Secondly, after I published the last post about Web and TV Convergence, I came across more enthralling articles that touch on this subject! As mentioned previously, Web TV has been here in some sense for a long time and continues to grow, slowly but surely. The amount of speculation about this convergence has seemed to blow up recently, and I intend to continue monitoring it’s progress. My reasons being out of both general curiosity and interest in how this will eventually drastically effect my livelihood. I figure if I stay on top of things in can only be for the good!
Ad Age points out that TV interactivity has been around for some time, and is in fact very prevalent. While the definition of interactivity is used broadly here, referring to using select or OK on remote controls, a study done by Harris Interactive found that 66% of those surveyed WANT to be able to interact with television advertising! While this is most likely high due to the newness and novelty of this option, it’s still impressive.
A BusinessWeek reporter ranted last November about the fact that the progress of this convergence will no doubt be hindered by media companies and their fear of control. Later, BusinessWeek referenced it’s own article to predict the reality of this to have 40% penetration within three years. This time, electronics mammoths are said to be encouraging connectivity with features on their high-end TV sets.
In my opinion, consumers will get what they want, regardless of what they are offered on a schedule. Even though Heroes is on Monday at 8pm CST on NBC, people have grown used to controlling the media consumption in their lives, and their appetites for this control will only become more ravenous. In my 5 years working in media, I’ve seen the print newspaper industry decline rapidly. But as consumers lead by behavior, the industry is retaliating by giving the people what they want - easily navigable news, video, traffic, weather, etc., all without the dirty fingers. As it turns out, giving the people what they want in terms of media has been shown to work!
As Lisa pointed out in a previous post, online video usage is exploding, and we aren’t talking just YouTube. According to a Horowitz Associates report outlined here, 16% of adults with broadband access watch full episodes of TV online. Personally, I’m a big fan of this because I am without a DVR, but I do have a serious addiction to many network shows such as Heroes, Prison Break, and Grey’s Anatomy. As an Interactive Media Planner/Buyer, I find this advertising opportunity very attractive due to the high impact placements and the ownership opportunities which typically include a few mid-roll placements that I have seen to be not just video, but also interactive units.
This week, Adotas published an interesting article about the merging of the Internet and TV. The author, Peter Koeppel, thinks this is inevitable due to increase of media consumption multi-tasking and how far quality content online has come. This sounds super cool to me as a consumer. My two favorite things - TV and the Internet - become one? A match truly made in heaven. Some of this convergence has already started with the XBox Live, Apple TV and other products. Long before was Web TV, concepted in the mid 1990s as a component which basically allowed for using the TV as a monitor and a remote as a mouse. I remember seeing ads for this in high school, thinking it was really cool but maybe ahead of the times for a mass audience. Or maybe I just wish I would have thought that. In doing some searching, I found that Microsoft purchased this and is still trying to improve upon the original concept with MSN TV 2.
My geeky excitement of what will happen next with this is right up there with what will happen with behavioral targeting in 2008. Professionally it will create another media buying challenge, which I am totally up for. Personally, I just want to watch my Heroes and Instant Message my buddies about how cute Peter Pitrelli is or what power we would want if we could choose without having to start up my computer.
You’d have to be living under a rock or in a deep woods hide-out to be unaware of the phenomenal growth of online video.
According the Pew Internet Project, 48% of Internet users say they have been to video-sharing sites such as YouTube. In a separate study, nearly 40% of the respondents say they use search engines to find online videos (eMarketer).
While videos can increase traffic and engage site visitors, they are not easily indexed by search engines. To be found by your audience, you’ll need to get out a can of SEO tactics to whip that video into shape!
Listen and learn below:
Optimization in the Video File
Video Branding: It may seem basic, but don’t forget to include your logo and any general information in the video so viewers know how to get more information or contact you.
Optimize Filenames:
The name of the video file should be descriptive yet entice visitors to view.
Include keywords closely related to your company, products, or brand.
Include the keyword “video” in the filename.
Example: “how-to-paint-garage-video.mov” instead of “garage01.mov”.
Video File Metadata:
This information can be controlled at the time the video is created, saved, or encoded, and may be found in the”properties” if this feature is available.
Include keyword rich description and comments.
Video Page Optimization
Creating a new web page for each video helps to make your search optimization efforts even more effective.
Use SEO best practices to focus on the web page content that contains your video.
Meta Tags: Page URL, title, descriptions, headings, etc.
Add text paragraphs with a description, video transcription, or combination to tell both human visitors and search engines more about the video on the page.
Links
Where the content is relevant, link from other pages on the web site to the special video web pages .
Request links from external sites with news, reviews, blogs, etc.
Video sharing websites
When submitting to video sharing sites, take advantage of all opportunities to provide information about your video and company.
Create a username on the site that is descriptive of your company or brand.
Complete the user “profile” or “channel” page with links back to your company site, blog, or web site you want to spread the word on.
Include the keywords, descriptions, tags, and make sure to make the video viewable to everyone.
Allow users to comment, rate, and embed the video.
This week I did research for a client that is contemplating enriching their presence online. This company already has strong brand awareness but seeks to make an emotional connection with their target audience, which mostly consists of Baby Boomers.
As a Gen Y marketing and social enthusiast, I love learning the individual traits of each generation, culture, or demographic group. The Baby Boomers are definitely a great group to watch, especially now as they are showing people how aging gracefully is done.
I remember as a young child seeing my grandparents play cards with all their friends. They all had short grey hair and wrinkles abound. They seemed ancient to me, in part because I was so young, but also because it seemed they accepted their age and aging role in society. As my parents near that same age I can’t help but be impressed at how savvy, active, and good looking they and their peers are in comparison! As I read more about this group’s media usage, it increases my admiration of this impactful group!
USA Today reported last year that marketing to this group is growing like crazy due to the impressive economic power this group has. What I find most interesting is the way marketers need to communicate to them, appealing to their young outlook on life. This direction is being reflected in advertising more and more, and luckily, the “I’ve Fallen and I Can’t Get Up” era ads are on the decline. Perhaps seeing seniors in these pitiful situations in the media for so long contributed to the Boomers’ intention to buck that perception.
In my research, I set up an Eons.com account, but due to honesty about my age, I was sectioned off from 50+ content that I am dying to find out about. Next time, I will get an advertiser log-in so I can get the inside scoop on Boomer social networking, which is at this some super exclusive club. I still learned from my experience on the site, though, as Nintendo Wii purchased a multiple-day home page takeover, punctuating everything I learned this week about marketing to Boomers in my research.
Today I logged on to SpyFu and discovered a list of the Top 1000 Most Expensive Keywords CPC. Let’s get right to the good stuff. The most expensive term was “data recovery service los angeles” at $52.82 per click. The second most expensive is “boston dui lawyer” at $51.38 per click. DUI problems drove high CPCs from Tampa to Seattle and accounts for at least 40 instances of the most expensive keywords. Oops. Several law-related keywords as well as accidents, loans, and insurance composed the list.
Without doing any precise analysis, I counted about 20% of the keyword terms included “insurance”. According to Yahoo, competitors have become more aggressive with max bids surpassing $25 per click. On Yahoo, Ave CPC on keywords for car insurance have doubled in the past year. This is an industry where people compare rates, receive quotes, read reviews, and seek specials online.
With such a commitment required to an insurance provider, it makes sense that these consumers are incredibly valuable, even “insurance auto” at $50.00 a click.
