Take a brief glance at some of the more dynamic marketing campaigns on major sites such as Yahoo!, ESPN or the New York Times, and you might think online marketing has come a long way since the simple days of banner ads. But has it really? And what can we expect to happen in the future?
On November 21, FORA.tv presented L2 Social Graph: Europe, a conference that showcased best practices in social media and detailed how European brands can benefit from these practices. L2 founder Scott Galloway kicked off the event, now available on demand on FORA.tv, by speaking on how and where brands currently spend their marketing dollars.
While many businesses have adjusted to online advertising as a key source for branding, there is still a disconnect between where marketers target customers and where these customers are actually spending their time online. Galloway says that many brands are still “trapped in yesterday’s media plan” and aren’t taking advantage of mobile devices, such as smartphones and tablets. “Almost one in ten minutes of media is consumed on a mobile device,” Galloway explained. “The shift toward digital by the consumer is well ahead of the shift toward digital dollars being spent by brands themselves.”
By not investing in the digital space, companies risk losing money, and they may turn off potential investors who see their business plan as lacking a high “digital IQ,” according to Galloway. “Primary shareholder value in the market today is demonstrating digital competence,” he said.
The good news is that consumer brands can and should change their marketing strategies to adjust to a more dynamic digital platform. The bad news is that Google and Facebook dominate the field. These two Internet giants control most of the highly trafficked advertising space, whether it’s through Google Adwords or through a user’s Facebook profile, and the cost of acquiring consumers and making conversions is skyrocketing. “Consider these the salad days if you want to buy advertising space online,” said Galloway. “Because it’s only going to get more expensive—even prohibitively so.”
Galloway said businesses should ask themselves several questions when it comes to creating a strategic marketing plan that fits into the digital age. “Are you changing or clinging to what your company is comfortable with? In a world where shared media is king, what have you done to get people to talk about your brand?” In order to succeed, Galloway adds, business must foster “a digital culture” and be prepared move quickly. “Ready, fire, aim, should be the motto of any company looking to expand their digital presence. Digital [marketing] rewards risk-taking.”
James Fenton and Lewis Lapham will now be joining Stephen Fry and close friends of Hitchens including Martin Amis, Christopher Buckley, and Salman Rushdie in New York, Sean Penn in London, and Richard Dawkins live on stage in London. They will be examining their and his ideas of what constitutes the good life and the good death – seen against the backdrop of Christopher’s career, the causes dear to his heart, the controversies that he has so enjoyed provoking and the things that make life worth defending.
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