1/25/08

Online Newspaper Viewership Reached Record High in ‘07

Average monthly unique audience figures for newspaper websites grew by more than 3.6 million in 2007, a record year for the industry and an increase of more than 6% over 2006 numbers, according to the Newspaper Association of America (NAA).

naa-newspaper-website-viewership-data-2007-vs-2006-totals.jpg

Monthly unique visitors to newspaper websites averaged 62.8 million in last year’s fourth quarter, a record number in itself and the largest in any quarter since NAA began tracking online usage in January 2004.

naa-newspaper-website-viewership-data-4q07-by-month.jpg

According to the data, which is part of a new report by Nielsen Online for NAA that takes into account home and work internet usage, unique visitors in the fourth quarter represented a 9% increase over the same period a year ago (57.6 million).

Among the findings of the report:

  • Heading into the holiday season, newspaper websites experienced a record in October 2007. More than 63.2 million people visited newspaper websites that month, more than any month on record - and an 8% increase from the same period a year ago.
  • For the year’s fourth quarter, 39% of all active Web users visited newspaper websites, with visits averaging 44 minutes a month.
  • In the fourth quarter, users generated more than three billion page impressions on average, a 7.3% increase over the same period a year ago.

See below for chart of similar data, by month, for all of 2007; data for previous periods is available from NAA’s website.

naa-newspaper-website-viewership-data-2007-by-month.jpg

“Newspapers continue to successfully transform themselves into multimedia companies, offering unparalleled content that reaches an audience growing in both size and sophistication,” said NAA President and CEO John F. Sturm.

“Newspapers’ expanding print and digital portfolio offers value to advertisers by providing a targeted, comprehensive menu of choices for today’s discriminating consumer. As our industry’s transition accelerates, it is clear consumers recognize newspapers as their trusted source of information in an increasingly digital environment.”

About the data: The Nielsen Online newspaper total represents a de-duplicated visitor total taken from its combined home and work panel of internet users (e.g., an individual who might read a national newspaper plus a local newspaper online is counted only once). The target sample (2 years or older) has access from a non-shared PC at work and/or access from home. The Nielsen Online monthly newspaper total represents the de-duplicated reach of a custom list of hundreds of sites collectively.

http://www.marketingcharts.com/interactive/online-newspaper-viewership-reaches-record-high-in-07-3190/?camp=newsletter&src=mc&type=textlink

1/22/08

Datran Survey Puts E-mail ROI in Question

Conventional wisdom, not to mention common sense, has it that e-mail delivers an astronomically high return on investment compared to other channels.

However, this is apparently news to a significant percentage of marketers.

Just 55.3% of executives recently surveyed by pay-for-performance marketing firm Datran Media said e-mail’s ROI is higher than that of other channels.

Also, 25.9% said e-mail’s ROI is roughly equal to that of other channels. And a still significant 18.8% said e-mail’s ROI is <ital>lower<ital> than that of other channels.

These are fairly stunning numbers given e-mail’s low transmission costs. They also fly in the face of Direct Marketing Association calculations that e-mail delivered $48.56 in sales for every dollar spent in 2007, and would deliver $45.65 for every dollar spent in 2008.

For comparison, the DMA said non-e-mail Internet marketing returned $20.67 in sales for every dollar spent in 2007. The trade group said catalogs delivered $7.22 in sales for every dollar spent in 2007.

Datran didn’t ask respondents to elaborate on the ROI question so it’s impossible to say definitively what the reasons for the findings are.

“I can only speculate here, but my guess is marketers might cite search as the strongest ROI channel since the measurement/metrics are so easy and familiar – even if this perception does not match results,” wrote Lana McGilvray, vice president of marketing for Datran, in an e-mail exchange with this newsletter.

“Also, based on direct feedback from our clients (not related to this survey), while e-mail is most often the top performer, we also hear great feedback of the results of direct TV, search and display. The strongest multi-channel mix for each company varies and it takes more than a single channel to realize maximum success,” she continued.

Meanwhile, in another eyebrow-raising statistic, just 36.5% of those surveyed by Datran said they test how their creative appears across various inbox types.

Internet service providers have been increasingly blocking graphics by default for quite some time now. Moreover, a message’s appearance can change fairly dramatically from inbox to inbox. So apparently, the vast majority of marketers are conducting e-mail campaigns with no idea how their messages look to most of their recipients.

Still, a respectable 74.1% of those surveyed said they conduct A/B/C content or creative testing.

