Sales Jump 11% After Asics Gives TV a Try

http://adage.com/article?article_id=135527

The running-shoe brand dabbled in TV for the first time last year, spending about $5 million of its $27.6 million U.S. media budget on TV advertising, primarily on Olympics broadcasts. That spending came primarily at the expense of magazines, which have traditionally dominated Asics' budget. Magazine spending fell $2 million, to $21.7 million, despite a $3 million spending increase overall, according to TNS Media Intelligence.
The tinkering paid off, as Asics' sales rose 11% last year, according to SportsOneSource.

Fewer Than Half Of Marketers Use Online Metrics

Less than half (47%) of marketing professionals in North America and the U.K. recently surveyed by Alterian reported that they currently use analytics to measure online campaign results.
One-quarter cited analyzing and honing results as the hardest part of any campaign.
In this sixth annual marketing study from the analytics platform provider, 1,545 marketers, agencies, marketing services providers and systems integrators in the U.S. and U.K. were surveyed Oct. 1-Dec. 4 through a dedicated Web site landing page and interviews at three key marketing conferences last October and November.

http://www.mediapost.com/publications/?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=100692

Fewer Than Half Of Marketers Use Online Metrics

Less than half (47%) of marketing professionals in North America and the U.K. recently surveyed by Alterian reported that they currently use analytics to measure online campaign results.
One-quarter cited analyzing and honing results as the hardest part of any campaign.
In this sixth annual marketing study from the analytics platform provider, 1,545 marketers, agencies, marketing services providers and systems integrators in the U.S. and U.K. were surveyed Oct. 1-Dec. 4 through a dedicated Web site landing page and interviews at three key marketing conferences last October and November.

http://www.mediapost.com/publications/?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=100692

Mobile Hotel Bookings Show ROI in Recession

http://adage.com/digital/article?article_id=134711

Marriott Mobile generated $2 million in gross revenue between its August 2008 launch and the end of the year. But revenue from mobile bookings in January was headed upward fairly quickly, the hotel chain told Ad Age.

Study: Online marketing spending gains, but measurement lags

http://www.btobonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090126/FREE/901269997/1078/newsletter011

The company’s sixth “Alterian Annual Marketing Survey” found that online campaigns involving social networks, e-mail and pay-per-click advertising will increase this year, as 38% of respondents said they planned to increase budgets. Only 20% said they planned to decrease their online marketing budgets.

The study found that only 47% of respondents use analytics to measure their online campaigns.

More Web Ads Improve Their Aim

Technologies That Target Messages, Gauge Their Impact Gain With Marketers
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123379182761749823.html?mod=dist_smartbrief

Mr. Byrne says that while Overstock hasn't had much luck with online display advertising in the past, the new, personalized ads drove a sevenfold increase in clicks on the ads and a threefold increase in sales relative to other display ads. "We are ramping it up as quickly as we can," he says.

But as budgets tighten, other formats that can prove they are worth their price are gaining momentum too. Coupons Inc., which makes software to help companies create and distribute online coupons, is among the companies that are benefiting. It has seen a recent surge in interest from advertisers looking for more cost-effective online marketing options, says CEO Steven Boal. Mr. Boal says the company expects to issue $1 billion in coupons this year, up from $300 million last year, and is drawing new customers who appreciate that they pay for the service only when a consumer prints out a coupon.

Committed revenue for the year at Vibrant, which creates in-text ads, has doubled from a year ago, says the company's CEO and co-founder Doug Stevenson. In-text ads appear when a computer user hover a mouse over links that appear in the text on a Web page. Vibrant charges advertisers only when someone clicks on their ads.

Audi Accelerates U.S. Media Spend for 2009

http://www.brandweek.com/bw/content_display/news-and-features/automotive-travel/e3iecbc44179b8d6b319ddd12627adadc73

In a bid to boost its brand profile, Audi has supercharged its marketing budget for 2009, planning a 15 to 20 percent increase in its U.S. promotional spend.

The automaker’s souped-up TV plan kicks off Feb. 1 with a 60-second Super Bowl spot designed to showcase the Audi A6 sedan.

While many car companies are planning to hit the brakes on their TV spend, Audi is looking to build on the gains it made in market share a year ago. “We’re still a brand that doesn’t have enough awareness. Historically, Audi has been a great unknown,” said chief marketing officer Scott Keogh. “We’re hoping to get the year off to a fast start with the Super Bowl ad, and then dial down on the A6’s TV presence, while keeping the momentum alive virally.”

