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Digital to Overtake TV Ad Spending in Two Years

DigitalNews

U.S. advertisers’ spending on digital advertising will overtake TV in 2016 and hit $103 billion in 2019 to represent 36% of all ad spending, according to Forrester’s latest estimates based on its ForecastView model. U.S. advertisers will spend $85.8 billion on TV ads in 2019, which will equal 30% of overall ad spending that year, according to Forrester.

But digital won’t usurp TV because of big brand advertisers taking their commercial money and redirecting it toward YouTube and Facebook. There will be some cannibalization of TV budgets, but the bigger contributing factor will be an influx of new money dedicated to digital because marketers are able to prove that digital works, said Forrester analyst Shar VanBoskirk.

Marketers aren’t upping their digital budgets because of bright shiny objects like so-called native ads or computer-automated programmatic buying processes. They’re doing so because the economy has recovered. Advertisers have more money to spend now than in recent years and the oversupply of ad inventory online gives them a lot of places to put that money. And they’re comfortable spending their money online because years of testing and learning has shown those digital dollars are well spent.

via Advertising Age

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News Websites All Look the Same – Here’s Why.

DesignDigital

Mashable blogger Jason Abbruzzese takes a look at the similarities between the most popular media websites. Why do they all seem to look the same?

Parts and Pieces

“It’s sort of the same way that all cars look more or less the same. There’s only so many ways you can design a doorknob to where it’s going to be effective,” said Brad Frost, a web designer that has worked on the websites for TechCrunch and Entertainment Weekly.

Cars and doorknobs serve a purpose under certain constraints, just like websites. But unlike those everyday items, the demands on websites have changed drastically as audiences have taken to different devices.

“To a certain degree, websites always look the same. Design is fashion and it follows trends. We’re in the middle of a trend of big and clunky, not just because of responsive design but also because of touch,” Clark added. “As touch has spread from small screens to laptops and desktops, all desktop designs have to be touch-friendly, and that has influenced the aesthetic, too.”

Enter Responsive Design

Numerous major media sites have shifted to responsive design with similar results — multi-column, boxy and flat designs that look almost strangely similar.

At first, it was tenable to create multiple sites: one for mobile, another for desktop. Now, more sites are moving to the responsive design as a one-size-fits-all solution. There are simply too many different screens and experiences to plan for.

“Your head is going to explode trying to support that stuff, let alone afford it,” Clark said.

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“Media sites have a specific limitation called an ad unit that really limits the flexibility of design, because unlike every other unit, this ad can’t change size,” Clark said.

Online advertising guidelines are set by the Internet Advertising Bureau so marketers and websites can have a common market. Rigid ad sizes may help sales, but end up being a pain for designers.

“You have these dinosaurs grasping at straws, that haven’t been able to move as fast as the rest of the industry, and it creates a real restraint,” Frost said.

Many screens, many ad types

“As a digital designer, our world is now going from watch space to 80-inch screens, so what do you do with that? Do you seriously try to design one interface for all of those screen sizes and all of those experiences?” Storey said.

And it’s not just screens. The rise of contextual advertising, in which a variety of data is used to tailor advertisements, could end up pushing design forward as well.

“The content and experience that brands are going to want to offer is going to demand more design and more design thinking, more consideration for not only those unique devices, but also where you are and what time you are there,” Storey said.

Via Mashable

facebook-mobile

Facebook’s Four Rules for Going Mobile

Social Media

Gary Briggs, Facebook’s CMO, told the Business Marketing Association’s annual conference in Chicago that Facebook surpassed 1 billion active mobile users, a threshold he doesn’t believe the company will ever get to on desktops.

Here are his four must-dos to becoming an effective mobile marketer:

The mobile team = every team. This mandate came from the top at Facebook. Mr. Briggs, who joined the company last August from Google, said that anytime a person showed a desktop version of a design first, CEO Mark Zuckerberg stopped the meeting. “We don’t have a mobile team anymore; everyone thinks predominantly mobile,” Mr. Briggs said.

Target real people. Mr. Briggs admitted this is probably a bit easier for Facebook given its deep connection to so many people’s daily lives. The idea is to reach people with content important to them. “We can catch people in the right moment on mobile,” he said.

Measure real people. This ties into #2. Don’t go for broad reach for its own sake. Get the right people the right message.

Focus on quality. Mobile can connect marketers to customers in a very personal way. This is the device they take with them everywhere. Of all the different signals marketer may put out about their brands, Mr. Briggs said the mobile message will be the dominant one. Marketers must make the investment to build a quality team.

Via Advertising Age

google-local

Going Local: How Advertisers Can Extend Their Relevance With Search

Digital

People have come to expect a certain amount of contextual relevance with regard to search. In fact, new research shows that four in five U.S. smartphone users believe search ads should be customized to their city, zip code or immediate surroundings. Location-based ads can quickly satisfy consumers’ expectations by featuring a store’s address, directions to a nearby business and a phone number. By adopting a local strategy—one that takes people’s locations into consideration—businesses can provide consumers with the information they need to take action.

