusion Group, stated that “Social is going to become the new tune-in driver.”  The report also suggests that Facebook will become the big player for all things related to social TV.

This Media Post article references additional sources that estimate the four major TV networks can spend $20 million to $30 million in off-air marketing for TV shows for the start of the fall season.

The article also discusses projections for 2021 and beyond, and suggests the social media platforms that will become more relevant for TV marketers.

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OmniChannel Shoppers Evaluate Their Shopping Experiences

• Posted: November 2, 2015

The e-tailing group’s Omnichannel Consumer Insights, 1st Annual Survey, provides a “consumer-facing evaluation” of the shopping experience.  According to this survey, 84% percent of shoppers surveyed strongly/somewhat agree that they enjoy the efficiency of shopping online combined with the touch and feel of the retail store.  In addition, most shoppers identify themselves as multi-channel, with 38% using a combination of channels to complete their shopping.

However, according to Lauren Freedman, President of the e-tailing group, omnichannel represents an opportunity which has not yet been fulfilled.  She states that, “significant gaps exist between what shoppers expect and what retailers are currently delivering.”

This survey, done in cooperation with B2C Partners, highlights the expectations of shoppers for consistency across channels:

-When it comes to price parity, 91% of respondents believe that product pricing should be consistent.

-86% would like to see consistent free shipping across channels.

-Assortment consistency is desired by 74% of shoppers.

Among the in-store mobile technologies considered very/somewhat valuable by consumers

-Technology that assists shoppers in finding the exact location of a product within the physical store (aisles/maps may be accessible on your mobile phone).

-Notification via mobile phone that an item in your cart is available/in-stock when you arrive at the store.

-Mobile devices for check out to avoid waiting in line.

The research includes statistics on in-store mobile technologies desired by shoppers include and compares the technologies preferred by shoppers with what is actually offered by retailers.  The gaps in retail performance are highlighted.

The article concludes with an Omnichannel Clout Checklist.  Some of the recommendations for retailers:

-Consistency should be a strategic initiative, particularly around price.

-Provide adjustments to cross-channel customer experiences in order to provide a faster and more productive shopping experience.

Emphasize the role of the store, and play up its advantages as shoppers use all shopping channels

Embrace both the self-service shopper and those customers who desire assistance.

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For more on this topic, check out the Media Tab in Morning Coffee.

 

 

Millennials Are Most Trusting When It Comes To Advertising

• Posted: October 26, 2015

Nielsen’s recent global report on “Global Trust in Advertising: Winning Strategies for an Evolving Media Landscape” found that trust levels in advertising for the past two years have remained fairly consistent across paid, owned, and earned media.   This press release about the report points out that Millennials (age 21-34) exceed the average consumer in terms of levels of trust in almost all advertising formats/channels.  Not only did Millennials have the highest levels of trust in online and mobile formats, but they showed the highest levels of trust in most forms of traditional media.

Millennials are also the generational group who are the most willing to take action on 16 of the 19 advertising formats.  According to Randall Beard, President, Nielsen Expanded Verticals, “Millennials consume media differently than their older counterparts, exercising greater control over when and where they watch, listen and read content—and on which device.” He also stated, “But even if they rely less heavily on traditional channels, their trust and willingness to act on these formats remains high. While an integrated, multi-channel approach is best across all generations, it carries even more importance when reaching Millennials.”

Survey respondents, in general, reported that their action levels as a result of advertising actually exceeded trust levels for 14 out of 19 advertising formats reviewed.  According to Nielsen, this suggests that trust is not always a prerequisite for purchase.

This survey is based on the behavior of respondents with online access.  The full report is available by completing a form on Nielsen’s website.

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We Say We Want Privacy Online, But Our Actions Say Otherwise

• Posted: October 26, 2015

In this Harvard Business Review article, Leslie John analyzes the conflict between consumer concerns with online privacy and the actual behavior of consumers, which includes sharing private photographs and broadcasting personal activities on social media. John labels this contrast between concern and behavior as the “privacy paradox.”  She uses insights from behavioral psychology and the social sciences to explain the prevalence of this paradox.

John summarizes the reasons for the inconsistency between consumer privacy concerns and behaviors.  These reasons include:

-Privacy is a faceless issue. Covert tracking of online behavior does not concern consumers.  However, targeted or highly personalized advertisements concern consumers because they feel violated by such ads.

-Sharing feels good. Recent neuroscientific research reveals that self-disclosure is intrinsically rewarding.

-Websites use defaults. Consumers don’t usually opt-out of preset options.

-People disclose more to computers than to each other. They are less concerned with bots and algorithms reading their mail than with human scanning.

-People don’t realize the implications of what they are revealing. Consumers may not understand that personal data, shopping habits, etc. when combined may be very revealing.

-People underestimate the threat of privacy violations. The author refers to a survey revealing that 56% of respondents were overly optimistic about their probability of avoiding identity theft.

John believes that the lack of consistent concern by consumers about privacy, and the interests of online companies in making information easily available may require government regulation to protect consumer privacy.

 

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For more on this topic, check out the Marketing Tab in Morning Coffee.

