Like it or not, new media has emerged as a major player in advertising and marketing, the Internet and wireless technologies. New, different and consumer driven, new media is not going away any time soon. The media revolution is here and it does not play by the same rules as traditional media.
As a kid, I was the last one to leave the library. When we took vacations by car, I always had my nose in a book in spite of parental concerns that I would ruin my eyes.
One day I hoped that I would achieve enough success to be able to afford a huge library. Today that's a reality, and it's called the internet. I'm still one of the last ones to leave the "library" on the east coast --- sometimes at 2:00 AM. The beauty of this new "library" is that it's 24/7 with very loyal customers.
Today, before making a purchase, taking new medicine, or making financial decisions, a large percentage of people conduct online research in this 24/7 library. Consumers are spending a larger percentage of the online time with content and on popular social-networking sites. In 2001, many manufacturers and publishers were wondering whether to include new media in the mix.
There is no question regarding the importance of the new "pull" media fueled by new technology and consumers. Internet users are spending nearly half their online time visiting content - a 37% increase in share of time from four years ago and nearly as much time as spent on communications and commerce combined - according to a four-year analysis of the Internet Activity Index (IAI) issued by the Online Publishers Association (OPA).
The IAI is a monthly gauge of the time that users spend with e-commerce, communications, content and search; it is conducted by Nielsen/NetRatings.
Does that mean that you should shift the greater percentage of your media budget to new media? Definitely not. The headline says it all...Diversity.
A question was raised by one of our visitors regarding how one might use new media in campaigns. One example involves Lance Heft, a client of ours. After a 25 year search, Philadelphia business man and book author, Lance Heft, finally locates his fourth grade teacher, Louise Zulick. The search was important to Heft for so many reasons. He wanted to pay tribute to Louise for her faith in him, and he wanted to say thank you to the woman who played a critical role in his childhood development and in his life.
We could have simply presented the check to the American Cancer Society and invited the media, but we included new media. As the father of two girls, Lance feels strongly about giving back for research so that perhaps a cure will be found. The video ties into Father's Day and the love that he holds for his wife and family.
Check out: New Media in Action Giving Back http://www.crestonadvertising.com/services/newmedia.html
Don't write off podcasting just yet. In fact, don't write it off at all if you want to maximize your marketing budget. Podcasting is a relatively inexpensive way of bringing a message to your target audience with the advantage of being able to automatically deliver the show to the blogs, or mp3 media players of your subscription base. If you have a blog, you can link from the blog to another site that contains your podcasts.
Podcasting makes it easy to share your message with your target audience. And, unlike commercials, podcasting gives you the unique ability to take listeners behind-the-scenes for a "tour" of your product line, or business. It's a valuable tool for a variety of products and services from self improvement, travel, cars, wine, beer, cooking tips, restaurants, pets, wealth building, retirement, buying real estate, trusts vs. wills, to business tips.
If the podcast program contains information with long-term applications, the listener has the stored file to refer to as a resource. Podcasting lends itself to almost every type of business whether it's a home based business, a non-profit, or a major corporation. It can be a source of general information and/or a tie-in to an upcoming event, or product launch.
And, as you may have noticed, politicians are now taking advantage of podcasting. There are over 8,000 podcasts currently available including major network and radio broadcasters, leading magazines, major newspapers and Fortune 500 companies.
You can attempt to create your own podcasts, but unless you have a solid media background along with training as an announcer, it's not something that we recommend. The finished podcast should be very professional and well produced with a seasoned host and production team. And, production is just the first step...then, there's the marketing aspect.
An important point to remember is that the podcast should not just be another version of your commercial...that's not what this is all about. Provide the audience with useful, general tips including interesting information about key people in the company, the story behind your business, and unique aspects about your products, or services. Then gently work in the commercial aspect of your products and/or service with a very understated approach. The best example is the PBS approach.
Like other things in business, podcasting takes a certain skill set which is best left to a group of talented professionals.
Sit back with a glass of wine or chilled mineral water, and enjoy two of our many Cuisine Radio podcasts featuring the very best in dining along with our other business podcasts featuring our talented executive producer and host, Mark Alyn.
http://www.crestonadvertising.com/services/podcasting.html
Remember one important point -- Podcasts are not commercials. They also need to be promoted, and I highly recommend http://www.feedburner.com/fb/a/podcasts
Like a strong financial portfolio, your marketing plan should be diversified.
Comments from original hosting site:
You've really shed some light for me. Please consider writing a book if you haven't already.
Many thanks for your insight. I've already adopted it in our business.
Ron Small
Maxx Marketing, LLC
Posted by: Ron Small 08/12/2008 10:06 AM
Hello:
Thank you for the visits, the comments and questions.
Enjoy your day!
Diane Creston
Posted by: Diane Creston 03/03/2008 06:55 PM
This article is a breath of fresh air. And there obviously is much more information behind what is written. I give it a 10. Thanks for giving us a glimpse of your expertise in new media, Diane. Best wishes for your ongoing success! Frank
Posted by: Frank Feather 02/20/2008 10:44 AM
Great information -- I enjoyed the article and the information. As a small business owner, this is the kind of info I need.
Posted by: Donna Fenn 12/18/2007 01:47 PM
Great resource. Thank you!
Posted by: Tania 12 12/11/2007 04:25 PM