We’ve all been in situations in which we needed to find something nearby—on a business trip in a new city, while running errands around town or even when simply planning where to go for dinner. In the past, when we wanted to find, say, a great Mexican restaurant for dinner, we’d consult our favorite foodie magazines or critics’ reviews from a local newspaper.

Today we search. We’d simply search for “Mexican restaurant” and the results would be relevant to our location. This kind of searching is now commonplace. In fact, four in five consumers use search engines to find products, services or experiences nearby. They conduct local searches wherever they happen to be; 84% use search engines on their computer or tablet and even more (88%) do so on their smartphone.

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When it comes to a local strategy, advertisers should consider the following:

Optimize for the consumer’s location. Advertisers can reach a large set of consumers by starting with a wide geographic area such as the entire U.S. and then using location bid adjustments to fine-tune bids for specific areas or zip codes.

Help consumers find what they need. Make it easier for the people searching to see the information they need most. Simply adding location extensions, a phone number or a click-to-call button right in the ad can help consumers take action faster.

Engage consumers near your stores. You should use radius bidding to reach consumers near stores and build an attribution model for local searches.

Today’s consumers are constantly connected; they’re using search engines to gain access to local information whether they’re at home, on the go or in-store. By optimizing budgets for location and providing information that is locally relevant, advertisers can deliver better experiences to people in the moments that matter.

Via Think with Google Blog

watch

Is That a Discount Coupon on Your Wrist?

Digital

At the Mobile World Conference in February, the world’s largest smartphone manufacturer Samsung unveiled two sleek products in the second generation of its watches with internet capabilities. The Samsung Gear 2 and Gear 2 Neo will land on the market April 8. LG and Motorola have unmasked their own devices. Qualcomm also has its own. So do a gamut of companies, from hardware veterans Sony and Intel to Pebble Technology, a small, scrappy company financed by the crowdfunding site Kickstarter. (And then there’s China, where one analyst said “hundreds” of manufacturers are in the mix.)

The potential for advertising on such devices ratcheted up in March when Google — which earns 90% of its core revenue from ads — released Android Wear, a software-development kit for wearables. Google is tying up with HTC, LG, Motorola, Samsung and Asus, along with chip-makers Broadcom, Intel and Qualcomm, among others.

Marketers salivate at wearables’ data-collection potential. When it comes to advertising, any ads would need to show immediate, tangible value. For example, pushing a discount on a latte when you’re near Dunkin Donuts. Any ads must have a utility that will enhance what you’re doing.

small-biz-guide

Twitter Guide for Small Business

Social Media

So many small businesses struggle with understanding social media and especially making money from it. If you’re thinking of jumping into social media, the best thing to do would be to consult a professional. But, if you’re still on the fence, it can’t hurt to learn a thing or two on your own so you can talk the talk.

Twitter has recently published an interactive presentation tailored to small business owners. It spans from “What is Twitter?” to how to start using Twitter ads. Take it for a spin here.

subway-girl

Innovative Subway Ad Reacts to Train Arrivals

Video

This fun digital subway ad in Sweden for hair-care products was rigged up to recognize when trains entered the station—and then showed a woman’s hair blowing all around, as though windswept by the train. It’s a simple, delightful effect—playful, responsive and seemingly magical in the way it erases the line between ad and environment.

Ad agency Akestam Holst and production company Stopp produced the ad for Apotek Hjärtat’s Apolosophy products. Stopp in Stockholm says the ad was scheduled to be just a one-day stunt. But Clear Channel loved it so much that they kept it live for five more days “as a way for them to show the opportunities their screens can offer.”

via AdWeek

roger

The Complete Canon of Quips from Roger Sterling

Fun

Vulture has a complete list of quotes from Mad Men’s Roger Sterling. Roger, played by John Slattery, is my favorite character on the show because he adds sharp wit and dry humor to every scene he’s in. I’ve selected a few of my favorites below.

(Mona: Margaret’s run away.) “To where? Bergdorf’s?” (S7, E4)

(On his California trip) “It was a series of busts, and not the kind I like.” (S6, E11)

(Danny Siegel: I know these lugs from my days in advertising.) “More like a day, wasn’t it?” (S6, E11)

“Sunkist, Carnation, the avocado people: My biggest job in these meetings is to keep them from saying ‘golly’ too many times.” (S6, E11)

“I’m afraid she left everything to the zoo. She’s making them name the animals … Her will looked like a manifest from Noah’s Ark.” (S6, E2)

“As a wise man once said, the only thing worse than not getting what you want is someone else getting it.” (S5, E1)

(Don: “I’ll buy you lunch.”) “I’m stuffed. I had a jar of olives.” (S4, E6)

(Paul Kinsey: “He might lose his foot.”) “Right when he got it in the door.” (S3, E6)

“Last time Freddy Rumsen had a cup of coffee, it was one of five being poured down his throat by a cop.” (S2, E1)

“Look, we’ve got oysters Rockefeller, beef Wellington, napoleons. We leave this lunch alone, it’ll take over Europe.” (S1, E6)

“I’ll tell you what brilliance in advertising is: 99 cents. Somebody thought of that.” (S1, E3)

Read them all here.