Keogh said the incremental coverage a marketer receives when buying time in the Super Bowl is worth the price of admission. (NBC is selling 30-second spots for $3 million a pop.) “We did 600 million media impressions last year after the Super Bowl, which is what we usually get in the course of a whole year,” Keogh said. “Being in the game gets you into places that automobiles don’t normally get into, like the Today show ... and Charlie Rose.”

That increased exposure leads to a major boost in Web traffic as well. According to Keogh, AudiUSA.com enjoyed a 200 percent lift in impressions during the two-month period before and after the Super Bowl. The clip also scared up more than 1 million views on YouTube, thanks in part to its farcical nod to The Godfather’s celebrated horse-head reveal.

General Mills: Google Ads Click for Nature Valley

As marketers question the effectiveness of display ads and their ROI value, General Mills is telling a different story. The packaged goods giant today revealed the results of a partnership with Google's Content Network and YouTube, where consumers were exposed to display ads for a Nature Valley contest that ran Dec. 24, 2007 to May 25, 2008. The ads resulted in a 52 percent sales lift and delivered more than 830 million impressions for the Nature Valley brand, per the company.

"The key takeaway is, when we gave folks who care about Nature Valley an easy and fun way to talk about and share their experiences about the brand, they jumped into it with both feet," said Kevin Kells, Google's national industry director for packaged goods.

General Mills said more digital campaigns are in the works following this success. Nature Valley granola bars accounted for $136 million in food, drug and mass merchandise sales for 52 weeks ending Nov. 30, per IRI. Overall granola bar sales reached $890 million during the same period.

http://www.brandweek.com/bw/content_display/esearch/e3i213af1e960abb3d887f6e9ddbc123207

IAB CEO Rants Against Audience-Measurement Complexity

Online and bricks-and-mortar marketing are being crippled by a "crisis of complexity," said Interactive Advertising Bureau chief Randall Rothenberg. Speaking at yesterday's Audience Measurement Leadership Forum at the Roosevelt Hotel, the IAB president-CEO went on a bit of a rant. He called on the industry to address the fact that audience-measurement concepts and techniques have become so incomprehensibly complicated that the majority of marketers still use guesswork to determine their annual media strategies.

http://adage.com/video/article?article_id=133112

In-store Displays Are More Effective Than Price Cuts

Price discounting is seemingly the one sure thing in an economic downturn, but research by WPP Group shopper-marketing agency OgilvyAction indicates it's still not as effective a sales tool as that old stalwart: in-store displays.

Specifically, OgilvyAction's research from the spring indicates that 29% of U.S. shoppers impulsively buy from categories they didn't plan to when they entered the store. Of that group, 24% said they were influenced by secondary displays (away from the product's usual aisle), 18% by in-store demonstrations, and only 17% by price promotion.

http://adage.com/article?article_id=132767

Transactional e-mail seen as powerful marketing tool

http://www.btobonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081117/FREE/811179971/1078/newsletter011

A new study by JupiterResearch finds that transactional e-mail—notifications of completed online orders or service-related messages, for example—can drive new revenue by including product offers or advertisements.

Among e-mail marketers surveyed for the JupiterResearch E-mail Marketing Forecast, 60% reported they increased sales by including offers or ads in their transactional e-mail. In addition, about half the respondents said that receiving such marketing messages increased brand recognition and satisfaction with the company.

Marketers say social media, customer engagement and analytics are top trends for 2009

http://www.btobonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081112/FREE/811129991/1087/newsletter011

Understanding and engaging customers, using new media such as social networks and digging deeper into data are some of the top trends for 2009, said a panel of top marketers at BtoB’s Best Luncheon Tuesday.

Top marketers from companies including American Express Co., Eastman Kodak Co., IBM Corp., Motorola Corp., Oracle Corp. and Siemens Corp. discussed strategies they will use to drive marketing next year in a tough economy.

Acxiom(R) Acquires Quinetix to Further Enhance Services Related to Customer Growth, Retention and Pricing Optimization

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/AcxiomR-Acquires-Quinetix-to-bw-13592270.html

Acxiom® Corporation (Nasdaq: ACXM - News), a global leader in interactive marketing services, today announced the acquisition of Quinetix, LLC, a Rochester, N.Y.-based provider of analytics and predictive modeling for large and medium-size businesses in retail banking and other industries.

Promotional Swag More Effective Than Ads

http://www.brandweek.com/bw/content_display/news-and-features/promotion/e3if0819d6addd2a0fe3b7a46b87f92137f

As marketers continue their debate over the next great advertising medium, a new study released today by the Advertising Specialty Institute found it's not TV, print or radio that gets consumers' attention, but good old promotional swag.This includes coffee mugs, pencils, retractable solar-powered flashlights or any other product bearing a company logo.

