BRANDWEEK
The Biz: Latest Rage At The Upfronts: Ads That Don't Look Like Ads
May 05, 2008
IT'S GETTING harder to distinguish commercials from content. These days, an ad can be a vignette with a stand-up comic, a puppet-hosted interview or a behind-the-scenes look at an upcoming movie.
On the eve of the upfront market, when TV networks pitch their slates and secure the bulk of their ad dollars for the next season, ad sales executives are going to new lengths to get their share of cash. The current buzz term: custom content. In other words, ads that don't look like ads. The goal is to get consumers to pay attention, not surf or fast-forward during breaks from their shows.
Time Warner's Turner Broadcasting, which has been aggressive in developing ads designed as entertainment, is launching several such initiatives on its remade Tru TV.
"Advertisers want to engage with consumers in some meaningful way," said Tom Winiarski, svp of Turner Entertainment ad sales and marketing. "We're helping them maximize their message in our environment."
The cable network, formerly Court TV, has moved away from its all-courtroom-all-the-time coverage to a broader "It's not reality, it's actuality" theme, with 350 hours of original programming in the upcoming season. It's less crime and punishment, which got the cold shoulder from some advertisers, Winiarski said.
"Not a lot of people want to be the title sponsor for the Phil Spector murder trial," he said.
Since its January relaunch, Tru TV has seen a bump in ratings, earning its biggest-ever prime time audiences in the key 18-49-year-old demographic and total viewers. First quarter saw a 7% increase in viewers, and an average uptick of 82,000 25-54-year-old viewers.
The restyled channel focuses on personal storytelling and real-life experiences in its unscripted shows, a la the fall-launching Black Gold, from the Ice Road Truckers production team, that features oil wildcatters in Texas.
Three new branded entertainment formats—Reel Movie, Actual Ads and Real Life Stories—will link the channel's programming theme with advertiser messages. Reel Movie, with 20th Century Fox as its first advertiser, goes behind the scenes of the studio's comedy What Happens in Vegas with personal accounts from stars Ashton Kutcher and Rob Corddry about a pivotal scene. Commentary comes from co-star Cameron Diaz for the vignettes, which start this week for the May 9-opening movie.
Actual Ads have a cinema verité twist, featuring consumers waxing about brands via self-shot Webcam footage. Finally, Reel Life Stories will mix shows like the upcoming Ski Patrol with sponsor messages in short entertainment bits. Talks are ongoing with interested marketers.
In the same spirit, sibling channel Cartoon Network just announced interstitials hosted by puppets named Jib and Crash who will do interviews with movie stars. Warner Bros. is the first client, with a 90-second exclusive peek at Speed Racer this week followed by 45-second puppet-hosted vignettes. DreamWorks Animation will be next up to promote its animated family flick Kung Fu Panda.
Turner execs also have made advertisers part of 30-second spots called bitcoms where stand-up comics tell jokes about the brands on the comedy-centric TBS. Unilever and other major marketers have participated.
Other entertainment companies like Viacom are pushing further into the pod-busting space via programs like True Dads, ad-integrated spots on Spike TV that show dads spending time with their kids. Red Lobster, Jeep, T-Mobile and Pizza Hut have been woven into the pieces. The CSI Guys put Dunkin' Donuts, T-Mobile and Dominos into shorts that parody the popular drama.
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Maximizing Online Video In An Economic Downturn
by Bradley Inman , Monday, May 19, 2008
AS THE WORD "RECESSION" PROLIFERATES across the media, companies inevitably look to cut spending to stay competitive. However, in their hurry to get financially lean and mean, brands must not forget the importance of having a strong and dynamic online presence beyond a few pay-per-click text ads. One of the best (and cheapest) ways to meaningfully engage with potential and current customers is through online video. With the ubiquitous nature of Internet video, the ad industry has been slowly moving to the Web to meet the demand of a rising audience. According to recent research from comScore, 75% of Internet users watched online video in November 2007.
Online video has many different incarnations -- from user-generated content on YouTube to commercials plucked from the television airwaves. However, marketing on the Internet calls for a new approach to video - the development of very customized, engaging content that is authentic and relevant to the topics that the user has been searching for. No scripts or actors or clunky amateur videos, but real people telling stories about subjects they are passionate about.
Marketers can use this form of video to convey interesting stories about their brand, where the story IS the ad. Hotels, for example, are creating video channels that give viewers an insider tour of a city's hot spots, hosted by the hotels' concierges. When audiences view video that is interesting and relevant to them that doesn't smell of shameless promotion, they have a much richer experience. In addition, their engagement with the brand is far more valuable since they care about the story and trust the person telling it.
One of the greatest attributes of the Internet is its inherently social nature. With traditional television ads, there is very little social interaction or measurable engagement. With online video, however, you can easily optimize for social networks, blogs and widgets, and also take advantage of the ability for people to share and comment on the videos or otherwise spread them virally. Social media technologies enable you to dramatically stretch your advertising budget, as you're empowering your audience to help spread your message and your brand to their friends and networks. And thanks to the cost efficiency of online video, you can also create several versions of videos that appeal to a wide range of demographics.
Indeed, with advances in technology, this new type of online video -- one that serves as the content, rather than the interruption of the content -- is much more affordable than traditional video production, not to mention television advertising. Today, many professional online video shoots can be done with a one-person crew in one day, yet maintain the unmistakable polish of television quality. Gone are the days of elaborate productions and catering trucks. In their place is this new era of video, one that holds up in the face of the most bearish markets and enables marketers to engage with their audiences in new ways to create authentic, powerful connections between consumers and their brands.
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