“What we're hearing from advertisers today is, "We want more ROI,' “ said Alec Dann, general manager-business media online at Hanley Wood Business Media. He's seeing some advertisers shifting out print altogether and more advertisers looking specifically for lead-generation programs.
In comparison with technology advertisers, though, Dann said that the commercial construction advertisers that are focused on lead generation “are still five years behind technology companies” in terms of sophistication.
“There's no doubt that performance is the primary criterion for everyone,” said Bill Baumann, group publisher of Penton Media's Electronic Design Group. “An advertiser will no longer jump in without a goal and objective to measure.”
At 1105 Media, J.D. Holzgrefe, associate publisher of Redmond Media Group, and Dan LaBianca, associate publisher of Redmond Channel Partner, shared their insight about the trends they are seeing with advertisers via e-mail.
While advertisers are definitely looking for more metrics to quantify the results of their advertising, they said several vendors told them that typical pure online lead-generation results and subsequent sale conversions diminished during the second half of 2007. They added this trend has pushed advertisers toward integrated media that provides awareness through print along with the tangibility of online media.
Rather than looking for specific advertising products, Holzgrefe and LaBianca see their advertisers requesting—and receiving—very individualized campaigns. “The days of one-size-fits-all online and print advertising appear to be gone,” they said.
