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Enticing consumers to engage even further with brands is the goal for most advertisers but, as we’ve learned with quick response (QR) codes in the mobile space, it can sometimes be a challenge.
Vancouver-based Mobio Identity Systems, Inc., the international mobile payments and marketing company, found that 60% of North American consumers who scanned QR codes in Q3 of 2011 did so just once. Consumers have not yet made a regular habit of scanning QR codes, but the engagement opportunity keeps certain marketers focused on using QR codes as a viable targeting tactic.
More and more frequently, however, phones are coming equipped with near field communication (NFC) chips, small chips that allow the device to be tapped to another chip to receive and exchange data. Typically this will trigger an ‘open a website’ action for a brand or product.
This process is much easier to engage with than a QR code because the phones do not need to have a QR code scanner app installed by the consumer; they just have to have their NFC capability turned on.
Samsung is doing a great job integrating NFC into their marketing plan. For instance, I am an avid Apple user and the new Samsung Galaxy S III ads are the first thing to ever make me question my iPhone ownership.
Samsung’s ads allow you to get free music, news content and video simply by tapping your phone to the ad – a hand motion that might become second nature as people start getting into the habit of tapping each other’s NFC-enabled phones to instantly share contact information, pictures, documents or multi-media content.
The integration between mobile and out of home here is done so well – the consumer is getting content they’re interested in, and the advertiser isn’t limited by the QR code.
By using emerging technology to increase brand reach, advertisers can meet the consumer on multiple platforms of their choosing – and at a new level of unlimited engagement.
How willing would you be to incorporate NFC into your out-of-home strategy?
(LuxuryDaily.com) - Since mobile is a channel that consumers can choose to use in-store to enhance the physical shopping experience, it is the ultimate way for luxury marketers to interact with existing and potential customers on an opt-in basis.
There are a number of ways that luxury marketers can interact with consumers in a retail setting including branded applications, QR codes and other touch points. However, experts agree that mobile capabilities should keep consumers’ minds on the store atmosphere and the products, rather than veering off to other digital realms, so that there is a distinguished experience between the on-the-go world and the retail store.
“The more affluent luxury consumer is likely more tech-savvy, informed and vocal than their budget-conscious counterparts and have come to expect more from their preferred luxury brands to enhance their in-store shopping experience,” said Ricardo Martinez, sales and marketing executive at mVentix Inc., Santa Clarita, CA.
“A recent study by Condé Nast and Morpheus Media found that over 90 percent of luxury consumers spend four times as much on online purchases than non-luxury households,” he said.
“This means it is imperative for luxury brands to have a mobile presence to engage with their customers, especially if the mobile experience is thoughtfully integrated and layered within their existing media efforts, to give their customers a compelling and seamless way to drive real-time, bi-directional communication and interaction with their preferred luxury brands.”
Read the remainder of the article on Luxurydaily.com.
As marketing continues to evolve, we as an industry are being asked to assign value to the actions that our advertising campaigns are driving. As we log and analyze these actions, we begin to assign value to them based on their impact on our overall branding objectives. It is important to not only focus on macro conversions, but also look at the micro conversions – the day-to-day activity that takes place to move your customers through the purchase funnel.
Below is a brief tutorial on conversion tracking for the brand marketer:
What is a conversion?
A conversion is any completion of a call to action. It can be categorized as a click, a like, an impression, a download, signup, subscription, social media follow, video view, comment or purchase.
What is conversion tracking?
Conversion tracking is a metric that goes beyond the click-through rate (CTR) to show you how a campaign is performing, as well as a general path a consumer takes on the advertiser’s site.
With conversion tracking, you can track general data (homepage hits) or specific actions (form completions, email sign ups or even purchases). This will give you a much more in depth picture of how effective your campaign really is.
For example, creative A is generating more clicks on your campaign, but creative B is bringing more qualified leads to your site that are actually converting to your desired goal (examples: downloading a coupon, signing up for an eNewsletter or requesting more information). Without conversion tracking, you would be led to believe that creative A is the better performing ad, however, with the conversion data, we’re able to see that creative B is actually providing better results.
Within the counter method, there are two different conversion metrics: Post Click and Post Impression.
Post Click: This can give you great insight into what the consumer did after they clicked on your ad and went to the site. Did they submit a request for more info? Did they download a coupon? Did they make a purchase? Conversion tracking can help answer these questions.
Post Impression: A wonderful metric that conversion tracking provides is post impression page views. This happens when someone is exposed to the ad but does not click on it; if they later end up on the advertiser’s pixeled web page, a post impression conversion is counted.
For example: You see an ad for a sale at XYZ Mall – you don’t click on the ad, but you do search for XYZ Mall and end up on their homepage. Instead of thinking that the ad failed because you didn’t click on it, we can now see that it did, in fact, work because you still went to their site to get the desired information.
How does conversion tracking work?
