How to advertise in an increasingly competitive market.

With such a large number of companies advertising often very similar products, it begs the question, where should I focus my marketing spend? There is no easy answer to this, and in fact the reality is that it will vary considerably as per company. This year could be crucial for many companies, especially in the areas of technological advancement and the struggle between products such as Leopard and Vista. Now more than ever, a company’s marketing campaign can shape their future. With the economy tightening up due to recent drops in the FTSE and fears of further falls to come, the importance of advertising in the most efficient manner is paramount. In my opinion, there are three areas of cost-effective, measurable mediums that will make all the difference; viral, mobile, and paid search. More than an opinion, market trends reveal the increasing belief in relatively new forms of marketing.

The real issue is not simply how much money you can afford to pour into advertising, but simply how effective your marketing is. How many sales conversions were won and how much brand awareness was created? For example, the Nike viral with Ronaldinhio was viewed an estimated 50 million times worldwide, showing how successful viral marketing can be while remaining very cost-effective. The Cadbury's advert that ran over the rugby world cup became the England good luck charm and in fact created an increase in share prices, yet cost £6.2 million. The gorilla drummer became truly successful in viral form with over 7 million views and 100 spoofs on YouTube, which of course cost them £0. It is no surprise therefore that Cadbury have announced a shift in advertising budget next year to viral campaigns, revealing a market realisation in the power of a good viral.

Television network advertising revenue fell by 5% in 2006, and some reports support the theory that internet advertising spend could overtake television by 2011, or even as early as 2009, though this may be a little optimistic. Large companies are increasingly looking towards digital to generate new sales. Research reveals that those who rate products online, usually a young male audience, have a disproportionately high influence on consumers. Virals, campaign sites, and CRM’s offer a cost efficient measurable means of advertising to these users, and there is growing demand for these services.

Mobile marketing has seen tremendous growth over the last few years. There are 2.2 billion mobile handsets worldwide, with more mobile phones in the UK than people. The UK leads the way in mobile web access with over 80% being WAP enabled, and 54% of users connecting to the web through their mobile regularly. In 2005, the number of users connected to the web via their mobile phone overtook the number of people connected to the web via a home computer. Bluetooth technology has also been trialled by many large companies including HSBC. Though this was relatively unsuccessful, there is an opportunity for a more effective use of mobile technology that can generate better results and provide a much larger return on investment.

Paid search growth was 44% up year-on-year to £762.3 million which highlights the fact that of the £32 billion spent by consumers online in 2006, around half were due to paid search engine campaigns. In July alone, over 1.4 billion search queries resulted in an 80% click-through rate. Marketing budgets are increasingly shifting towards online advertising, and Google Campaign Management offered at a very competitive rate offers the opportunity to make the most out of digital branding.

Despite these mediums having the potential of delivering successful campaigns, the fact is that without the right content, they will still not necessarily work. The HSBC mobile campaign is an example. All forms of digital and mobile marketing should be content driven and tied in with other forms of advertising, much like Cadbury. We may see a dramatic reduction in advertising budgets as a result of an uncertain economic climate, and so the need to come up with original innovative ideas is key.