My mum doesn\u2019t understand what I do for a living. Until recently she thought I wrote all the ad copy for BMW (I worked on the media account years ago.) The subject came up again over the weekend so I tried to explain it one more time. \u00a0I could not have done this 5 years ago because she wouldn\u2019t touch a laptop or a PC with a bargepole. She now owns both a tablet and a smartphone so the explanation is easier to give. I had to laugh when the penny finally dropped and she said, \u201cOh; you put those flashy pop-up things on my tablet? \u201c<\/p>\n
If you ask the man on the street what digital advertising is, he will most likely start with the humble banner ad. Like my mum, he\u00a0will think it an ugly, flashing box jarring with the content it accompanies. Industry people will add poor viewability; content obscuration and page slowdown to their list of crimes. Hardly sophisticated\u2026..<\/p>\n
Banners, (although growing in share) are not the dominant form of digital advertising. That honour goes to paid search; the foundation on which Google is built. Paid search is native by definition; helpful and additive to the web experience. It fits the medium and from a consumer point of\u00a0view,\u00a0it is simple.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s an often forgotten fact that simplicity and sophistication go hand in hand. If you have had anything to do with a digital ad campaign, you will have been exposed to unnecessary complexity but regardless, it\u2019s true that many advancements in tech close\u00a0the gap between the physical and digital worlds and this in turn makes life simpler and easier.<\/p>\n
The smartphone has already become\u00a0an extension of the human body. No device before it has been so personal or all-purpose.\u00a0 However, brands need to earn the right to be on the screen\u00a0through more helpful and\u00a0relevant\u00a0advertising – ads that make it easier and faster for people\u00a0to find, do, buy, choose, entertain, share and promote.<\/p>\n
This will be the model for much of tomorrow\u2019s advertising and here are a couple of ways things may play out.<\/p>\n
1.\u00a0Mobile Messaging Platforms Are The Next Frontier For Digital<\/b><\/p>\n
\u2026\u2026.and will make it much easier for people to connect with brands. Soon, a quick message to the bank will return a bank balance or send a payment. A message to\u00a0Uber\u00a0as simple as, \u2018I need a taxi\u2019 will send a car your way. Smartphones already know your location and your account will be synced for payment. This opens up many possibilities for brands. You can imagine Domino\u2019s taking advantage of this (they\u2019ve already tested ordering a pizza through an Emoji message).<\/p>\n
Brands will yield better results by tailoring marketing that is more natural to the environment. However, this doesn\u2019t mean that the only brand engagement space on offer will be a text message.\u00a0 The prototype for messaging is We Chat in China but Facebook are likely to win over the Western World in this space.<\/p>\n
2. Virtual Reality Will Be a Driver For Consumer Growth<\/b><\/p>\n
Another huge area for consumer growth is in VR and Facebook recognised this too with the purchase of Oculus Rift.<\/p>\n
VR was the shiny new thing in the 90\u2019s which never took off because the hardware wasn\u2019t ready. The price of Oculus Rift will soon fall so it becomes as ubiquitous as the games console. Google cardboard and the power of the smartphone means anyone can have a decent VR experience with tech they already own. VR is perhaps the best technology at connecting digital with physical. We can be at the event of a big news story; walk around candidate holiday destinations or play the most immersive computer games ever.<\/p>\n
In game advertising was another \u2018next big thing\u2019 for a while but never truly gained ground for a variety of reasons.\u00a0 The next generation of VR will change that. One thing we did learn from the early days of in game advertising was that consumers liked the addition of things that made the games feel more real. Brands exist in the real world and as such, add credibility to games and are welcomed. The key is not to force the brands in and detract from the experience. Please don\u2019t make users clean under the rim of a toilet with Toilet Duck for extra XP; just put the product on the shelf.<\/p>\n
So there are many advances in tech and many more to come that it would have been difficult to predict a decade ago. \u00a0Of course hardly any of them are designed with advertising specifically in mind but\u00a0VR, messaging, artificial intelligence, smart devices and sensors will make it simpler for people to understand\u00a0and interact with the world around them and therefore will be of keen interest for the advertiser. An example of this is eSports (watching people play computer games). This is taking off at a rapid pace and will create many brand opportunities and integrations.<\/p>\n
Brands can best capitalise on these developments by creating relevant utilities or experiences. There are many thoughts on what these will and should look like, but it\u2019s clear that focus on simple and non-disruptive communication is a good start.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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