In short:
While conversion tracking can help you paint a great picture of how your campaign is actually performing against your objective, the results will always be driven by the creative message. What conversions matter to your brand the most?
Rocky Gunderson, formerly a founder of digital place-based media company SeeSaw Networks, recently opened a consulting company called SierraRock, where his many projects include bringing an innovative new healthcare application to market; helping a content management company expand its U.S. presence; and working with a manufacturing applications company to more effectively define its business strategy.
Throughout his career in digital media, Gunderson has seen many agencies that are challenged by their traditional infrastructures. He believes that these hurdles can prevent agencies and their clients from focusing on an integrated and comprehensive digital media experience.
“There’s a lot of talk about creating the right experience for the client,” he says. “The discussion centers on trying to understand all the advantages that specific media bring to the client – finding the optimal ad for a particular product’s lifecycle. The whole notion of an integrated planning system for a client and product is a dream that no one is making happen.”
Like many digital media service providers, Gunderson has attempted to articulate the concept of “a day in the life of a consumer” to agencies. “We presented this idea and tried to create a dialogue around it, to position the right media to reach the consumer,” he says. “The trouble was, we had difficulty finding individuals who could make decisions across multiple channels.”
Brand managers are often asked who they are trying to connect with, and how best to engage that person during the course of their day; however, when it comes to putting together an overall, integrated plan and discussing that plan with a buyer, the conversation stops. “Most buyers are highly specialized,” Gunderson says. “We had a hard time finding people who were willing to look at the comprehensive experience. Instead, they wanted to simply negotiate a deal in a particular media type. We did not see a blending of channels, which would ultimately have been a better solution for achieving the brand’s objectives.”
In the past two to three years, third party logistics providers like SeeSaw and Centro have started to offer a greater array of digital media services to agencies. “Logistics providers now offer a multi-media experience that includes planning, buying and execution,” says Gunderson. “We see many challenges the agencies face in campaign execution and reporting. These agencies have fewer resources and less money to spend, and yet have to meet a growing client need for reporting and results.
“A key value proposition that we brought to the market, in terms of planning, buying and logistics, was that we could provide a more complex and creative solution. We had the resources and processes necessary to deliver on that promise.
“Over time, there has been a change, an acknowledgement, of this expertise. Agencies have come to realize that digital media logistics providers deliver an overall stronger experience, optimized metrics, and better back-end tracking. Agencies realize now, I think, that these providers give agency planners a better opportunity to be more interactive with their clients; since we are doing much of the heavy lifting for the planners, they have more time to collaborate with clients.”
Many agencies that attempt to plan and buy digital place-based media for their clients have 10 or 12 solutions that they have used in the past, such as cinema, malls, elevators or airplane seats. “You can ask, who is the target client and where are they spending their time, choose one or a couple of these ‘go to’ solutions and then check off the box,” Gunderson says.
However, trying to connect with a business professional throughout his or her day involves more than buying ads in airplane seats or elevators. “You have to connect with that busy professional several times, in different environments and moods, with compelling creative that, if it is going to be engaging, must accommodate changes that occur over the campaign,” he says. “You have to be flexible and embrace change that the client requests during a campaign. You have to be transparent and report on performance. In the past, as we delivered results in complex campaigns, agencies gained more confidence that logistics were effective. That is a positive trend in the industry.”
But can a third party provider really be trusted with logistics that will impact brand? “Trust is built on proof,” Gunderson says. “The agency is spending the client’s money and is on a short leash; agencies can be very sensitive about what they do not control, like new approaches and methodologies. With a third party partnership they need to know they can trust you and that you will be responsive to their (and their clients’) needs.
“As a provider you have to understand the metrics going in and have the ability to report on attribution based on the media mix. The agencies are taking a risk. You have to be able to prove you can deliver, typically by executing a small campaign first. If you deliver to spec, you can become the trusted partner of the media planner. Then, hopefully the larger accounts will see the benefit of complex media plans, which agencies would typically be challenged to execute, and you’re now the ‘go to’ partner.”
Agencies stuck in the traditional model, and resistant to leveraging a logistics provider, are treading water right now, and delivering what they can.
“They execute at some level, planning what is easy and familiar. They can check off the box for their clients, and think they don’t need a logistics partnership. But for those agencies that want to deliver a much better plan – with more flexibility and client collaboration built into the process – they need a logistics provider who can deliver an interactive planning environment.” This scenario makes the clients happier too; when they can see the full value of a complex, cross-platform approach, they often invest more in the campaign the next time.
Gunderson predicts that as the next generation of planners and buyers emerge in agencies, they will bring with them a love of multi-platform media. This will create even greater change over time, and more logistics partnerships to qualified providers to ensure the best media plans for clients, rather than the most manageable plans. “The next generation will trust that the experts can and should do the heavy lifting while they, the planners, forge better relationships with clients and vendors,” he says.
