revolutionary forms of advertising: get ahead of the competition
Advertising is a crucial part of the UK economy with expenditure reaching £138bn per year and online ad spend making up 57 percent of this. The evolution of advertising has created major disruption to businesses while also creating the opportunity for rapid innovation. The third decade of the 21st century is set to see new technological possibilities including virtual reality and machine learning.
Market research firm, Yankelovich, estimated that a person living in a city 30 years ago saw up to 2,000 ad messages a day, compared with up to 5,000 today. With figures this high, you need to find new ways to capture your audience’s attention online. What forms of advertising could help you cut through the noise?
revolutionary forms of advertising
video
Video is one of the most important marketing trends and it doesn’t show any signs of slowing down. Why? Because people find video engaging. Research found that video ads are the preferred social media content consumers like to see, while 72 percent of businesses say video has improved their conversion rates. It’s important to think beyond YouTube. Social media channels have adapted their features to accommodate for video advertising with ephemeral video content and live broadcast features now available on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.
Video advertising on mobile in particular has seen the greatest growth. By condensing information found on long-form pages into a format that fits a smaller device, content can be readily consumed on the go. While you may be concerned at the cost of creating video content, it’s important to note that video ads are often created from a business’s existing content. Additionally, today’s consumers demand authenticity from brands making behind-the-scenes and live content the preferred – and cheaper - option for many.
One of the best benefits of video marketing is that it can be reformatted and shared across multiple platforms for optimum exposure. Once you’ve created your video ad to publish on social media, you could also:
Turn the video into a standalone blog article or infographic with relevant stats and images
Transcribe the video below the ad for ease of use and to help SEO
Use the audio to create a podcast episode
Embed the video in your email marketing campaigns and include the word ‘Video’ in the subject line
sky adsmart
Watching TV counts for 37 percent of the average person’s daily media consumption with 96 percent of adults watching it weekly. Many brands see TV advertising as out of reach due to the mass appeal and high costs. Sky AdSmart is a revolutionary service, offering brands the opportunity to target specific audiences during live TV breaks but at a fraction of the cost. Cost for linear advertising varies dependant on the channel and time of day, if someone skips your ad after a second of viewing you will still be charged. With AdSmart, you only incur a cost if your ad is viewed for at least 75 percent of its duration saving you money.
Combining the power and reputation of traditional TV advertising with digital, Sky AdSmart allows businesses to restrict its audience advertising at a truly granular level. From hobbies and interests, to regions and even post codes, using this service, you can essentially enjoy affordable fame with the people that matter most to your brand. Here are some of the top benefits:
digital audio
The rise of podcasts and online streaming has created a whole new channel for marketers to reach their audiences through. With 24 million people streaming music and podcasts every week, the reach potential is huge. Whether it’s playlists, audio books, radio or podcasts, businesses can target their audience considering demographics and interests to deliver emotive and relevant content. The benefits are clear:
Capitalise on the authority of trusted platforms
Combining traditional out-of-home advertising methods with the reportability of digital allows for data-driven creativity
Higher engagement through popular music streaming services such as Spotify and Deezer
Create a personal connection through mobile and headphones
Convey emotion to your listeners through a human voice
As audio grows in popularity, there are different formats of advertising that you may choose depending on budget, target audience and the product you want to promote. These include:
Companion ads: A visual ad displayed in the platform while the audio is playing. They usually include a brand logo and a clickable link in the form of a banner.
Ad placement: Airtime slots made available for one or more audio ads within the audio content.
Skippable ads: Appear either in pre-roll (before the content) or mid-roll (during the content).
amazon ads
Every month, more than 197 million people visit Amazon with approximately 90 percent of UK shoppers using the eCommerce market leader. Since Google first developed its AdWords product in 2000, big players in the industry, including Amazon and Microsoft, have adopted the data-driven automation that makes advertising today so impressive. As Amazon continues to innovate rapidly, some industry experts have begun to question whether it could eventually overtake Google. Their comprehensive shopping experience allows customers to read reviews, ask questions and view photos all in one place.
Advertising on Amazon is an easy way to promote your product listings. Ads appear in popular areas including the first page of search results or product detail pages. Advertisers can place bids on keywords or products, and if the ad is relevant and the bid wins, it will be displayed to shoppers. Amazon currently offer two PPC advertising solutions:
Sponsored products: These are ads for individual product listings on Amazon. They appear on results pages and product detail pages to drive product visibility.
Sponsored brands: Showcase your brand product portfolio using sponsored brands. Featuring your logo, a customer headline and up to three of your products, these ads appear in search results.
social commerce and shoppable posts
As eCommerce and social media continue to grow in popularity, brands are combining both to maximise their sales. Social media platforms including Pinterest and Instagram have upped their game, offering new advertising features.
With over one billion users, Instagram’s shopping and advertising capabilities have become popular with users. It was reported that after seeing a product or service on Instagram, 79 percent of people searched for more information, while 46 percent went onto make a purchase. eCommerce brands are able to create and post interactive ads allowing users to click and shop with ease, providing them with the instant purchase they desire.
A place to soak up inspiration, social media channels have become an effective way of reaching a user earlier in their shopping journey, something which Pinterest does exceptionally well. In fact, 60 percent of Pinners use Pinterest before search engines, other social media platforms or friend recommendations when starting their buying journey. A combination of personalised suggestions, relevant content and inspiring photos means users are targeted during their discovery phase, making Pinterest an excellent top of the funnel platform.
Pinterest Ads contain an image, caption and link which are displayed natively among a user’s feed. Through a business account, you can access analytical features such as audience targeting based on demographics and search interests. Campaign results can also be tracked to make optimisation changes and different types of ads can be used to target each stage of the sales funnel.
Change is both integral and an inevitable part of digital marketing. Brands must keep looking ahead, embracing new technologies, tools and tactics. These revolutionary forms of advertising will not only help save you time and make you more cost-efficient, they will also engage your audience in the way they prefer. Adopting these techniques can help cut through the digital noise and push ahead of the competition. It is important to note the relevance to your business will depend on your goals, budget and target audience. Contact the specialists at equation to discuss paid media advertising more and find out if these revolutionary forms of advertising could help your brand.
