Here’S a Bit of an ‘Oh-Wow’ Factor Along with a Lot More Interaction,” Says CMG Senior Director of Digital Solutions Jesse Mccambridge
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
800.275.2840 MORE NEWS» insideradio.com THE MOST TRUSTED NEWS IN RADIO TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2015 Bigger is better when it comes to radio’s online display advertising. When it comes to digital display advertising, some radio companies are finding bigger is better. Cox Media Group and Emmis Communications are among the broadcasters that have integrated Rising Star ad units into their digital campaign offerings. The bigger, bolder rich media ads — sanctioned by the Interactive Advertising Bureau — are designed to give marketers a bigger bang than non-interactive banners that just sit on the margins of computer and mobile screens. First introduced in 2011 as “next-generation” ad templates, they give radio another way to grow display ad dollars, which make up the industry’s largest chunk of digital ad dollars. The sidekick ad, for instance, delivers an expandable formatted ad that shoves webpage content to the left, giving marketers a large functional space to convey their message. It’s one that has found favor among select Cox clients across radio, TV and newspaper platforms. “There’s a bit of an ‘oh-wow’ factor along with a lot more interaction,” says CMG senior director of digital solutions Jesse McCambridge. “A lot of clients are going beyond just standard click-through rates to see what is the interaction with the ad unit and the brand.” In addition to providing an over-sized canvas for marketers to paint on, the Rising Star units provide valuable engagement metrics. “Having those many points of interaction allows you to treat the ad unit as a market research piece, which is a major selling point,” says CMG digital creative services director Jennifer Dragon. For instance, an interactive slide show for an automotive client can show which cars users clicked on. High premiums, low usage for Rising Star display ads. The IAB-approved Rising Star ad units may offer the most in-your-face creative in cyberspace. But they make up less than 5% of all rich media ads currently running on Cox Media Group radio, TV and newspaper platforms. What the units lack in quantity they make up for in premium rates, however. CMG senior director of digital solutions Jesse McCambridge says the company is able to charge rates that are ten times more than what legacy ad units command. Brands are willing to pay the ultra-premium — not just for the larger size and enhanced interactivity but also because of the greater share of voice they bring. “People look at owning it for a day or a couple of days for a big retail sales event like a special holiday sale,” McCambridge explains. “These units aren’t as ubiquitous as the standard ad units are but that’s another reason why there is a higher premium for them.” As brand friendly as the units are, Cox and other broadcasters still offer their own high impact rich media ad units. Besides, the Rising Star units aren’t always compatible with third party ad networks, which some companies use to provide broader reach to clients. In those cases, broadcasters are sticking with standard ad units. “We evaluated them, but decided not to aggressively go that route since there wasn’t an easy backfill we could do with remnant networks,” says Journal Broadcast Group VP of interactive media Michael Gay. “We chose to focus on standard IAB ad units that could run across all devices.” Study: New ad units deliver stronger brand lift. From a bottom of the page ad that prompts a user to slide the page over, to a page-wide ad that expands down, the IAB’s Rising Stars provide more screen real estate for marketers to tell their story. Turns out they deliver 30% stronger brand lift than traditional display ads with just one full exposure, according to a research study from IAB and C3Research. That number grew to 42% when consumers interacted with one of the ads. The next-gen [email protected] | 800.275.2840 PG 1 NEWS insideradio.com TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2015 ads beat regular display ads when it came to ad recall, with consumers remembering half of the Rising Stars viewed — triple the recall of the legacy digital display ads presented. The rate at which users interact with the ads was also higher than for standard ads, producing interaction rates of 34% compared to 11% for legacy ads. Asked about the leading attributes of the high-impact ads over legacy formats, consumers said that the newer ad formats give more personality to the brand (65%), are more engaging (64%), give consumers more control (60%) and are more informative (60%). IAB head of brand initiatives Peter Minnium says the new research