Promotional products made up a $19.6 billion industry in 2007, per the ASI. Through surveys conducted both online and in-person in major cities, such as New York and Los Angeles, the institute also found that promotional products generate a cost-per-impression average of $0.004, compared to $.033 for national magazine ads or $0.019 for prime time TV ads.

Behavioral Targeting: A Tricky Issue for Marketers

http://www.brandweek.com/bw/content_display/news-and-features/digital/e3i9e2284979c0b8c78ba188179079a495b

According to Forrester data, 24% of advertisers used behavioral targeting in 2008. Last year it was only 16%; the year before, only 13%. And BT's popularity is only going to grow, Riley said. "Almost half of advertisers say, 'Even if I didn't use behavioral last year, I definitely want to this coming year,' and this big jump between 'not currently using' and 'plan to use' indicates a lot of excitement around the topic," she said.

MTV Networks Measures with Quantcast

In a step away from panel-based measurement to one that measures based on site activity, MTV Networks, a division of Viacom, selected Quantcast to measure traffic on its online properties. Metrics will aid marketers, advertisers, and agency media buyers to make more informed decisions on ad inventory and site visitors.

With a pixel and a cookie, Quantcast is able to provide publishers, and therefore advertisers, with the number of unique visitors, cookied visitors, and page views on a particular site. In addition, the service provides aggregate user data so advertisers can see what site visitors look like.

http://www.clickz.com/showPage.html?page=3631558

Unilever VP Takes an Axe to Old Broadcasting Theories

Mr. George has been instrumental in identifying interactive, customized opportunities for brands such as Axe, Degree, Suave, Dove and Sunsilk over the last three years. Interactive TV has become an increasingly larger part of Unilever's corporate strategy, too, with more than 30 brands currently testing the technology. Now that the footprint is larger -- more than 70 million cable households have interactive capabilities -- marketers like Mr. George are finding the engagement metrics behind a clickable TV ad are far more compelling than rerunning the same 30-second spot.

Unilever's "Advanced" TV ads, as they're occasionally called, have appeared in a variety of forms, from interactive overlays during on-demand programming to text-message opt-in requests to clickable pre-roll ads. And sometimes don't appear in the form of ads at all. Earlier this year, the company created a full-length music video for Axe that aired on on-demand network Music Choice, featuring the fictional band the Bom Chicka Wah Wah's. The music video became one of the top 10 most requested for Music Choice and has already garnered more than 1 million hits on YouTube.

http://adage.com/madisonandvine/article?article_id=132306

Study: How Profitable Is Word-of-Mouth?

http://www.brandweek.com/bw/content_display/news-and-features/direct/e3ie470eaeef1dd69b11a7c7061301e5f6b

If a conversation costs 50 cents to generate, how much profit do marketers reap from the typical eight minutes a consumer spends talking about their favorite brands?

According to BzzAgent, a word-of-mouth marketing agency in Boston, that profit is 38 cents. The firm has pegged this amount as the "communication dividend" in a report titled Calculating Your Communication Dividend, which examines the value of word-of-mouth conversations. It builds on another report (in June) that found the average cost of an eight-minute conversation to be 49 cents.

Efficiency Key to Web Ad Industry Weathering Economic Storm

http://www.clickz.com/showPage.html?page=3630968
Execs also pointed to the need for standards in ad metrics, a longtime lament of agency people and marketers dealing with digital and cross-media campaigns. Indeed, the campaign reporting and measurement process can also take an excessive amount of time because publishers and third-party ad firms often provide incompatible data.

Despite inconsistency in metrics, the fact that digital advertising enables a plethora of measurement data to prove its value could help the industry keep afloat during the recession. "In a tough economy...the top honchos at these firms, they want to know where every dollar is going," said O'Regan.

How poor metrics undermine digital marketing

http://www.mckinseyquarterly.com/Marketing/Digital_Marketing/How_poor_metrics_undermine_digital_marketing_2220_abstract?gp=1


The digital world has developed faster than the tools needed to measure it. This lag has made it difficult for marketers to fully exploit the Web’s promise as the most targetable and measurable medium in the history of marketing.

Hobbled by nascent technologies, inconsistent metrics, and a reliance on outdated media models, marketers are failing to tap the Web’s full power. Unless this problem can be addressed, the inability to make accurate measurements of digital advertising’s effectiveness across channels and consumer touch points will continue to promote the misallocation of media budgets and to impede the industry’s growth.

Some companies, though, are developing analytics that allow them to compare the effectiveness of their on- and offline efforts. Others are learning how online marketing messages convert shoppers into buyers, both online and in stores.