For Telstra to spend many millions of dollars on naming a sporting facility was always a complete waste of money. One company that does not have a brand recognition problem in Australia is Telstra.
But for the marketers at Etihad Airways, the story is very different. The company’s brand in Australia is about as unknown as Kevin Rudd’s mum's maiden name. But not any longer. When the first Etihad flight to these parts touches down in Melbourne in March, it will coincide with the unveiling of the new name at Docklands.
In one brilliant move, the stadium name change (announced on 22 October) will take Etihad from almost zero to a strong brand recognition position in no time.
Well done Etihad! I like you already!
26 October 2008
Prices are falling for online ad space
The New York Times reported on 16 October that the price of ad space online is down 27% this year.
Web sites about technology were the only category that didn’t see ad prices fall in the last twelve months.
Prices for ad space online vary widely. On social networking sites, rates are usually very low. On smaller niche sites, much higher rates can be achieved.
Ads on small web sites – those that get fewer than 1 million page views per month – sell for about three times as much as space on big sites with more than 100 million page views per month.
The price difference relates to the fact that small sites have niche content, which means that advertisers can reach a more targeted audience. For example, a teenager in the United States and an elderly person in India can both use Facebook. Advertisers don’t know who is seeing their ad. By contrast, a small site dedicated to restaurant reviews in inner Melbourne would have a more defined set of readers.
Of course, the question of readership remains: do people look at display ads on the net?
If I was thinking of investing in display advertising online, I would certainly do a small test first. (OK, I know, regular readers will have guessed that’s what I would say!)
Why set yourself up for a possible loss? Do a small test and the worst case scenario is that you’ll lose a small amount. But you’ll also gain specific information relating to your product or business that could be invaluable.
Web sites about technology were the only category that didn’t see ad prices fall in the last twelve months.
Prices for ad space online vary widely. On social networking sites, rates are usually very low. On smaller niche sites, much higher rates can be achieved.
Ads on small web sites – those that get fewer than 1 million page views per month – sell for about three times as much as space on big sites with more than 100 million page views per month.
The price difference relates to the fact that small sites have niche content, which means that advertisers can reach a more targeted audience. For example, a teenager in the United States and an elderly person in India can both use Facebook. Advertisers don’t know who is seeing their ad. By contrast, a small site dedicated to restaurant reviews in inner Melbourne would have a more defined set of readers.
Of course, the question of readership remains: do people look at display ads on the net?
If I was thinking of investing in display advertising online, I would certainly do a small test first. (OK, I know, regular readers will have guessed that’s what I would say!)
Why set yourself up for a possible loss? Do a small test and the worst case scenario is that you’ll lose a small amount. But you’ll also gain specific information relating to your product or business that could be invaluable.
US direct marketing expenditure reaches 53% of all advertising
On October 13 the Direct Marketing Association in the US unveiled important figures about direct marketing. These figures indicate that despite the generally bleak economic outlook, direct marketers should continue to do well.
“In 2008 and 2009, direct marketing spend will again outpace general advertising by a slight margin,” said the Association’s Vice President, Strategy, Analysis, and Planning, Peter Johnson PhD.
“In 2009, direct marketing will capture 53% of total advertising expenditures, continuing the long-term movement in advertising dollars to direct marketing and away from general advertising.”
Despite the desperate economic times in the US, direct marketing is expected to grow by 3.7% this year and 4.5% next year.
Sales through direct marketing reached $171 billion in 2007 and are expected to top $183 in 2009. Looking at spend by channel, the Association’s analysis reveals that the big winners will be commercial email and internet marketing. Both of these will enjoy double-digit spending growth as businesses take advantage of the continued move toward electronic purchasing.
Several broad sectors in the US are expected to achieve above-average direct marketing sales growth in 2009, including:
• Financial Services
• Information
• Transportation
• Services
• Wholesale Trade.
Higher Return on Investment: For 2008, an investment of $1 in direct marketing is predicted to return, on average, $11.63 in incremental revenue across all industries. This exceeds the $11.56 achieved in 2007. Further improvement, to $11.74, is expected in 2009.