confirms gut instincts that “consumers pay more attention, see more value in the brand advertised, and genuinely enjoy the Rising Stars ads better than legacy units — giving marketers a new level of brand building capabilities online.” The survey consisted of eye-tracking sessions conducted from September-November 2014 with 96 respondents who rated 10 “ad pairs” and a national quantitative online survey of 1,515 respondents from December to January. It encompassed 22 companies and brands. Why did Salem change its name? The answer’s in the numbers. Five years ago, 14 cents of every dollar billed by the company came from non-radio sources. By 2013 it had risen to 21% of revenue. And while it hasn’t yet reported final 2014 earnings, the rechristened Salem Media Group received one-third of third quarter revenue from non- radio sources. The company says the shift away from its Salem Communications name better reflects what has become a multimedia business. “Our revenue mix is very close to one-third block programming, one-third radio advertising, and one-third internet and publishing,” CEO Ed Atsinger said during a recent conference call with investors. In addition to 106 radio stations and the Salem Radio Network, the company also owns high-traffic websites such as TownHall.com, Crosswalk.com and RedState.com. It’s also branched out into traditional print media with the purchase of Regnery Publishing. The common link among all that Salem owns, Atsinger explains, is two core audiences: Christians and conservatives. And when the publisher releases a book such as David Limbaugh’s “Jesus on Trial” last September there was a ready-made infrastructure to promote it. “We like the synergies of our integrated platform, and we’re not done,” Atsinger said. “We continue to drill down our multimedia platform, both through acquisitions and investment in organic growth.” Salem will keep its current “SALM” stock ticker symbol. Digital radio growth speeds up, forecaster says. With internet radio in phones, cars, game consoles and even refrigerators, it’s no wonder analysts at eMarketer see usage stepping up. The firm forecasts 169.9 million Americans will listen to digital radio per month in 2015. That projected 6.1% growth rate compared to last year is an increase from eMarketer’s earlier forecast for 2015 that estimated growth of 5.9%. As total usage continues to climb, the laws of math mean the year-to-year increases will moderate in the coming years. But the forecast says internet radio’s reach will be larger than was predicted earlier. By 2018, eMarketer now estimates 184.8 million Americans will listen to digital radio each month. That’s up from its 183.4 million forecast released last February. The updated outlook also predicts that number will climb further to 191.6 million in 2019. “Digital radio has evolved into a viable, robust digital channel that complements social media, video sites and other mainstream venues,” the report says. Advertisers are following, although by how much isn’t entirely clear. The Radio Advertising Bureau reports broadcasters’ digital revenue grew 9% to $973 million last year. But that figure includes all forms of online revenue, not just that associated with streaming. Indy’s ‘The Big’ finds number one with soft-launch and R&B. Jay Michaels programs the attention-grabbing Indianapolis classic hip-hop station “93.9 The Beat” WRWM, which shot to number one in the ratings in its first full month with the format. But like programmers elsewhere, Michaels says the jury’s still out on how classic hip-hop will settle. “Every format isn’t going to do well in every market, and a format like this has to be customized to its market to work,” he says. Michaels says in addition to old school hip-hop it’s also mixing in some R&B classics from the 1980s to the early 2000s. Nielsen reports [email protected] | 800.275.2840 PG 2 NEWS insideradio.com TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2015 WRWM finished first in multiple demos in the January survey, including 18-34, 18-49, 25-54 and 6+, where it went from No. 12 in the October book to No. 1 in January. Unlike most other stations to embrace the format, WRWM took a go-slow approach, beginning with weekends-only. That soft launch may’ve done more than work out any kinks in the rollout. It also helped build buzz, especially on social media, where the former CHR ‘i94” saw “huge increases” in its Facebook traffic. A feedback phone line was also created, and Michaels says 95% of the callers asked for the throwbacks to stick around after Christmas. “It kept the market awaiting our next move, and in the end, I believe, gave us the upper hand,” he says. And naysayers take note: classic rock and classic hits have stood the test of time with their “best of” programming Michaels says.