Online, Measures of Success Are a Moving Target†

Advertising Age, March 14, 2008 — As media agencies continue their transition toward integrating digital media planning and buying with traditional media such as TV and print, MediaWorks is making the rounds to talk to the people charged with making it happen. This week, Publicis Groupe's Starcom announced it was promoting Kelly Twohig to senior VP-digital activation director of the agency. She will oversee the agency's digital spending, reporting to Chris Boothe, Starcom's chief activation officer.

On the Web, Signs of a Click Recession†

Google Feels Pinch As Ad Growth Slows; Sweeter Deal for Yahoo?

Wall Street Journal, February 27, 2008 — Internet advertising may be showing itself more vulnerable to a consumer slowdown than many in the industry had hoped, according to new search-ad data released this week.

The report from research firm comScore Inc. showing a decline in the number of consumer clicks on Google Inc. search ads in January amplified existing concerns about the effect of a broader economic slowdown on the Internet. Many online-ad experts have played down such worries, predicting any economic weakening will be offset by a continued shift in ad spending from traditional media to the Internet. Google Chief Executive Eric Schmidt said the company hadn't seen any impact from macroeconomic softening when the Internet company reported earnings Jan. 31. But some investors and analysts... continue reading

'Natural Born Clickers' are Young, Underpaid, Mostly Male

MarketingVox, February 14, 2008 — The vast majority of ad clicks are generated by a small percentage of online users, according to a report from comScore, commissioned by ad agency Starcom and AOL's Tacoda. The study finds 80 percent of online ad clicks are generated by 16 percent of internet users. Furthermore, that 16 percent is not representative of the online population as a whole.

J&J's Web Ads Depart From TV Formula†

Baby-Lotion Cartoons Play Up Bonding Time: Risky Marketing Turn

Wall Street Journal, February 12, 2008 — Johnson & Johnson is one of the largest television advertisers in the U.S. But to promote its best-selling baby lotion, the company is putting most of its effort into a different approach: Web cartoons.

In one of its animated Web videos, as a mother starts massaging her daughter's feet, legs and chest, her baby giggles, smiles and makes eye contact. Pink swirls meant to represent the lotion's scent fill the screen.

The ads for Johnson's Baby Lotion, developed by an animation studio, not an ad agency, attempt to highlight the emotional connections babies build with their mothers. In contrast, most of J&J's competitors focus on the medicinal benefits of baby lotion. Johnson's is favoring the Internet over TV because it believes young parents scour the... continue reading

Study: Internet Ads Will More Than Double By 2011

MediaPost Publications, January 21, 2008 — YANKEE GROUP FORECASTS THAT INTERNET advertising will more than double to $50.3 billion in 2011 from $21.7 billion last year, driven by technology investments that will boost online ad performance.

While the size of the U.S. Internet audience will level off in the next few years, ad dollars have yet to catch up with the growth in online media consumption, according to the Yankee study. The research firm estimates that the Internet accounts for about 20% of overall media consumption, but only 7.5% of ad budgets.

Online To Pass TV Ad Spend in UK

eMarketer, January 9, 2008 — Group M, the media planning and buying agency owned by WPP Group, has forecast that spending on Internet advertising in the UK will surpass spending on TV ads in 2009 - making the UK the first of the world’s major economies to see TV spending overtaken by the Internet.

Shifting Coupons, From Clip and Save to Point and Click

Coupon lovers, take heart. The era of waiting, scissors in hand, for the Sunday newspaper circular is over.

New York Times, December 27, 2007 — COUPON lovers, take heart. The era of waiting, scissors in hand, for the Sunday newspaper circular is over.

On Jan. 3, Valassis Communications, which distributes paper coupons for products like Eggo waffles and Dr Pepper cola, will take a giant leap onto the Internet by introducing a portal for coupons called RedPlum.com. Until now, Valassis had distributed coupons primarily through newspaper inserts and snail mail envelopes.

Online Spending Predicted To Surge In 2008

MediaPost Publications, December 10, 2007 — LOCAL ONLINE AD SPENDING WILL surge 48% in 2008 to $12.6 billion, buoyed by demand for paid search and video advertising, according to a new study.

Spending on local search alone is expected to double to $5 billion, while online video will triple to $1.3 billion, predicts local media research firm Borrell Associates. Despite predictions of an economic slowdown next year, the firm's forecast for 2008 exceeds the estimated 44% growth for local media in 2007.

CMOs Must Bring Customer Focus Back to Digital Goals†

Priorities: Technology's Influence Can't Trump Marketing's in Expanding Internet Strategy

Advertising Age, December 5, 2007 — The CMO needs to take control of the corporate internet strategy. Why? To ensure that new technologies initiate and enhance customer relationships. This is going to require the CMO to argue that a major barrier to internet development is the dominant influence of technology over marketing. But it's crucial for company and brand survival.

Optimize Me: A Reporter's Journey into the World of SEO and SEM†

MySpace, Squidoo, Twitter Help Juice Matthew Creamer's Online Presence

Advertising Age, December 3, 2007 — As with many stories about the internet, this one begins with porn.

Deep into an October drinking session with the management team at Reprise Media — a firm you might not have heard of but one that works for huge corporations such as Microsoft and recently sold for a huge bundle of cash — we came to a favorite subject of theirs: what happens when corporations, even those who spend hundreds of millions of dollars a year to craft their brand images, ignore their profiles on search engines.