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Media News

More and more brands and companies have begun taking advantage of social media, mobile and video and using them as an essential part of their marketing plans. As important as these formats are as advertising and marketing tools, it is also important to view emerging media with an educated eye.

Consumer brand logos are everywhere in the social media space. According to Business.com, two-thirds of business-to-consumer companies have a social network profile page and half use Twitter. Social media budgets across all industry sectors this year were expected to balloon from 43 percent to 79 percent, according to MarketingSherpa.

Yet the way brands are spending those social media dollars is changing dramatically. For one thing, advertising is becoming less important as the primary revenue driver. More important, social media is not confined to social networks, or even digital media. Instead, it is spreading across all marketing.

A recent article found on iMediaConnection discusses these revolutions in the social marketing realm. The article states that brands are starting to see that the most critical social media expenditures are not in the realm of buying paid advertising but in building out infrastructure and a strategy to enable social media to transform their businesses. That means money will be allocated from marketing budgets, not media budgets.

What will marketers demand for their buck? Information. Not just information gleaned by listening to their customers, but by listening to those noncustomers whose opinions are shaped by the social interactions and commentary of others. As customers and customers-to-be drive the conversation, they will increasingly drive the evolution of a company’s brand.

As brands become the property of consumers, rather than companies, the notion of earned media is more important. Earned media are brand engagements a business doesn’t pay for, which range from blog posts to Facebook updates to virtual gifts.

As social media has matured, mobile marketing, too, has finally arrived. But where is it headed next? eMarketer predicts mobile ad spending will rise from $416 million in 2009 to $593 million in 2010 — a spike of 42.5 percent. That’s not surprising as more brands and agencies integrate mobile into their marketing mix. Plus, Google’s acquisition of AdMob is certain to prompt greater interest in the mobile space from agencies, brands, and media companies alike.

Noah Elkin, eMarketer’s senior analyst, mobile, says, “The fusion of mobile and social and the appetite for apps (among both consumers and brands) will continue unabated.” Location apps will be a key avenue for brands looking to engage consumers on the go.

Brands are taking advantage of consumers’ proclivity to keep friends on their radar and reveal their own locations wherever they may wander. Loopt, for example, helped establish the practice of “checking in” to find nearby friends, places, and activities. Foursquare added a gaming element to compete to earn badges and points based on the number of times users visit a particular location.

With 90 million consumers accessing the internet from their devices in 2010, mobile phones will transform into consumers’ personal shoppers. Major retailers such as 1-800-FLOWERS, Barnes & Noble, Sears, and Target have launched well-regarded m-commerce offerings. Third-party app developers have introduced location-based services that enable on-the-go shoppers to find products and learn about promotions at nearby stores.

But in general, m-commerce is still in its infancy, with most shoppers using their mobile phones to call a friend for advice on a purchase while standing in a store or to order a last-minute gift for an almost-forgotten birthday. Shopping ranked low on a list of activities conducted by mobile internet users, according to a report by Nielsen Mobile. But mobile shopping also grew by 39 percent between October 2008 and March 2009. That is a powerful sign of what lies ahead.

The fastest-growing ad technique among emerging formats is online video. It will surge nearly 40 percent this year and more than 36 percent in 2011. Marketers remain fascinated with video’s possibilities because of the proven appeal and success of sight, sound, and motion. But video advertising still accounts for a relatively small share of overall internet ad spending. Compare online video to TV, and TV wins hands down. For every $1 marketers spent on video ads in 2009, they spent $65 on TV commercials.

What’s the answer to this imbalance? In a word: convergence.

One convergence will be the fusion of TV and internet video consumption. Whether that occurs by connecting computers to TVs or via internet-enabled TVs, the direction of the connection will matter less than its existence. The other convergence will be a combination of business models, with digital video increasingly supported by a mix of ad dollars subsidized by audience subscription fees, much like cable TV.

