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Background: Leading up to the 2008 presidential election, President Barack Obama’s campaign team took a huge leap into the digital space spending more than $16 million in advertising. The campaign effectively leveraged display, video, search and social media to reach large audiences including progressive advocates. As a result, more politicians are taking advantage of digital media and relying on it to communicate their platforms and connect with voters.
Now that the digital space has evolved and been embraced even more since the last election, what should advertisers expect in 2012?

Last month, Centro’s very own President and Founder, Shawn Riegsecker, led the Retailers Play Small Ball panel discussion at the Digiday: Local conference in New York. The discussion focused on the importance of local and brand marketing particularly from a large retail brand perspective.
Read on for two key takeaways from the discussion…

Brands should grab your attention, invoke an emotion and drive you to want more. Good advertising should not only be creative, it should also spark creativity among its audience. A powerful brand starts with an amazing brand experience that lasts well beyond a first impression. It should move consumers through various stages and touch points. The key is to tell a story that is thought and action provoking.

Up until now, the internet has been thought of as mostly a direct-response medium, in the eyes of marketers and brands. If all goes well, however, we should start to see a big shift in that view of online efforts.

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Ladies and gentlemen, in one corner we have Premium Content weighing in at high CPMs, guaranteed inventory and brand safety. In the other corner we have Scalable Audience Buying weighing in at low CPMs, performance-based inventory and questionable content. Which side are you on?

Consumers spend more time with digital vs. traditional media. Digital is magnetic. In the last five years, internet usage has risen by 121%, while offline channels (TV) either declined or remained constant. Key contributors to this growth include increased usage of mobile and social media as well as a shift to more online shopping experiences (nearly two-thirds of consumers shopped online in 2010).

I recently attended a MRCC (Media Research Club of Chicago) event with special guest, Bill Tancer, author of “Click: What Millions of People are Doing Online and Why it Matters.” Mr. Tancer provided a very entertaining and insightful look at online consumer behavior. Read more for a few highlights:

AdAge - ANA Survey: 52% of Marketers Will Ask Agencies to Lower Internal Costs
This article accurately highlights many of the market challenges that agencies and advertisers face today. This quote is very telling: “Though the industry outlook is trending toward stability, marketers need to be careful not to simply rely on short-term answers to solve enduring budget issues.”