A panel of top media players discusses the latest in media planning and buying.

The continued rapid growth in online advertising as an integral element on the marketing landscape and the emergence of mobile, video and other new platforms are offering both a lot of opportunities and challenges for agencies and publishers. A panel of veteran agency executives tackled issues ranging from next generation measurement and analytics for branding an engagement, to building integrated campaigns, to building the agency/publisher relationship during the "Media Buying and Planning Innovations."

John Durham, EVP at Carat Fusion, moderated the panel that included R.J. Hilgers, director, digital marketing services, Avenue A/Razorfish; Brian Monahan, VP and group communications director, Universal McCann; and John Cate, VP and national media director, Carat Fusion.

In opening remarks Monahan noted that agencies and their clients are all trying to "cope with the death of mass," the fragmentation of audience that means advertisers are finding it increasingly difficult to find significant "blocks" of audience to market to. Increasingly, Monahan said, advertisers are looking to leverage the TV platform to build on the "engagement" factor that the internet can deliver for a brand, "because we speak to them in a more qualified way." He pointed to Microsoft's online support of a special web extension of the TV show "24" as one example.

Marketers interested in trying to find new ways to combat that erosion of a mass audience are exploring non-traditional models such as blogs and consumer-generated content sites, said John Cate. The hype these new channels are receiving is certainly positive, but he added that, "we need to get past this blush of excitement and find out how they can help our clients' business."

Podcasting, video and blogging applications are certainly exciting, but Hilgers cautioned the audience not to ignore "the basic blocking and tackling" of more traditional online advertising and maximizing the internet's ability to deliver ROI information. "Data should be informing everything we do right now," he said. "[The internet] is the richest place to be right now in marketing… and we can't lose sight of that while we chase the next big thing."

Integrated media campaigns are being promulgated by both marketers and their agencies on one side, and major media companies who are packaging their offline and online properties together now for clients on the other. Durham noted Meredith's recent purchase of O'Grady Meyers as one media company's approach to bringing that effort full circle. He also noted recent news which indicates online advertising is expected to surpass print in 2006.

Monahan called Meredith's move "enlightened," saying that publishers and agencies need to work more closely now than ever to develop integrated, engaging marketing programs that fit both the interests of the target audience and the needs of the brand. Both Cate and Hilgers agreed that offline and online strategies are melding and that how marketers measure where their money is going is getting increasingly irrelevant. Hilgers said "it's my hope [offline and online budgets] converge at some time" and that marketers begin to see their look at these channels as all one pathway to the consumer and their campaigns reflect that.

The panelists also noted that agencies and publishers have to take steps to overcome the silos of discipline and media buying/selling that exist on both sides of the media buying process as integrated campaigns increasingly become the norm. 

The much-used term "engagement" and how it can be measured was a hot topic on the show floor and during the session.

"We have been trying to engage consumers since the beginning of advertising," Cate reminded the audience. The measurement of such a concept, however, "is going to be an evolving process over time," he added. The definition of engagement, whether it's by time spent, unique visitors, or other variable elements depending on the campaign, are all moving targets at the moment, panelists agreed. Whatever defines engagement, Monahan cautioned that content must be relevant or the user will never return. 

Another hot area of engagement, user generated content, is a huge opportunity for marketers, said Hilgers, but noted that the thing that makes it attractive to audiences, its unpredictability, also makes it risky for marketers. "There's no way to control it."

Monahan noted that marketers can either find ways to participate on user-generated content sites or originate programming on behalf of the brand, again noting that either option still leaves the consumer largely in control and the brand exposed to potential damage. Of course some brands are more suited than others to creating their own user-generated content opportunities. "But if your client is Swiffer, you have your work cut out for you."

Citing the website seemerot.com (yes, a webcam installed inside a casket trained on its deceased occupant) Cate said he is mistrustful of exposing brands to "unfettered" user-generated content. And while some applications may be "lifting the rock off human nature" he said he still believes that consumers can tell a lot about brands in an effective way that serves both the audience and the brand. The trick is how to do this effectively. 

The agency executives exhorted publishers to help them cut through the media buying clutter and help agencies craft creative online approaches for their clients. While agencies have typically gone to publishers with a "can you do this?" approach, Cate noted that more publishers are bringing on new technology and creative approaches to differentiate themselves. "The emergence of creativity on the publisher side has caused agencies to raise the level of their game."

Durham asked panelists to point to one thing that will be different a year from now in the online media space. Both Cate and Hilgers agreed mobile will be a significant part of the business by then, with Hilgers adding that while spending in video may not have grown significantly, "We'll be having more serious discussions around video, especially when it becomes two-way."

Monahan added that the whole concept of consumer control of media and information will continue to pressure the application of "intrusive advertising" and force advertisers to push their exploration of how they capture the attention of an audience that increasingly controls its own media consumption.

GET THE PODCAST

• [RSS] Add the iMedia Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator and have the show delivered automatically (MP3)


• [MP3] Download the show (MP3)

Speaker(s):

Format: