Ten years ago if you sat down in a coffee shop you’d see a few people sipping their cappuccinos while reading a newspaper. Now most of those people are tapping and poking a smartphone or tablet computer. If there is one thing we can count on in this world, its change, and advertising must change with it.
According to eMarketer the average North American is spending 278 minutes a day in front of the TV, 173 minutes online, 92 minutes listening to the radio, 82 minutes on a mobile device and 38 minutes reading some sort of print media. It’s an incredible amount of media input. This is happening because people are now viewing multiple types of media at once.
Targeting this new breed of multi channelling consumer is posing a far greater challenge than you might think. For example, every time a commercial comes on the TV people will mute the volume or fast forward past the commercials with their PVR. To make matters worse, when an ad comes up on one type of media, their attention simply shifts over to the other device. Have you noticed the latest breed of television commercials are now designed to grab your attention within the first three seconds and convey a message without sound?
This is why Search Engine Marketing (SEM) is so effective. It focuses on the people that are interested in your specific product and services. When a prospective customer performs a web search they are looking for something and offering their full attention to the search engine results page.
The key here is to deliver this potential customer to your website from the search results and keep their full attention while they are viewing your website and researching your products or services. If you do this correctly you can have their full attention and make your customer feel comfortable with the fact they are not being bombarded with advertising. This is one of the most positive connections you can make with a customer.
Effective online advertising, in many cases, makes the difference between having most of the market or none of it. Your position on a search will help solidify your customer’s opinion of your brand. If you are not found easily at this active stage in your customers search you do not exist.
When you are present in the active search phase you are half way there. Now you need to entice your customer to click through to your website and deliver a presentation that will keep their attention and answer their search query. You will have a few short seconds to let your customers know they are in the right place. Your website’s design, logo, slogan, images and text copy must provide your customers with the information they are looking for. If your website achieves this result you’re going to see your customers and your sales increase.
This is why websites are so effective when it comes to advertising in a multi channel world. While television, radio and print advertising blanket everyone, an effective website strategy will not only focus on the right customers, but retain their attention and sell your products and services.