Ad News and Views from Around the Web

Advertising beyond the Super Bowl; New Yahoo! ad formats hit the press; does social really sell?; Right Media’s future, and more

Advertising the Super Bowl, and beyond
Mitch Spolan, our VP of North American field sales, has just posted a point-of-view commentary on MediaPost, on how digital advertisers are seeing gold in big-ticket events like the Super Bowl, which have traditionally been dominated by TV, radio and print. “Cultural events like the Super Bowl still matter,” says Mitch. “The good news for online marketers is that people are increasingly turning to the Internet for coverage of these events, and audience size and engagement is beginning to reach—and sometimes exceed—that of the original broadcast.” That goes whether you’re a search or display advertiser. To see how advertisers are making the shift online and get some tips for yourself, click over to MediaPost.

New ad formats stop the presses
That Mitch Spolan is redoubtable and seemingly ubiquitous.  Last week he unveiled several new, flexible, creativity-driven ad formats. “Advertising is about telling stories,” says Mitch. “And these formats allow brand advertisers to do just that.” We’re not the only ones excited about these new formats. Check out the write-ups in AdWeek, MediaWeek and paidContent.

Social’s fine, but does it sell?
With all the hype around social media marketing and how it’s good for your brand and customer support, the question arises, “Fine, but does it sell?” AdWeek’s Brian Morrisey asks that question, and adds, “What’s a Facebook friend worth?” He answers with two telling case studies.

Church social:  SM users older than you think
Greg Sterling of Screenwerk points to a survey by Royal Pingdom that indicates social media users are older than often thought, with the average being a creaking 37. At 44, LinkedIn users are practically ancient. Consider that when thinking about advertising on “the Facebooks.”

Graphic courtesy Royal Pingdom

Socialize your website with Yahoo! Apps
Web advertisers are also web publishers. You kind of have to be if you want your customers to land somewhere after clicking on your ads. The Yahoo! Application Protocol, or YAP, lets your developers create apps to socialize your content on your users’ Yahoo! homepages. For a real-life example, see Chris Marlowe’s article on the Huffington Post’s new socializing “YAP app” over at the YPN blog.

Right Media looking forward
It’s kind of Darwinian. Ad markets change and ad networks change with them. At the fore of that evolution is Right Media, Yahoo’s ad network exchange. “Right Media is actively addressing the needs of the differentiated ad networks, direct advertisers, and global agencies to enable brand safety in our premium marketplace,” say Right Media’s Brooke Wyard and Megan Pagliuca. To see how Right Media’s evolving, and how that evolution may affect exchange advertisers, click over to the Right Media blog.

Advertiser, regulate thyself
Regulation has been on the Fed’s docket since the financial meltdown. That’s not surprising. But here’s the deal, says MediaWeek’s Mike Shields: In digital advertising, over-regulation could damage innovation. Advertisers can either regulate themselves, or the government will likely step in. The Internet Advertising Bureau is lobbying for the former, but in order for that to work out, advertisers need to commit, become more transparent, and allow consumers more choice.

— Michael Mattis

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