Consumers are certainly ready for TV-internet connections. A Deloitte report showed that 65 percent of internet users wanted to connect their TV to the internet in 2009, a 7 percent increase over 2008. Web users across all generations want to watch online content, as well as content on their PC and on traditional television screens. Even among matures, nearly half were ready for internet-enabled TV sets.

As marketers forge pacts with online entities like Hulu and traditional players like TV networks, it is becoming increasingly clear that advertising cannot pay the entire freight for this medium, which continues to explode in popularity. A UBS study shows that by 2012, U.S. online video revenues will come mostly from paid models (77 percent) and will reach $5.4 billion. Ad-supported online video will represent just 23 percent of online video revenues, at $1.6 billion.

In the short term, though, more marketers are embracing online video advertising, supported by the twin boom of video streams and video ad networks. Further support for video ad growth will come from sites that offer a deeper catalog of professional, premium video content. Their survival will depend on creating a hybrid model that combines subscription fees with advertising.

To read this article in its entirety, click here.

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Jeanne O'Neill

With the markets on the rebound and stories of the W-Curve beginning to wane, it appears the U.S. economy may recover within the next year or so. While this turnaround is largely dependent on growth in consumer spending, marketers will need to redefine and communicate differently to the new consumer of the post-recession era.

These targets may never return to previous levels of  spending, nor even think of buying products in the same way…or at the same price. The new consumer will take a much more cautious approach to spending and saving money in the future. He/she may believe that another recession could occur shortly after his/her retirement and education portfolios values return to where they were in 2007. And, price will become the key determinant in the purchase of products and services for the majority of Americans, cutting across multiple demographic and lifestyle segments.

Brand image, enhanced product features and value perceptions may not regain their former status in the purchase decisions for a long time. Marketers will be challenged in their efforts to position and distinguish their brands when all category players are competing on price.

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According to an article run on WebProNews this week, newspaper web sites attracted an average monthly unique audience of 72 million visitors in the 4th quarter of 2009. This number represents about 37% of all Internet users.

This data came from a custom analysis by Nielsen Online for the Newspaper Association of America. Newspaper web sites users generated more than 3.2 billion page views during the quarter while spending more than 2.4 billion minutes on these sites.

The data also found that the average time spent per person on newspaper web sites during the fourth quarter varied. In October, users spent an average of 34 minutes and 14 seconds on these types of web sites. In November it was 32 minutes and 44 seconds. In December it was up to 34 minutes and 52 seconds.

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The Mobile Internet Era Is Upon Us

Posted By: Stevens & Tate   Category: Media News

14 Jan 2010

Experts are claiming that 2010 will usher in the transition to mobile marketing – are you ready for it?

Many (if not most) brands are still just “dipping their toes into the water” of mobile marketing opportunities, while consumers have already dove into the deep end and are not looking back.

Need tips on how your brand can best enter the mobile arena? Here are three suggestions:

  • Brand & Category Audit: How, when, and where do consumers use mobile to make buying decisions about what you sell?
  • Move to the Big Kids Table: Mobile can no longer be relegated to the test and learn section, funded with scraps and value-add opportunities. If you look at the consumer usage, there’s no reason why mobile shouldn’t be a predictable and sizable portion of every budget.
  • Get Serious About Mobile Analytics: Mobile analytics need to be rolled up into integrated reporting so that we can understand its impact on cross-channel attribution models.

For more information on these ideas for how to play catch-up in the Mobile Internet Era most effectively, click here.

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According to a CES panel discussion of iPhone applications in Las Vegas that took place this month, the answer is yes. If your company does not have a mobile app, it is as though you don’t exist.

At the session, panelists urged companies to get working on mobile apps, not just for the iPhone, but for the Android and Palm as well.

“It’s like 10 years ago when the debate was: ‘do I have to get a website or not?’” said Walker Fenton, GM of NewsGator’s Media & Consumer Products. “People were unsure, but these days, the answer is obvious: if you’re not on the Web, it’s like you don’t exist.”

What do you think of this message?

