On Our Radar: Making Sense of Digital and Print Advertising
Print Media is Definitely Not Dead
A recent survey (http://adage NULL.com/article/adagestat/affluent-americans-print-media-tops/229002/) conducted by Advertising Age found that from 1,000 online interviews with American respondents making at least $100,000 in annual household income, print media is tops, emphasizing that death of traditional outlets has been greatly exaggerated.
Memory Serves Print Best
In another, unrelated study (http://mashable NULL.com/2011/08/22/print-vs-online-news/), print news readers remember “significantly more” than those who read news stories online. Print readers also remember “significantly more” topics than online readers, but print readers and online readers recall headlines equally well. Is this true for you?
Out of Home Advertising Sees Renewed Spending, Can Influence Other Mediums
According to the Outdoor Advertising Association of America (OAAA) (http://www NULL.oaaa NULL.org/), advertisers in 2010 spent $6.1 billion on out of home (OOH) advertising, up from 5.9% the year before. OOH advertising reaches nearly every American through formats such as large billboards, bus wraps, bus stops, small billboards in the city, etc., and can complement other media formats, proving to be a good choice for ad spenders.
- Internet and OOH advertising reach similar audiences. Both market to a younger, educated, affluent and mobile audience.
- OOH advertising strengthens an overall magazine ad campaign by providing a constant presence in the marketplace.
- OOH advertising can resolve some of newspaper’s distribution shortcomings by offering selective targeting. OOH penetrates newspaper zones that are too large for reaching neighborhood target areas.
- The combination of radio and OOH reaches a mobile audience, offering a balance of sight and sound.
QR Codes and Their Benefits for Your Business
A QR (“quick response”) code is a two-dimensional, abstract barcode-looking graphic that, when scanned by a smartphone or tablet camera (via an app), automatically pulls up URLs, text, contact information, photos, video, coupons, and other useful information. While still a rarity in the U.S. (they were invented in 1994 by a Toyota subsidiary in Japan), QR codes are cheap and easy, and professionals are finding creative ways to incorporate them into their business practices. We take a quick look at what QR codes can do for your business.
- Offline to Online Call-to-Action. These mobile-friendly codes are being used by businesses to point people in the offline space to online resources in the most efficient way possible.
- Small Ad, No Problem. By placing a QR code on an ad (print, digital signage, and TV commercials), it allows you to provide more information about your company or product than would fit in an ad.
- Networking Success. When placed on a traditional business card, QR codes are a quick, easy and unique way to exchange contact information with other business professionals.
- Targeted Recruiting. With QR codes, companies can link essential information about their culture and job openings, and promote specific job postings in places where their target talent lives, works and plays.
- Marketing Materials. Companies are placing QR codes on fliers, brochures, programs, handouts, whitepapers and other materials as additional promotions. See what the Detroit Red Wings (http://mashable NULL.com/2010/02/10/red-wings-qr-codes/) did with QR codes in their arena programs.
- Track & Build. Businesses can track the number of times a QR code was scanned, and determine which ad medium has the greatest reach if used across media formats. If you work with a third party, you can collect additional information from scanners, and it’s an easy way to build a database of customers or potential prospects.
While QR codes are not mainstream yet in the U.S., local companies say the novelty of QR codes is a way to grab attention. Launched in the automotive industry and now popular in the real estate market, QR codes are slowly but surely proving to be successful across all industries and business sizes. Just remember, the most important goal of implementing QR codes is to drive customers to some kind of online action. A link to a website with no kind of action is a complete misunderstanding of what a QR code is and should be used for.
Want to start scanning? For iPhone users, search the app store for “barcode reader,” or “QR code scanner.” For Andriod users, a popular app is “Barcode Scanner.”
Interested in experimenting with QR codes for your business? Click HERE (http://qrcode NULL.kaywa NULL.com) to make your own QR code.
– September 30, 2011