RICH MEDIA OVERVIEW

Rich Media Definition

Rich media advertisements are defined as those with which users can interact or engage, as opposed to solely view animation

Includes such formats as transitionals and various over-the-page units such as floating ads, page take-overs and tear-backs

Types of Rich Media UnitsType Description

In-PageStandard IAB ad unit shapes that may include advanced rich media functionality, such as embedded games, animation, video, registration forms or interactive marketing brochures, and which may allow for larger file sizes

Expanding

Similar to in-page units, but they expand in size when a user moves his mouse over the ad or clicks to interact with it. Some publishers are experimenting with ads that automatically expand when the page loads, then retract after a small delay. These ads are sometimes called “push downs” or “server-initiated expandables”

FloatingAds that appear as a layer on top of the user’s current page; these are typically free-form ads that can move across the page in a variety of shapes and sizes and which may “resolve” into an in-page ad on the same page or a smaller floating “reminder” ad unit which continues to float above the page

Transitionals Also known as “between-page ads” or “interstitials,” these ads appears between one page and another as a user clicks through a site

TakeoverTakeover ads are ads that replace all or part of a publisher's web page with advertising content. They're often designed to look as if they are breaking or otherwise interacting with editorial content.

Formats | In-page (within ad unit)

Formats | Expandable and Floating

Expandable

Floating

Formats | Transitionals

Transitionals/Roadblocks/Interstitials

Format | Take-over

Takeover

CAMPAIGN OBJECTIVE

Stimulate Trial &Purchase

Advocacy

Drive Interest

Generate Awareness

Drive consumer to purchase on or offfline (e.g. direct transaction or coupon)

Enable consumers to actively engage with through social sharing and opt-in to belong to the brand (e.g. opt-in to email, share on Facebook, Twitter etc.)

Identify Objectives To Align With Campaign

Increase visibility through break-through-the-clutter branding

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Build Consideration

Provide rich content to inform or educate

Loyalty

Rich Media Depends on Objective(s)

Branding as single objective

Multiple Objectives

DR as single objective

Most rich media campaigns have some aspects of BOTH branding and DR

Creative should be constructed to prioritize that key performance objectives

Combining branding and DR components diversifies consumer touch-points

Objective: Awareness

Best Practice Advice for Brand Awareness

Keep It SimpleIf communicating a key message about the product or the brand is an important objective of the campaign, then state it clearly and elegantly and don’t ask too much more from viewers

Maximize the amount of logo presenceVarious research, such as Marketing Evolution’s “The Five Platinum Rules to Online Advertising Creative,” has shown brand awareness generally improves when the ads feature the company’s logo prominently throughout as much of the ad’s animation as possible

Objective: Awareness Use eye-catching and clutter-

breaking creative

Employ page takeovers or interstitials

Maximize the logo

Create a memorable experience for the consumer

Rich Media Are Effective In Driving Message Association

Ensure the brand communication is clear

If ad includes multiple panels, feature options within the banner to put the consumer in control of what they want to experience

Keep the call to action− Specific− Easy to find/large enough to read− Uses “rollover” (vs. click to

expand)

Regardless of banner animation, the option to rollover to expand should always be available

Objective: Awareness | Nutro Dog Food Example

Provides information without overwhelming

A simple panel, no other interactive element incorporated

Creates an effective message association “Real Results Are Seen Not Said”

Objective: Interest And Consideration

Best Practice Advice for Interest and Consideration

Adding interactive features to rich media ads (which can range widely, including quizzes, forms, games, expandability and on and on) can have an effect on interest and consideration

Objective: Interest And Consideration

Include multiple activities (quiz, poll, messages, videos, etc.) within the ad

Allow consumers to interact and create a unique experience for themselves:- Interactive game to learn more about

the characters, storyline, etc,

- Ability to view multiple videos unique to online (in addition to just the TV promo)

- Personalize the message

- Include a quiz/poll questions with real time results.

Objective: Interest And Consideration Example Iams

Pet Food

Interactive elements that educate consumers on natural ingredients

All ingredients must be added in the blender in order for the consumer to reach the special offer

Provides brand benefits and a direct response mechanism through coupon

Objective: Interest And Consideration

Example Friskies Cat Food

Promotion integration for the new iPad App

A Live Feed of Cat vs. Human leaderboard

− Leaderboard displays the number of points earned by cats and humans while playing the game

− Cats swipe the iPad to get the Friskies treats, for each successful catch, cats get points

Drives consideration by landing consumers on the website to deliver deeper engagement and education

Objective: Interest And Consideration

Videos Enable Engagement In Rich Media Units

Strive for more than just recycled TV spots Consumers prefer to see the online medium as something more original, engaging, amusing

The best in-ad video campaigns integrate the video into the overall creative to

tell a story, demo a product, or otherwise communicate the brand message

Video Best Practices For video, include a “loading”

message that appears as the video streams in− Users with slower connections will

know the video is coming soon

Use video player controls – pause, play, and volume scrubber – for optimal usability