“The notion of understanding the whole media landscape, and in particular the key metrics, is becoming more important for media companies and brand managers,” he says. “If I were a CMO today, I would spend a lot of time understanding media so that I could explain it to internal leadership. I would look at a blend of multiple media, with digital at its core for better targeting and tracking. Then I would set realistic, fact-based expectations with everyone in the organization to establish a certain comfort level. Finally, I would report on results transparently across the different media. The knowledge gained from that campaign would be the starting point for the next one.
“There is a real need to understand how the individual is going to act in a digital 360 environment. Advertising must be a knowledge-based, integrated brand experience. The right logistics provider can optimally manage that experience for agencies and brands. That is the key; that is the opportunity. If I were a CMO that is what I would be looking for.”
(Horsesforsources.com) – The most exciting change in the world of outsourcing has been the increased focus on services that are based on expertise augmentation and a genuine return on investment (which is why so many people want to use a different terminology).
And when we get into areas right at the cutting edge of revenue generation for clients, such as marketing and media, where clients need access to capabilities they may not currently have to gain a competitive edge, we can see where the future lies for the business services industry. One of our most talented analysts, Reetika Joshi, has been investigating the world of digital media and its major potential for third party services…
At HfS Research, we have expressed our views time and again about the strong potential of outsourcing marketing services in today’s complex marketplace. Last year, our research has revealed growing interest by buyers and an expanding gamut of services offered by service providers as they test out their value propositions. One of the hottest marketing services sub-segment has to be digital marketing. Digital media marketing is in a state of constant change, and most organizations have yet to fully explore the growing potential. Naturally, this is where our work took us next, to decipher the different components of digital media marketing, the companies in the marketing and advertising value chain that need help, and the companies that are stepping up to provide it.
Advertisers traditionally engage with ad agencies to manage the companies’ creative processes when the advertisers choose not to manage the processes directly. With the growth in online advertising, the responsibility naturally fell to the agencies to pick up the pace and rapidly develop digital capabilities. Granted, the end objectives of running traditional and digital campaigns are similar, and the work is synergistic as the same key messages are put out across channels. However, on the ground, there are fundamental differences in the type of capabilities needed for these two service areas. Exploiting analytics, emerging technologies and growing social media channels sound obvious to an outsider, but advertisers and their ad agencies are not geared to tackle digital in the same way as traditional media. The lack of specialized talent, strategic alignment and scale are the key challenges inhibiting many advertisers and agencies from running optimized digital campaigns.
We have seen a sharp increase in interest by organizations in leveraging external partnerships for improving marketing operations, especially in digital media. Bringing expertise and improved outcomes to their clients – not just less expensive solutions – is a driving factor. Together with Centro (a media logistics company), HfS Research is undertaking new research on how marketers and their agencies are re-thinking their operations strategies to accommodate the growing importance of digital media. Our latest report highlights a winning strategic partnership in digital media logistics and the challenges it entails. By working with Centro, a mid-size ad agency was able to master digital media operations and offer comprehensive solutions to their clients, gaining >50 percent productivity and significant cost savings ($300-400,000) along the way. Centro introduced accountability and thought leadership in digital media for the client, provided dedicated specialized digital teams, drove efficiency and effectiveness, and enabled the agency to focus on overall media strategy. For the last three years, Centro has essentially acted as their client’s strategic and tactical digital team, helping them transform from a creative boutique into a full-service marketing communications agency.
HfS Research believes that there is undeniable merit in working with external digital media specialists. Given the rapid change in the technology landscape and the growing reliance on digital advertising, marketers and ad agencies need to rethink their operations strategies to address these issues. With growing opportunity, a range of digital media operations specialists have emerged in the last ten years. Advertisers and agencies that are keen to get expert help must do their due diligence. HfS recommends the following key differentiators when evaluating digital operations specialists:
Groupon, Clear Channel and new start-up Elevate Digital are coming together in Chicago to make outdoor advertising interactive. Since December 2011, 38 kiosks around the city are encouraging passersby to claim local deals, engage in various apps and get social by connecting with their social media platforms.
The kiosks are creating interactive hot spots for outdoor advertising. There are virtually endless possibilities that can run on these screens and the best part is it can be changed in an instant. Kiosk users can redeem coupons straight to their mobile devices or post photos straight to their Facebook page. Integrating all three components of social, mobile and digital out of home creates a seamless bridge of ads across all channels.
Not only is this creating a much more engaging experience for outdoor advertising, but the metrics coming from these kiosks are very robust. You are able to track who is interacting with the screens, what the impressions look like on social media and how often users are returning to the kiosk.
The kiosks track based on what information the users give them. After only seven months on the streets, the screens are getting around 500,000 interactions each month.
It’s encouraging to see something fresh in the digital out of home space, especially something that is connecting different devices and platforms. With new opportunities like this, how willing are you to jump on board with something outside of the norm?