Ad:Tech: New platforms
: I”m at a session on new platforms: iTV, iRadio, interactive broadcast. Hmmmm. I think I’ll plug podcasting.
: Ad guys get all excited about new ways to target TV advertising. But because of technology and privacy rules, it’s not possible to get nearly the targeting ability of the internet.
: Robert Kernen of A&E talks about broadband advertising and gives a list of five ways to drive away the broadband user: 1. Put the message first. 2. Make the spot as long as the content. 3. Use flashy creative designed for TV. 4. Fo for the non-sequitor. 5. Use just one spot.
: All these folks are just trying to replicate what they already know — in media and creative they’re still acting like this is new a decade after online advertising started. They’re not recognizing the next revolution of consumer control and citizens’ media and new relationships. Like any industry, change comes slowly.
: Somebody in the audience asked how they will work with consumer-generated video. One of the guys upfront says the cream will rise to the top and they will work with it. “South Park didn’t need to be created for TV.” The network guy tries to poo-poo it because he’s afraid of the competition.
: I asked a followup question broadening to text (blogs), audio (podcasting), video (vlogs): Are there people in their agencies who are following this? Are they treated as nuts? What will it take for citizens’ media to get into plans? What advice do they have? The person from the Jose Cuervo agency said that advertisers are very interested in this space. They’re starting by trying to create programs they hope will generate buzz rather than directly “seeding” that buzz (in other words, they hope that influencers will see their campaigns rather than advertising with those influencers). They’re also concerned about an “unregulated” environment (not sure exactly what that means). But they’re brainstorming to figure out how to get into this. Another panelist from an agency said that “advertisers want to fish where the fish are.” If they were presented with buying 2,000 blogs at a $2 CPM they’d buy it. They’re negotiating already.
