Are you missing a huge opportunity? Fact: almost 63 million Web users in the U.S. access the internet via a mobile device, accounting for a staggering 14 percent of total media consumption today and are expected to grow by 60 percent over the next two years, according to new research from IPG's Universal McCann and AOL. This presents an opportunity, the likes that we have not experienced before. Mobile usage creates an environment whereby marketers can transition with consumers real-time as they move from activity to activity throughout the day, using their mobile at the same time as they consume other forms of media such as TV and radio.
What does the growth of mobile as a channel mean for marketers who must monitor the efficacy of channels in order to make the right decisions relative to the emphasis they place on communicating their brands in new and creative ways? How should we manage and measure this new phenomenon? According to Nielsen Business Media, the lack of standardized metrics to measure the impact of mobile usage is restricting online advertising from reaching its full potential. In their polls they cite three consistent themes when it comes to analyzing digital media:
1. Too much focus on direct response to the digital media and little or no view as
to how traditional media and digital interact.
2. A lack of creativity in keeping up with new pathways to purchase that new technology
enables.
3. A lack of understanding about how the digital channel actually works.
Many are stuck in "on-site visitor measurement" rather that the traffic to and from channels. This stems from the deployment of tried-and-trusted methods used to measuring aspects of traditional media such as reach and frequency; indicating how many people have seen an ad and how many times they have seen it. Many marketers believe the GRP metrics used by television, radio and newspapers should first align with online advertising in such a way that is consistent with what marketers are used to viewing in order to spend more money on digital advertising.
But, in order to keep up with the new pathways the digital medium is creating, we need to go beyond adapting traditional measurement methods. Certainly the measurement of the effectiveness of digital media must to be aligned in how it is measured with traditional media. But, we can also learn from what is being measured by the large Web platforms looking at pathways that lead to product purchase, and adding the interaction of various media to that pathway. For example, a user of mobile media can be exposed to an ad at the same time he are viewing TV, reading a paper, listening to the radio and surfing the Web on a laptop or PC. This creates a complexity that has not been experienced nor measured in the past. We must merge together the measurement of traditional media with what we have learned in measuring digital.
Consumers are more educated, more complex and are exposed to more influencers than ever before. Segmenting these consumers as to how they arrive at a purchase by what influences them along the way is critical. In same way that we categorize consumer groups, we must categorize the myriad of consumer paths with which to view new and unique opportunities to reach consumers and drive them to purchase. Consumer products companies and retailers that understand this channel and other pioneering ways of getting to answers will create market shifts with tremendous implications for their future success. The likes of which, we have not experienced for some time.
By Brian Welsh
http://www.wns.com/Services/ResearchandAnalytics/tabid/77/Default.aspx?smo=ab-bl-ras
