Advertising Drifts and shifts to challenging Media Choice

It all started when a unique medium was chosen back in early 70s by Karachi based agency MNJ to execute a campaign to promote launch of a movie. Called “Beyond the last mountain”, the name of the movie was etched on the mountains near North Nazimabad.

This mastermind accomplishment did not only achieve the desired objective, but also stirred the industry as it was out-of-the-box thinking that nobody had done before. Much has changed over the years – making the choice of a medium complicated yet effective.

The cultural transfer from the mundane mediums to exciting new ways to advertise a brand has challenged many creative minds.  The objective of course is to make the brand stand out and in simple words sell it.

The most brand driven media that is being explored to the fullest is no doubt the Internet. With plethora of branding opportunities and zillions of websites to choose from, advertising on the Internet has become quite easy for the media planners as direct “hits” and “likes” can be good judging parameters.

The choices on the Internet of course are not limited to just a fan Facebook page, but exploring new media outlets including the following:

Social Media – One of the most prominent networking pages Facebook and Twitter definitely undermine other platforms and are used to the fullest to promote any brand. In Pakistan nearly 99% of brands, big and small have a presence on Facebook and Twitter. In the words of one of the marketing heads of a bank; “Social media presence is mandatory to the success of any brand. If you do not have a presence here, you might as well be living in a cave”.

Online Videos – Advertisers now have a choice to upload promotional videos on their websites, Facebook pages and other video apps for the world to see. Unlike television where a long video ad would not only cost more money, it might also get lost in the clutter. On the Internet, video viewing is considered quite effective as most of the viewers tend to share the videos on various platforms, hence extending the reach of the message.  Marketers can now present their ads as part of online video. An advertising agency professional opines, “Video making is no longer complicated. It is now an advantage to the advertiser to come up with an interesting video and upload on many sites across internet, thus reaching across a wide customer base”.

Mobile Device Apps – Smartphone and tablet applications now have substantial pull for advertising as it offers not only text and static image advertising but also in view of the 3G and 4G technology, videos ads that are incorporated in many phone applications.

RSS Feeds – Not used to the fullest advantage, the RSS feed is an Internet information distribution technology most popular with news websites.  Subscribers to any RSS feed can be targeted as potential customers as information sent to them can include inserted ads.

Podcasting – Further to RSS feeds, various news websites put up free audio and video files easily accessible via smartphones, iPod devices and computers. Advertisers have a choice to integrate their promotional message in the content of the video files that the viewers can easily see.

Online Gaming – Online gaming has revolutionized the way advertising was done before. With high speed internet options and plethora of online games available, advertisers can now insert special content, including product advertising, within game play.

The media choices on the Internet need to be closely monitored for new avenues and opportunities for advertisers. Various product launches, events picture galleries, catwalk shows, online sports and even e-books are now offering tremendous potential for advertising that is a direct hit and yields much more response and reach than any other medium.

Having said that, marketers should be savvy enough to stay informed and comprehend how their target customers on the internet can be tapped effectively, without losing the message.