The rising blizzard of commercial messages sweeping through TV shows and other traditional and non-traditional communications channels, has become a blinding, deafening force heavily cutting into the overall effectiveness of advertising (if there ever was any effectiveness in the first place!) . Yet little is being done to quantify the massive financial drain of clutter on marketing campaigns or, even more importantly, organise a practical solution to the problem.
…there is still no advertising accountability?
Then please tell me how they get away with saying "Advertising works".
A recent report by America's Association of National Advertisers claims, "Marketing accountability is still often an activity trapped within the silo of the Marketing function".
It would seem that the findings underscore last summers "Marketing Accountability Survey" in which 60% of respondents reported no cross-functional involvement whatever within their company!
And so the long predicted death of advertising agencies as we know them creeps ever closer!
Now the ANA, to add salt to the wound(s), is urging the introduction of TV ratings for individual commercials citing the need for greater accountability in a medium where $70 billion (Euro 53.07bn; £36.29bn) is spent annually on time.
And this at a time when it is becoming more and more an open secret that people don't like to watch ads (if they really ever did!). The combination of the Internet and DVRs have opened up a Pandora's Box…People know what life is like without the traditional advertising model, and there's no going back. Nowadays trying to force people to accept interruption is only going to turn them off even more.
However the threat of TV commercial ratings must send a chill of despair through AdLand. Already questions are being raised about the effectiveness of commercials, however a bigger threat is emerging, best summed up in that lovely little word…Clutter!
The rising blizzard of commercial messages sweeping through TV shows and other traditional and non-traditional communications channels, has become a blinding, deafening force heavily cutting into the overall effectiveness of advertising (if there ever was any effectiveness in the first place!) . Yet little is being done to quantify the massive financial drain of clutter on marketing campaigns or, even more importantly, organise a practical solution to the problem.
There has been an answer to all of AdLand's problems and it has been around for years, unfortunately the advertising industry, being wrapped up in its delusional beliefs of "creativity, reach & frequency" vehemently rejected this solution…called…interactive marketing communication.
Totally accountable, totally effective, totally measurable, and totally lacking any of the pretentious communications nonsense so beloved by the advertising agency world it did solve, and would have evolved, into the perfect solution for everybody within the marketing mix. The Client, The Product, The Retailer, and, last but not least, the Consumer.
But the agencies never took delivery of the concept and totally rejected the whole rational behind it, despite a huge investment in independent research that proved conclusively that Interactive Communication, properly executed, was far more effective and cost efficient that any other form of commercial communication.
It is also practical, down-to-earth, and uses a readily comprehensible and verified mechanism to expand the relevance and salience of advertising and other forms of marketing communications. It can be applied to all major media and to various other forms of communication, including new media. There is no theoretical reason why it should not also be applied to packaging designs or product literature.
So let us review the simplistic solution to all your marketing communications needs, the basic elements of interactive communication are very simple, as all communication should be. The target audience – or any part of them – are provided with a Game, comprising a Quiz together with multiple choice answers.
This takes the reader/viewer through the detail of a commercial or advertisement and focuses their interest and attention on the product’s selling points. The questionnaire is (usually) presented as an exercise in getting the public’s opinions about the products. The effect is to combine the techniques of programmed learning and game playing to fix the advertising message in consumers’ minds.
The programme is very flexible and can be distributed by mail, door-to-door, as a handout in shopping malls, or as a newspaper or magazine insert.
The traditional, though now out-dated, model of communication against which advertising has been judged is a one-way process whereby a Sender sends a message to a Receiver, who is then expected to absorb and act upon it. Although any consumer-aware advertising person knows well that consumers use ads, rather than the reverse, the practice in most agencies remains the traditional one of pushing ads out towards the market and hoping for a response.
In the face of growing clutter of advertising messages and the increasing ability of consumers to screen out unwanted commercials and ads., there is also a growing problem for advertisers in breaking through the surrounding noise.
By presenting advertisements in the form of a Game it alters the consumer’s perception to the content making the communication process far more effective, by providing an enjoyable mechanism for consumers to become involved with the brand and its advertising message.
This meets the desire, evident among consumers, to open up a dialogue with at least some of the manufacturers or service companies whose products they buy; and also feeds consumers evident wish to be better informed about what it is they are being asked to buy.
By getting consumers to make a commitment to finding out more about an advertiser’s offer, the interactive technique can create the conditions for positive attitudes towards the advertiser and positive learning about the product advertised.
In addition to providing this encouragement for consumers to focus on the brand – and to develop for themselves the steps of the argument that should lead to a purchase – the technique can provide the advertiser with valuable feedback about both the product and its advertising. This is a dialogue that can benefit both sides, and be seen to be doing so.
By its very nature, the technique is totally accountable, so much so that it is, without a doubt the most heavily research concept in the history of marketing communication.
Many of the worlds largest independent research companies have measured the incremental increases that just one exposure to an interactive programme can bring. In fact in excess of £5 million has been invested in independent research in over six demographically diverse countries. This research proves, conclusively, that just one exposure to an interactive "Event" is substantially more effective in all key measurements, including sales, than the reach frequency/creativity model espoused by non-accountable Advertising Agencies!
Social Media – An epic tulipomania in the making!
The Internet is not an advertising medium, people log onto the Internet to go somewhere, not see advertisements!
Have you heard the one about Super-bowl Ads?
How much longer can Clients go on paying $3 million for a 30-second spot that doesn't wotk?
Rethinking Marketing Strategies: A Call to Chinese Entrepreneurs
In an era where the Chinese economy is making remarkable strides, it's crucial for Chinese entrepreneurs to critically evaluate the effectiveness of traditional advertising methods. The Western world's advertising industry, often perceived as superior, is increasingly being challenged by evidence suggesting that advertising may not be as effective as once believed. This article delves into the pitfalls of conventional advertising and explores the need for innovative communication strategies in the 21st century.