Less surprising findings included that 82.4% of those surveyed said they would increase their use of e-mail marketing in 2008, while 15.3% said their use of the channel would stay the same and 2.4% said it would decrease.

Also, 71.8% of respondents said search compliments e-mail, compared to 51.8% who said display advertising compliments the channel, 24.7% said mobile compliments e-mail, 41.2% said direct marketing—presumably mail—compliments it.

Sending newsletters was the most popular use for e-mail among marketers by a slight margin, with 80% saying they planned the activity. However, selling was a close second with 78.8% choosing that option.

Interestingly, 64.7% said they plan to use e-mail to increase brand awareness.

Also, while much of the talk in the industry is about behaviorally targeted advertising, demographic and geographic targeting are still king. While 56.5% of respondents said they send e-mails targeted based on recipients behavior, 63.5% said they target based on demographics and geography. Meanwhile, a not insignificant 20% said they don’t send targeted campaigns.

A healthy 67.1% said they believe e-mail boosts sales in other channels.

Moreover, marketers’ interest in exploiting the opportunities in transactional e-mails remains high as 63.5% said they plan to advertise in their transactional messages.

Jan 22, 2008 1:34 PM , By Ken Magill

http://directmag.com/disciplines/email/datran_survey_email_question_0122/

1/11/08

Analysts Predict Recession, Gloomy Year for Media

Wall Street is nervous about the media sector, with analysts at both Goldman Sachs and Sanford Bernstein issuing negative reports on the sector today.

Anthony Noto of Goldman Sachs reduced estimates across communications, media and entertainment sectors, saying they are all economically sensitive that will be dragged down by the recession that GS is predicting, writes CNBC.

Noto is particularly concerned about radio broadcasting and newspapers.

The recession will be a mild one by historical standards, lasting only two or three quarters this year and easing in 2009, Noto believes. He says the internet and video game businesses are among the few attractive areas of the industry, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

Sanford Bernstein’s Michael Nathanson believes media stocks will take it on the chin, with CBS Corp. being hit the hardest. The worst case scenario could see the firm revising earnings estimates down by 20 percent for CBS, and down by 12 percent for Disney.

http://www.mediabuyerplanner.com/2008/01/10/analysts-predict-recession-gloomy-year-for-media/

1/7/08

2007 Holiday E-commerce Postmortem

Some $29.2 billion was spent online during the 2007 holiday season, a 19% gain versus the same period last year, according to comScore’s final update of e-commerce spending during the holiday season (Nov. 1 - Dec. 31).

Monday, Dec. 10, was the heaviest online spending day of the season with $881 million spent, and the week ended Dec. 16 was heaviest spending week, with $4.7 billion, comScore said.

comscore-2007-holiday-ecommerce-sales-through-december-31.jpg

“This year’s online holiday shopping season has concluded with a record $29 billion in spending, a 19% gain versus year ago,” said comScore Chairman Gian Fulgoni. “Ultimately, the softness in the growth of online retail sales during the first 10 days of November proved difficult to overcome and prevented the season’s growth rate from reaching our forecast of 20%.”

However, a healthier 21% growth rate was recorded during the period between Thanksgiving and Christmas, he said. Below, the holiday-season spending info issued by comScore.
Top 10 Online Spending Days

“Green Monday” (Monday, Dec. 10) was the heaviest individual spending day of the season with $881 million in sales, followed by Tuesday, Dec. 11 ($819 million), and Thursday, Dec. 6 ($803 million).

comscore-2007-holiday-season-top-10-online-spending-days-final.jpg

“Cyber Monday” (Nov. 26), the first major spike in online spending activity during the season, ranked as the 9th-heaviest day with $733 million.
Fastest-Growing Product Categories

Videogames, consoles & accessories was the fastest-growing online retail category, jumping 129% versus the 2006 holiday season, with popular consoles like Nintendo Wii and Sony PlayStation and games like Halo 3 driving strong sales in the category.

comscore-2007-holiday-fastest-growing-categories-through-dec-31.jpg

Furniture, appliances & equipment (up 67%), event tickets (up 24%) and consumer electronics (up 23%) also experienced above-average growth.

After substantial softness early in the season, online apparel sales picked up considerably in the latter part of the season, finishing up 18%.

