If you are just beginning to research online advertising and what it can do for your business, one of the essential questions you need answered is: What is online advertising? At Exact Drive, we realize that not everyone is familiar with the domain of advertising and abbreviations (people in online advertising love abbreviations), so we are headed back to the basics to give you a quick overview of the wonderful world of online advertising.
Almost as soon as pay-per-click (PPC) advertising was invented click fraud became a problem, a nasty thorn in the side of an otherwise constructive way to advertise on the Internet. As smart phone users become more mobile web savvy and the uptick in online advertising continues to trend, businesses will begin to find more lucrative and safe methods of advertising on the Internet. Pay-per-click advertising has long been a very popular (and successful) way to advertise on the Internet. However, one of the main problems with pay-per-click advertising has been and continues to be battling click fraud.
In any Internet advertising campaign, staying on top of the competition is crucial. Each year brings forth new strategies to reach this goal and offers companies more options for choosing the right Internet advertising package. What worked just 2 years ago may now leave sales flat and traffic on the downturn.
Exact Drive defines its available inventory (websites) into main categories and sub-level categories. Any categories (main or sub-level) can be included or excluded together within a campaign. Category targeting places display ads on sites that are categorically relevant to your industry and customers’ interests. Available inventory categories can include include entertainment, e-commerce, technology, health and travel.
Soon we will share a list of prohibited inventory content and why they are prohibited inventory sources (websites), which basically boils down to Exact Drive reasonably believing that the inventory content is likely to be in violation of any applicable law, regulation, or court order.
The online advertising industry is strong and here to stay. However, as 2012 comes to a close, many articles are written that outline the “predictions for 2013,” “top advertising stories of 2012,” “five reasons why the online advertising industry will fail in 2013,” and so on and so on. These articles are fun to read and some are even useful and insightful. Instead of pretending that I have some secret insight into the future of the online advertising industry or a knowledge base significant enough to accurately outline what’s to come in 2013, I would rather share a couple suggestions. Online advertising is a fast-moving, ever-changing industry and sometimes we are moving a little too fast to stop and reflect on why we think what we think and why we do what we do.
Media Buyers Are Media Buyers, Not Creative Directors
Oh, the fun of cash flow in the World of digital media. I recently had a conversation with FastPay’s founder and CEO Jed Simon. FastPay is a tech-enabled finance platform that helps digital businesses with monthly revenue greater than $50,000 overcome the struggle of long, receivable cycles by providing specialized credit lines up to several million dollars. Jed began his career in the investment banking new media group at Morgan Stanley & Co. in New York providing IPO, debt finance, and merger and acquisitions advisory services prior to joining DreamWorks SKG in 1996.
Tim Nichols: What are some of the biggest challenges that digital media businesses face?
The political season is finally over. Amen. Now everyone in the online advertising industry can take a well-deserved break. Actually, let’s just turn off our phones, unplug our laptops, and go sit on the beach until we have the perfect neon tan.
That’s a great pipedream to believe if you’re actively enjoying certain new laws passed in Washington or Colorado. Those of us in reality are first and foremost very appreciative if we were one of the few firms selected to generate a meaningful amount of new business from the short-term influx of online political advertising revenue that was thrown around. After reflecting on our newfound appreciation for the political cycle, we quickly realized that the fast and furious holiday season is starting to wake up. Bring it on Black Friday.
I recently sat down with Ryan Jetton, co-founder of Utility Digital, a company that balances technology, data utilization, and custom strategies to build successful and innovative advertising campaigns, both on- and offline. I asked Mr. Jetton a few questions about their business practices as well as his opinion on voter file-driven ad targeting and data-focused media buying.
I recently sat down with Matt Oczkowski, (now a growth and mobilization strategist in Madison, Wisocnsin), director of online campaigns for Advocacy Group, Inc., a Washington, D.C.-based public affairs firm that builds dynamic online campaigns for trade associations, non-profits, corporations, and political organizations.
Tim Nichols: Advocacy Group, Inc. (AGI) works with a variety of clients that range from trade associations and non-profits to corporations and candidates. How do you go about drafting successful campaigns in such an issue-dense industry?
According to leading retargeting company FetchBack, “retargeting means putting messages in front of lost prospects who’ve left your website in order to attract them back and convert – finish the purchase, sign up for the newsletter, or whatever action you’re looking for.”
If you’ve spent anytime surfing the Internet, you’ve probably experienced being retargeted by websites you’ve previously visited. For instance, you visit leading comparison shopping site PriceGrabber.com or leading retail website Amazon.com and the next thing you know you’re not only seeing banner ads for PriceGrabber or Amazon, but the banner ads are dynamically displaying the actual products you browsed when you last visited.