Find out what the SVP, Media Director thinks are the industry’s biggest stumbling blocks, and how her company has been able to prove online’s branding effect.

As SVP, Media Director for Sedgwick Road in Seattle, Sheryl Hudson is responsible for the media-planning team. The team's primary role is to evaluate all channels of communication and make recommendations as to where the messaging should appear. Additionally, the media planning team is responsible for all print, online, and out-of-home rate negotiations for such clients as Washington Mutual and REI. We talked with Hudson recently to get her views on the state of the industry.

iMedia Connection: What’s one of the most successful campaigns your company has executed recently, and what made it successful?

Hudson: Our most successful integrated campaign continues to be for the Department of Health’s Anti Tobacco effort. It consists of broadcast, out-of-home and online. The online portion has been incredibly successful, according to such indications as the amount of traffic it drives to the outrageavenue site. We also recently performed an awareness study with Dynamic Login which produced positive results.

iMedia Connection: So, can your company point to evidence that suggests online advertising and marketing are contributing positively to branding metrics?

Hudson: Absolutely. With the help of Dynamic Logic we have been able to demonstrate to our client’s that we have increased awareness of their brand and advertising campaigns through our online efforts.

iMedia Connection: In this post click-through era, what kinds of new metrics are emerging as the new measurement standards?

Hudson: I haven’t seen a lot of new measurements as compared to say six months ago. Traffic, click through, downloads, awareness, consumer interaction, and sales are common metrics. For the Department of Health, it’s not about making a sale. Its objective is all about preventing people from smoking or convincing them to quit so campaign awareness and creating a dialogue with consumers is important.

iMedia Connection: How does the issue of relationship marketing tie into the future of online marketing?

Hudson: The idea of building a relationship with our consumer continues to be important. Ways we are doing this online include content integration (e.g. working with sites to integrate our message in an appropriate way). For example, on bolt.com, we were able to include question/answer interaction, online challenges to stop smoking and opportunities for youth to voice their opinions about smoking related subjects. We are also able to create a relationship with our youth target on our own Website. We plan to do a road tour across the state handing out digital cameras encouraging youth to express how they feel about tobacco. We are then going to post their pictures along with any other form of self expression on our site.

iMedia Connection: Have you piloted any early Reach & Frequency planning on behalf of your clients? What kinds of results did these analyses reveal?

Hudson: Our corporate office, Universal McCann, is evaluating R/F tools such as Doubleclick’s Media Visor. It’s too early to give you any results but we are feeling good about the direction they are headed.

iMedia Connection: Will day-parting become known as one of the Internet’s best practices, or is this perhaps more hype, than hope?

Hudson: For some client’s dayparting is a very important factor to consider in the planning and buying process. For other clients it plays less of a consideration. So, it all comes down to the client’s product/service and objectives.

iMedia Connection: If the industry chooses to regulate itself, who should be responsible and what sort of guidelines should be implemented?

Hudson: Unfortunately, not everyone’s standards are the same. The industry needs a third party to set policy. The best company in this position is the IAB. Once policy is set then the industry, company by company, should choose to regulate itself against that policy.

iMedia Connection: Are you recommending Gator and its technology to your clients, or is there a certain amount of angst?

Hudson: I’d say there has been a certain amount of caution. We are currently not recommending them.

iMedia Connection: Are your clients increasing their interactive spending over time? What does 2003 look like relative to 2002?

Hudson: Clients who currently are using online are increasing their spend. Clients that have been reserved remain pretty reserved. Year 2003 looks slightly up from where we were in 2002 with existing clients.

iMedia Connection: What remains the industry’s biggest stumbling block?

Hudson: I think there are a couple of things. One is the expense associated with planning, placing, managing, trafficking and producing versus alternative considerations. Second, many Creatives in full service traditional agencies view online as more limiting than alternatives such as broadcast -- like working in a small box without picture quality. Third, the industry needs to keep working towards a common media currency. It is moving in the right direction but is still in its infancy.

iMedia Connection: What knowledge can you share to bridge the gap on how to better serve marketers’ needs in the online world?

Hudson: I wish I was seeing more customized solutions from sites, ways that they can offer that are relevant and impactful to speak to our consumers.