Growth for Interactive Marketing: Expenditures in the newer online media will maintain significant growth in the coming year. Commercial email will continue to claim the top growth ranking for 2009, while internet advertising will claim over 15% of all direct marketing advertising dollars.
There is much more detail in The Power of Direct Marketing Report which you can purchase from the Association for a non-member price of $US595.
“In 2008 and 2009, direct marketing spend will again outpace general advertising by a slight margin,” said the Association’s Vice President, Strategy, Analysis, and Planning, Peter Johnson PhD.
“In 2009, direct marketing will capture 53% of total advertising expenditures, continuing the long-term movement in advertising dollars to direct marketing and away from general advertising.”
Despite the desperate economic times in the US, direct marketing is expected to grow by 3.7% this year and 4.5% next year.
Sales through direct marketing reached $171 billion in 2007 and are expected to top $183 in 2009. Looking at spend by channel, the Association’s analysis reveals that the big winners will be commercial email and internet marketing. Both of these will enjoy double-digit spending growth as businesses take advantage of the continued move toward electronic purchasing.
Several broad sectors in the US are expected to achieve above-average direct marketing sales growth in 2009, including:
• Financial Services
• Information
• Transportation
• Services
• Wholesale Trade.
Higher Return on Investment: For 2008, an investment of $1 in direct marketing is predicted to return, on average, $11.63 in incremental revenue across all industries. This exceeds the $11.56 achieved in 2007. Further improvement, to $11.74, is expected in 2009.
Growth for Interactive Marketing: Expenditures in the newer online media will maintain significant growth in the coming year. Commercial email will continue to claim the top growth ranking for 2009, while internet advertising will claim over 15% of all direct marketing advertising dollars.
There is much more detail in The Power of Direct Marketing Report which you can purchase from the Association for a non-member price of $US595.
Quotation marks, brackets and other punctuation
The exact position of some punctuation can be confusing. Let’s look at these examples:
"Good morning", said Lucy.
"Good morning," said Lucy.
"Good morning", she said. "How are you feeling?"
The comma after the word ‘morning’ can appear before or after the quotation marks. Placing it before the quotation marks is my preference and I feel it looks right. However, some people argue that it is not really part of what Lucy said and therefore it should go after the quotation marks. They would argue that the comma is simply a device that the writer uses to keep the sentence clear.
The question mark after the word ‘feeling’ is different. It seems to me fairly obvious that the question mark is actually part of what Lucy said. Presumably her intonation indicated that the words ‘how are you feeling’ were a question.
Brackets are a different case again. In the example that follows, the bracket should appear before the full stop - as in (a). I can’t think of any situation where (b) would be correct.
(a) The model was just right (albeit slightly large).
(b) The model was just right (albeit slightly large.)
You can be pedantic about these nuances in English, but I get a distinct feeling that very few people notice.
In business writing, our objective is to communicate with impact. It’s good to get these things right, but I suggest you spend most of your time focusing on more important things.
"Good morning", said Lucy.
"Good morning," said Lucy.
"Good morning", she said. "How are you feeling?"
The comma after the word ‘morning’ can appear before or after the quotation marks. Placing it before the quotation marks is my preference and I feel it looks right. However, some people argue that it is not really part of what Lucy said and therefore it should go after the quotation marks. They would argue that the comma is simply a device that the writer uses to keep the sentence clear.
The question mark after the word ‘feeling’ is different. It seems to me fairly obvious that the question mark is actually part of what Lucy said. Presumably her intonation indicated that the words ‘how are you feeling’ were a question.
Brackets are a different case again. In the example that follows, the bracket should appear before the full stop - as in (a). I can’t think of any situation where (b) would be correct.
(a) The model was just right (albeit slightly large).
(b) The model was just right (albeit slightly large.)
You can be pedantic about these nuances in English, but I get a distinct feeling that very few people notice.
In business writing, our objective is to communicate with impact. It’s good to get these things right, but I suggest you spend most of your time focusing on more important things.
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