Meanwhile, sales of jewelry & watches declined marginally versus year ago; rising costs in precious metals like gold and platinum may have dampened consumer demand.
Weekly Online Holiday Retail Sales

The heaviest spending week during the 2007 holiday season was the week ended Dec. 16, with $4.7 billion in online sales, edging out the week ended Dec. 9’s $4.6 billion.

comscore-2007-holiday-online-retail-sales-through-week-9.jpg

The week ended Nov. 18 showed the strongest growth rate (26%) versus the corresponding week in 2006, while the week ended Nov. 4 showed the softest growth (4%).

1/4/08

TV Watchers More Engaged If Viewing Online, Engagement = Ad Receptivity

Consumers who watch TV online are more engaged than those who watch programs on TV sets, according to a cross-media study by Simmons, part of Experian Research Services, reports MediaPost. Moreover, there’s a high correlation between media engagement and ad receptivity.

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Viewers are 47% more engaged in ads shown during TV programs shown online than those shown on programs watched on a TV set, the “Multi-Media Engagement” study found. They are also 25% more engaged in the content of shows watched online than on a set.

Simmons views “engagement” as having six “dimensions” that respondents identify with media they consume: “inspirational,” “trustworthy,” “life-enhancing,” “social interaction,” “personal time-out” and “ad attention/receptivity.”

simmons-engagement-dimensions-correlation-with-ads.jpg

Among other findings:

  • People are 18% more engaged with ads in online versions of magazines compared with print versions; they are also 15% more engaged in magazine articles online than in print magazines.
  • In general, however, print enjoys higher levels of engagement than TV or the internet (despite, or perhaps because of, its shrinking [therefore more hard-core] audience).

simmons-engagement-key-findings-comparing-media.jpg

  • Women and younger consumers have slightly higher levels of engagement online than average.
  • Those age 35-54 rated the internet as almost as trustworthy an information source as did 18-34-year-olds.
  • Those who visit a site 2-6 times per week tend to be more responsive to ads than those who visit less frequently.
http://www.marketingcharts.com/television/tv-watchers-more-engaged-if-viewing-online-engagement-ad-receptivity-2931/?camp=newsletter&src=mc&type=textlink

Ten Key Online Predictions for 2008

eMarketer has issued predictions for 2008 in key online areas, including those related advertising, videos, social networks, e-commerce and entertainment, saying online advertising will ride out potential economic storms in the US - and YouTube will decide political elections.

The 10 predictions for 2008 according to eMarketer:

  1. Online ads remain resilient.
  2. Video surge slows.
  3. Social-network advertising hits $1.6 billion.
  4. Networking goes beyond MySpace and Facebook.
  5. YouTube decides the election.
  6. Beijing Olympics pumps up ad spending.
  7. Buy online, pick up in-store becomes expected feature.
  8. Movie downloading hits the mainstream.
  9. Music marketers roll out new business models.
  10. Dynamic ads heighten gaming revenue potential.

Online Ad Spending

Overall US online ad spending will be surprisingly resilient, even if the economy slides into a recession. With money tight, marketing executives will continue to gravitate toward the internet, looking for more measurable ad formats to buttress their positions.

emarketer-prediction-us-online-ad-spend-2001-2011.jpg

Video Ad Spending

The surge in online video growth is expected to slow in 2008 with a 74% growth (down from 89% in 2007) and a spending increase of $1.35 billion.

emarketer-prediction-us-online-video-ad-spend-2001-2011.jpg

In 2008, the array of video available online will jump dramatically, both from professional content producers - such as TV networks - and from of amateurs churning out user-generated content.

Online video players such as Google, Microsoft and the TV networks will fortify their video offerings by buying small, ad-related companies.

However, ad dollars on video will remain small relative to the total US online ad spending.

Social-Network Advertising

US ad spending on social networks will climb to $1.6 billion in 2008, from $920 million in 2007 - a 70% growth rate.

emarketer-prediction-us-online-social-network-ad-spend-2005-2011.jpg

Although targeted advertising is getting the lion’s share of attention and will continue to be hot in 2008, other forms of social-network marketing, such as search advertising, widgets and e-commerce, will draw marketer interest.

In addition, self-serve advertising systems will create a new market for local and small businesses to promote themselves via social networks.

Social Network Usage

Social networking will remain a key online activity, with 44% of US consumers using social networking at least once a month in 2008. While MySpace and Facebook will continue to dominate the market, changes are taking place that will extend social networking activities beyond a single destination site.

Profiles will eventually become portable, meaning consumers need only create one and be able to use it in many places on the web. Widgets that today work with only one social-network site will be designed on an open platform, extending their reach.

Activities such as online shopping, searching and even sending email will be enhanced with social-networking features.

