Upgrading THE Online Ad Sale

Folio: The Magazine for Magazine Management, March 1, 2001 by Helen Berman

AdRelevance points out that business-to-business advertisers are the heaviest users of "form" ads, which include text boxes and drop-down menus instead of images. They're also among the lightest users of rich media. In fact, at B2B Works, which features 500 sites in 60 vertical business categories, only one advertiser, Nextel, has so far used streaming media to get its message across.

"If your audience can't get a deeper informational experience from video and audio," says Vogel, "it isn't worth it for b-to-b advertisers to go down that path."

Context

Just as in print, the location of an online ad often determines the type of ad to put there. "A home page is like an inside front cover," says Terry Killgore, vice president of the construction media group, Randall Publishing. "It's seen by everyone who comes into the site."

For that reason, image banners are also likely to appear on portals or general content sites. "We are a natural medium for branding," says Shine of Business Week Online. "We're not [a shopping site like] Amazon.com. This is where people get information and analysis about what is happening in the business world."

By the same token, the more targeted the Web content, the more targeted the marketing tool. It's not surprising, for instance, to see food ingredients producer Ajinomoto USA--a company unheard of by most consumers--run a "sponsored by" text link on the home page of MeatNews.com. Or a button for Saskatchewan Tourism on a fishing column within Fieldandstream.com. "Sponsorships are like partnerships," says Easton. "They lend credibility between the brand and the site."

That credibility is also why b-to-b sites are filled with online directories, e-mail sponsorships, supplier showcases and even virtual trade shows. "It's about contextual relevance," says Vogel. In other words, advertisers can capture visitors while they're in information-seeking mode. In Penton.com's virtual Leisure and Hospitality Hall, nearly 400 "exhibitors" offer links to microsites via images of brochures and computer screens. To reach about 100,000 targeted readers, ad rates range from $8,900 annually, which includes a virtual "literature showcase," to $14,900, which includes video, audio and Web conferencing.

"When advertising appears in information that means something to you, you're more likely to be receptive to it," Vogel says.

Overcoming Online Anxiety

More than 25,000 advertisers tried the Web last year. Impressive? Not if you consider that only 80 to 90 of those advertisers were conducting more than half the Web business, according to AdRelevance.

"There are only a small handful of companies that are pushing the envelope with online ad space," says Buchwalter, "They're the ones putting strategies in place, analyzing the results, correcting and trying new things. The lion's share of advertisers say, 'This looks good; we should do it, too,' and they might do one ad on a smattering of sites. It's not a comprehensive strategy."

According to Easton, dot-coms lead the pack in advertising savvy, while b-to-b advertisers "are still tough nuts to crack." Even so, advertisers everywhere have Internet anxiety. Even Business Week--with its raft of sophisticated financial, technological and consumer advertisers--still has fewer than half its print advertisers on its Web site. "People are still trying to understand the best use for the medium," says Shine. "This isn't like cable or broadcast or print, which have years of advertising research behind them."