Set video to auto play upon user rollover whenever possible

Include compelling, relevant call to action after video completes – either on the final video frame or with static “art card”

Objective: Interest And Consideration Example

FRESH STEP

In banner video drove education and consideration around Fresh Step and A&H

Brand incentivized participation by featuring pet video in the commercial

CTA drove consumers to YouTube deepening engagement with the brand

Objective: Trial And Purchase

Best Practice Advice for Purchase and Trial

Employ functionality such as coupons, sweepstakes and data collection

Consider fewer ad panels with concise content and clean calls to action

Drive purchase intent by delivering locally relevant product, pricing and availability

Objective: Trial And Purchase

Include clear call to action for coupon/sample/sweepstakes within the ad

Educate consumers and qualify them quickly for the offer (e.g. enter email, share with a friend etc.)

Rule of thumb – how much time does it take the consumer to qualify for the coupon/sample?

Objective: Trial And Purchase Example Tidy Cat

Litter

Main objective is trial/purchase Clear CTA, single panel Quick path to download coupon Email opt-in for post-purchase

conversation

Objective: Trial And Purchase Example Fresh And

Light

Brand utilizes dual objectives of awareness and trial

Floating ad units are clutter breaking

“Save $1 now” provides consumers tangible benefit in terms of saving

Such CTAs can drive higher conversion rates

Objective: Trial And Purchase Spotbot Example

Main objective is to get consumers to download coupon

A simple panel, no other interactive element incorporated

Consumers expand by rolling over the unit and arrive at the coupon

Objective: Loyalty

Best Practice Advice for Loyalty

Rich media data collection functionality can also be used to capture opt-in emails for remarketing and lead generation

Offer interesting content/information to generate interest in email opt-in

Objective: LoyaltyExample Campbell’s

Collect data from consumers easily− Include interesting information

giving consumers a reason to opt-in for email

− Allow consumers to submit information in ad-unit without leaving the page

Objective: Advocacy

Best Practice Advice for AdvocacyExponentially spread the brand message with social sharing and send to friend

Integrate branded communities within rich media units, which recruits users to join while mirroring functionality of a social networking site

Create Widget Ads that enable consumers to their blog or social network of choice

Objective: Advocacy

Every media impression is a potential advocate− Enable sharing within the ad units− Give consumers the control to

information− Leverage viral distribution to

increase visibility of brand message/offer

Objective: Advocacy Example Scoop Away

Brand created a strong message association

Funny video content made the ad share-worthy

Enabling sharing in-ad made the experience frictionless while making each impression a potential advocate of the brand

Objective: Advocacy Example Pedigree

• Includes an entertaining interactive component , which encourages sharing and delivers virality

− Allows consumers to create a digital doggy avatar with dentures

− Consumers customize the voiceover by typing the text

− Consumers can share their creation on Facebook

METRICS

The Metrics Trade-offFocusing on one key objective is more likely to produce a higher impact for that one objective, but this usually comes at the cost of the other

There are many uses for rich media and focusing on one element (ex. coupon) is not always the right path when trying to diversify consumer touchpoints

Branding Impact

Objectives SpectrumBranding Direct Response

DR Impact

Metrics

Branding Impact DR Impact

Click-Through Rate

Definition: Percentage of impressions that resulted in the user clicking through to a landing page

Give consumers a clear reason to click by focusing on a strong call-to-action within the banner or panel

Entice users to click by starting an activity within the ad and finishing it at the site

More intrusive formats such as floating units/page takeovers commonly result in much higher CTRs

Action Rate

Definition: Percentage of Interactions that incurred an additional activity

Interaction is the first step to conversion, Action is the second; users must have a clear and enticing course of action to say “yes” to

Supply the user with enticing second-steps; such coupon download or learning more

Brand Time

Definition: the average amount of time user’s interacted with the ad

Provide a tool to sustain user engagement within the ad-unit such as a product selector or data entry form

The right feature presented to the right audience can result in Average Brand Times of over 1 minute!

Interaction Rate

Definition: Percentage of users who interacted with the ad-unit in some way

Make it easy and persuasive. “Watch this video/Rollover for recipes”

Give a preview in the banner of what’s to come in the panel

Keep it simple. Display advertising has a limited amount of time and space to persuade

Objectives SpectrumBranding Direct Response

Rich Media and Branding Effectiveness

In addition to the metrics discussed above for tracking direct consumer interactions with the ad units, online marketers often use survey techniques to measure the brand impact of their ads Metric Description

Online Ad Awareness

Also known as “ad recall,” whether consumers remember seeing a company’s advertising campaign

Unaided or aided brand awareness

The extent to which consumers think of or recognize a company’s brand, with or without prompting

Brand Favorability The extent to which consumers perceive the brand positively

Message Association

The extent to which consumers attribute characteristics to a company or product that were the subject of the ad campaign

Purchase Intent Likelihood that consumers will buy the advertiser’s product or service any time soon