YouTube and Politics

YouTube attracts the most online traffic and is consistently rated the favorite social media site by US Internet users.

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YouTube will play a decisive role in the 2008 US presidential election by either airing a user-submitted clip that embarrasses a leading candidate or setting the tone of the campaign through its series of sponsored debates.

Beijing Olympics

Events of 2008 - the Beijing Olympics, along with the US election - will spike advertising spending in all channels but will give a particular boost to the online sector.

As the internet market matures, the growth rate of online ad spending will taper off, dipping to under 30% in 2007 for the first time since 2004. But in 2008, growth will surge upwards to 29%, before declining to 18% the next year.

The Olympics will also mark the “coming out” party for China and become an important milestone for the country’s economic and political development.

The competition will be fierce on and off the sporting field as multinational organizations try to tap into China’s growing middle class.

E-Commerce

Multichannel retailers will begin rolling out more “buy online, pick up in-store” services, joining big-name retailers such as Circuit City, JC Penney and Sears. Consumers like the service because it allows them to avoid shipping fees.

A Forrester Research survey found that 79% of multichannel retailers ensure consistent pricing across their channels.

An Internet Retailer study found that three-quarters of retailers link their e-commerce systems to their fulfillment and order management system.

Movie Downloads

US consumer spending on movie downloads will more than double from 2007 to 2008, from $114 million to $245 million.

emarketer-prediction-us-digital-movie-download-spend-2006-2011.jpg

The result is that digital services, such as iTunes, Netflix, Amazon Unbox, Movielink/Blockbuster, Vongo and others will become more popular with the mainstream.

Music Marketing

Music labels and marketers will step up their experimentation with new and emerging business models as the CD continues to fade away. Worldwide recorded music spending has declined year after year - from $32 billion in 2006 to $28 billion in 2008, hitting a low of $26 billion in 2011.

emarketer-prediction-worldwide-recorded-music-spending-2006-2011.jpg

Expect to see more ad-supported sites, monthly subscription services, full-track mobile download offerings and use of social networks as music discovery and sales tools.

Gaming

Old videogames will have new life breathed into them by companies such as Double Fusion, which serves ads in real time.

Advertisers will purchase advertising that is served on free casual games that consumers download.

The same concept will apply to console games distributed online for Xbox and Wii, with firms such as Microsoft’s Massive providing the technology.

http://www.marketingcharts.com/direct/ten-key-online-predictions-for-2008-2924/?camp=newsletter&src=mc&type=textlink

1/2/08

Impact of DVR on TV Commercials

Despite the hubbub about DVR use, there’s hope for advertisers and time-sensitive ads, because viewers aren’t delaying the viewing of recorded programs, according to (pdf) a recent analysis of Nielsen data by Palisades MediaGroup.

On average, more than half of all DVR primetime program playback is done within the same day of recording - and by the end of the following day DVR owners complete approximately three-quarters of all program playback, Palisades said:

palisades-mediagroup-dvr-playback-timeline-via-nielsen.jpg

While DVR penetration appears to be growing at a rapid pace, its usage isn’t making a significant impact on ratings: “At least not yet,” said Susie Thomas, SVP, director of research and insights at Palisades MediaGroup. “Nielsen estimates DVR penetration to be at 20%, up from 12% in January of this year. While this is a good-sized increase, the impact on viewership remains minor.”

According to the study, ratings increase just over 15% due to DVR playback from live to live-plus-seven. The average rating against adults aged 18-49 was 2.5 for live viewing and 2.9 for live-plus-seven viewing; an increase of only 16.7%.

While fast-forwarding through the ads is still an issue, not all people who use a DVR fast-forward: The data show that less than half of people who watch a recorded program fast-forward through the ads during playback.

“Of course there are fluctuations when looking at the data program by program,” noted Thomas, “but overall DVR usage is not dramatically cutting into live viewing.”

Equally significant, the top 10 most-DVR’d primetime shows among adults 18-49 are played back as much as 58% on the same day (CBS’s Survivor: China) and as little as 27% (CW’s Reaper):

palisades-mediagroup-top-10-dvr-recorded-primetime-programs.jpg

The bottom line, according to Palisades: Advertisers with time-sensitive messages such as opening-weekend movie releases or special holiday sales offers need not fret over the DVR movement just yet; viewers are watching recorded programs shortly after they’ve been recorded - thus maintaining the timeliness of the advertising message.

http://www.marketingcharts.com/television/dvr-use-not-having-huge-impact-on-ratings-2897/?camp=newsletter&src=mc&type=textlink