If you believe Dave Winer, then advertising is in its dying throes. For those that don’t know, Winer ‘invented’ weblogs and RSS.
The video is interesting, in part because it reflects the US obsession with getting away from ad laden TV. I know when we watch the main Sky channels, we know the time between start and first ad slot will be between 5 and 7 minutes. On a good night it’s 8 minutes.
But to the more substantive point. Display advertising in print media has a hit rate of 0.2>1.5%, with most results in the lower quartile. Online banner advertising isn’t much better. So ‘media’ needs huge numbers to get a numerically acceptable response back to the advertiser. This is not the same as making a sale. Or creating a relationship. The value of this medium comes from the associations that arise between like minded thinkers. That’s not the same as same minded thinkers. The difference is subtle but critically important to understanding the value of this medium.
For instance, I really enjoy my relationship with Vinnie Mirchandani – but I don’t agree with his emphasis on the state of outsourcing. In my mind, both he and CIO Magazine missed an opportunity to hammer home the issue of outsourcing management. the current dissaffection isn’t an issue of changing economics (as Vinnie says), but a management failure (which he doesn’t truly nail.) That – IMO – is where the discussion around outsourcing failure should start. It sure seems there needs to be some innovative thinking there. Here, I’d suggest checking out what Brian Sommer has to say about rewarding people.
And, assuming that discussion gets underway, then the value contained within the conversation to observers is proportionally higher than what is otherwise a monologue. And it as at that intersection where commercial sponsors need to aim in order to get the greatest bang per buck. IMO.
Technorati Tags: blog_marketing, marketing communications