To read the full article from Cult of Mac, please click here.

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According to Q3 data from Compete, 2010 looks to be the year that m-commerce will take off as nearly 2/5 smartphone users reported purchasing something non-mobile over their phone within the past 6 months. The data also shows that the top shopping-related smartphone activities are still research-based (reading product descriptions and/or reviews and looking for coupons or better prices).

A survey of US smartphone owners found that Android users say that they would spend the most via mobile, followed by iPhone users.

Research also showed that approximately 1/5 of mobile users planned to use their phones for shopping activities during the past holiday season.

To read more information on this growing trend, check out the article Consumers Take to Shopping by Smartphone found on the eMarketer web site.

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Yesterday, comScore, Inc. released its latest report on the mobile market, which provides an overview of the current mobile environment in the United States. This recent report centered on the new smartphone, Android, and how its arrival is impacting the market.

The report found that consumer awareness of the Android is increasing and 17% of Americans in the market for a new smartphone are considering purchasing an android-supported device in the next three months while 20% said they plan on purchasing an iPhone.

What are your thoughts on the newest smartphone entering the market?

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If any of you are wondering what the future holds for magazines, check out this video and discover one company’s vision for what it could be. For advertisers, if a device like this came to exist, it may just mean that you have the ability to put mini commercials or even microsite in the palm of readers hands. It could also give marketers the abilty to adjust messaging or promotions in near real-time based on analytics. Print isn’t dead, it’s just going digital! Watch the video courtesy of Vimeo below, then let us know what your thoughts are on how soon you think technology like this will become real.

Mag+ from Bonnier on Vimeo.

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Debbie Szwast

Today’s consumers are more individualized than ever before and the media has responded to their demand for personalization.  There are thousands of newspapers across the country along with countless niche publications addressing individual areas of a person’s life. In addition to AM and FM radio, there now is satellite radio offering more stations and formats than ever before. With satellite TV and cable, hundreds of channels are competing for viewership.

These changes in consumer behavior directly impact how and where today’s new-home buyers look for information. This fragmentation of media outlets results in fewer and fewer people getting their information from traditional outlets and there simply isn’t ONE source for information anymore.

Adding more roadblocks to having your message heard is the fact that more and more new-home buyers are avoiding advertising. For example, many people turn the channel on the radio when commercials come on or listen to CDs in the car. TIVO and OnDemand services allow consumers to watch TV and fast forward past commercials. In addition, iPods have revolutionized the way potential new-home buyers listen to music. They can download eight or more hours of commercial-free music and listen to it while commuting or lingering around the house.

Potential new-home buyers are multitasking more than ever before, too. When in the car, they are likely on their cell phones, dealing with children, or becoming frustrated by traffic. At home, many people have the TV on in the background while performing other tasks like making dinner, helping the children with homework, or cleaning up. As a result, advertisers are realizing that their messages are not reaching their targeted audience with the same frequency as before.

How should your company react? Look for marketing vehicles where consumers are actively engaged. Show your videos on YouTube. Initiate a mobile marketing campaign. Run your ads online with streaming radio. Look at rich media for interactive advertising to engage the viewer and increase click-thrus.

Most importantly, make sure you advertise in mediums and vehicles that resonate with your target audience. Successful branding occurs when the consumer has a personal “connection” with your products and service…they mean something to them in terms that resonate with their personal lives. Along with brand recognition comes increased awareness and sales.

In today’s “new media landscape,” it’s critical to thoroughly research, target and review your marketing efforts almost daily to ensure the proper media mix to maximize results and minimize spending.

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Customer segmentation is a topic often discussed when planning and executing an e-mail marketing campaign. Although traditional monetary-based and demographic segmentation drive most programs, what is the value of behavioral, or even attitudinal segmentation?

This article by David Baker has value in educating both novices and pros about the opportunities to define and refine your e-mail lists. What it also indicates is that most lists need to be continually managed across the product buying cycle. You should never be satisfied that your list is the best it can be.

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