Nearly 8 in 10 Advertisers Now Use Advanced TV and Most Plan to Increase Spend in the Next 12 Months, According to IAB Research

• Posted: October 26, 2015

Some form of advanced TV has been used in marketing efforts by 78% of advertisers, according to the survey, “Advanced TV: Ad Buyer Perceptions.”  In addition, 72% of marketers and agency executives surveyed believe that advanced TV will become an important advertising platform within five years. According to a press release by the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), this survey was recently published by the IAB and its Digital Video Center of Excellence.

The current media budget allocation for advanced TV is $1.4 million; however, 70% of advertisers expect to increase their budget for this medium within the next 12 months.  Funding is expected to come from both TV budgets (68% of respondents) and expanded or experimental ad budgets (54% of respondents).  Addressable advertising, second screen ads, and interactive tags are among the advanced TV ad formats expected to increase in the next year.

The strongest benefits of advanced TV include:

-Better targeting capabilities.

-Ability to reach consumers anytime on any device.

-Improved ROI.

-Ability to personalize or localize messages.

 

Potential obstacles to the growth of advanced TV include:

-Marketplace confusion about this medium.

-Uncertainty about the differences between advanced TV and connected TV.

-A lack of understanding about advanced TV’s technical process.

-Concern about high costs.

 

The IAB is establishing a committee on the subject of advanced TV in response to member interest.  The press release includes a link to the complete findings of this report.

 

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Retailers Lag Consumers by Two Years

• Posted: October 26, 2015

A recent Warc news release discusses MarketLive’s 7th Annual Holiday Research Study.  Ken Burke, founder and CEO of MarketLive, commented that, “Consumers are adopting new technologies that seemed futuristic just a year ago.”  He also stated, “There’s no question now that consumers are asking for much more than retailers can give, like coupons with local discounts through mobile devices.”

Among the other findings from this survey of 1,000 U.S. consumers who have shopped online at least four times within the past year, own a smartphone, and typically spend $250 or more online annually:

-78% are likely to visit a store as a result of text promotions or alerts sent via mobile prior to store visits.

-69% want in-store text messages with coupons or want be alerted of promotions while they are in the store.

-62% will make a purchase as a result of a notification or offer sent to their mobile device while in the store.

Burke also observed that retailers are struggling to promote their deals in search ads or via search marketing.  As a result, retailers are turning to social media.

At the present time, few consumers are buying via social media, but the majority use social media to search for gift ideas and to share information.  Social media is especially important for millennials, a key target for retailers.

These trends will impact retailers for the 2015 holiday season and in future shopping seasons.

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Do Price Promotions Help or Hurt Premium-Product Brands? The Impact of Different Price-Promotion Types on Sales and Brand Perception

• Posted: October 26, 2015

The September 2015 issue of the Journal of Advertising Research presents a study which examined various types of price promotions. The authors, Felix Zoellner, BMW Group, and Tobias Schaefers, TU Dortmund University, combined the sales data of German premium automobile brands with a consumer-behavior analysis. The goal was to analyze the impact of different types of promotions on sales and on the perception of a premium-product brand.  The research distinguished between direct versus indirect-price reductions and marketers’ use of a “precondition,” for example, promotions offering free gifts, trade-in incentives, or loyalty-program benefits.

The authors demonstrated that:

-Different price-promotion types have different influences on sales and brand perception in the premium automotive market.

-Direct-price reduction has the strongest positive impact on sales numbers.

-Price-promotion types with which the customer is not familiar may be harmful for the brand.

-Promotion types that are well-known among customers should be preferred to minimize a premium brand’s image and prestige deterioration.

-Combining the sales and brand-perception impact, “direct-price reduction without a precondition” appeared to be the ideal price-promotion type for premium products, as it had the strongest positive influence on sales and no negative impact on brand image and prestige.

-Management should focus on price-promotions with direct-price reductions that are also familiar to the customer.

 

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TV Ads Are About to Get Personal With New Targeting Tools

• Posted: October 19, 2015

 Gerry Smith, writing for Bloomberg Businessweek, examines the recent capability of television ads to target audiences with greater precision, rather than with broad demographics.  By utilizing data and new targeting tools, TV networks are better able to compete with the highly targeted marketing messages on the Internet.

Media companies, such as Comcast Corp.’s NBCUniversal, Time Warner Inc.’s Turner and Viacom Inc. are using data from cable set-top boxes that track TV viewing, credit card information, and additional sources to compete with the ability of companies to track online users which enables marketers to advertise to narrowly defined audiences.

According to Brad Adgate, Senior Vice President, Director of Research, for media-buying firm Horizon Media, “TV has to move in this direction.  There’s a lot of concern about dollars migrating to digital from television.  This is a way for TV to keep pace.”

The technical capabilities for TV to target audiences have only recently become available.  NBCUniversal introduced a new product this year which enables it to use cable set-top box data from Comcast, its parent company, in addition to credit card data, automobile data, plus other sources, to advise advertisers on the specific program on a network that is more likely to include their target audience.  According to NBCUniversal Chief Executive Officer Steve Burke, NBC is giving advertisers “very targeted and unique capabilities that are much more like what advertisers get when they go to Facebook.”

Time Warner’s Turner networks have expanded the number of advertisers to which these networks have been offering targeted ads.  Michael Strober, Turner’s Senior Vice President for Client Insights and Innovation, explains in this article that the ad sales team can now sell commercial time that guarantees brands will reach a specific audience rather than audiences defined only by age and gender.

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