'Net Features : rising stars

Digital Advertisers Want More Rich Media and Less Hassle

Michael Garrity — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 20:00:00 GMT

For most Internet advertisers, rich media ads represent the future of the industry, particularly when it comes to mobile advertising.

Now we have the numbers to prove it, as a recent survey by the multi-screen interactive platform provider Jivox found that rich meda advertisements are in high demand, although many ad agencies worry about the complex technical requirements of delivering them across screens.

The survey, which includes responses from 100 employees from “leading ad agencies” in a variety of job roles (from media buyers/planners to creative to account management), found that over half (51 percent) of agencies have reported an increased in client demand for dynamic rich media ads. In addition, another 20 percent said they expect that demand to rise this year.

Jivox pointed to two primary reasons for the growing demand. The first is rise of standardized ad formats, such as the Interactive Advertising Bureau’s Rising Stars ad units. The other is a steep decline in interest about static ads, which Forrester noted last October had dropped by nearly 45 percent in just two years.

However, despite their excitement and interest in rich media, these same advertising professionals (or 88 percent of them, at least) are finding the ads to be a “very stressful process.” Plus, another 42 percent said that running the ads across multiple screens was a “painful process.” 15 percent didn’t even bother to try. This is significant because the ability to run rich media ads on a variety of devices is becoming more and more important, since 69 percent of all Internet users now access the Web on mobile devices, so if these digital ads don’t render properly, it will have a significantly negative effect on impressions and overall campaign returns on investment (ROI).

“The influx of mobile devices has created new challenges and frustrations for advertisers,” said Jivox CEO Diaz Nesamoney. “These findings show that we need to move to the next generation of ad platforms that are adaptive, real-time and more efficient – only then can we alleviate some of the stress that traditional rich media causes.”

The report also found that 66 percent of respondents would recommend more rich media campaigns if production times and costs were cut to half of what they are now, and of the five percent that aren’t running rich media campaigns, half of them said it is because they’re to expensive and cumbersome. In fact, 31 percent said they “almost always” experience delays due to last minute creative changes or ad production, while 62 percent said they sometimes experience delays.

So, it would seem that widespread rich media ad adoption still isn’t here just yet, but as they become increasingly user-friendly and less expensive, as well as more easily adaptable for mobile devices, expect to see them more and more.

New Standard Ad Unit Portfolio from IAB

Pete Prestipino — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 16:30:00 GMT

Say goodbye to that old 468x60 banner ad. The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) has officially released a new Standard Ad Unit Portfolio which includes a range of formats including the IAB Rising Stars Display ad units and six new interactive ad units. The entire lineup of standard ad units can be accessed here.

In order to measure the new unit’s ability to "deliver at scale", the IAB partnered with IPG Media Lab to conduct research that looked at attentiveness, emotive response and brand lift. The research findings reveal that consumers interact significantly more with Rising Stars ad formats than with incumbent standard ad units (such as the leaderboard and medium rectangle).

In fact, users were 2.5 times more likely to interact with a Rising Stars ad unit than a standard ad unit, spent twice as much time interacting with the ad and took less time to react to the ad (two times quicker than with standard ads). Along with increased interaction, eye-tracking showed that users viewed ads longer (31 percent more) with Rising Stars units versus standard formats.

“The new IAB portfolio allows creatives to tell bigger, bolder brand stories,” says Randall Rothenberg, president and CEO of the IAB. “The new units offer more space, greater functionality, and a broader range of user experiences—providing a collection of next-generation interactive canvases designed to leverage the rich, immersive benefits of digital.”

IAB to Hold Mobile Advertising Contest

Linc Wonham — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 22:00:00 GMT

The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) has launched a formal call-for-entries to its new Rising Stars Mobile contest.

Announced at the IAB’s Mobile in the Mainstream…and as the New Main Screen conference in New York City, the competition encourages agencies, marketers and publishers to effectively delve deeper into the mobile arena. The winning submissions – which will be named the first-ever IAB-endorsed mobile ad formats – will be selected based on their potential to propel brand creativity on mobile devices at scale.

The contest is part of the IAB’s larger Rising Stars initiative aimed at broadening the creative canvas across the interactive advertising spectrum. It kicked off in September 2010 with the launch of the Rising Stars Display competition. After a months-long review phase, the IAB announced the six winners in February 2011.

By June, 36 top-tier advertisers – including GM, Home Depot, Kraft, Procter & Gamble, Unilever and Universal Pictures – had already implemented one or more of the six new display ad formats to tell their brand stories.

A cross-disciplinary panel of judges that will include agency creative directors, media executives and ad operations specialists will lead the IAB Rising Stars Mobile selection process. The mobile ad unit submissions will be evaluated on the following criteria:

• User Experience - How well does the ad format positively impact the user experience?

• Branding - How well does the ad format provide a canvas for brand creativity?

• Functionality - How does the ad format take advantage of mobile user behaviors and technologies?

• Page Integration - How does the ad format enhance the relationship between the ad and the mobile publisher content?

• Adoption - How easily could the ad format be widely adopted across the mobile ecosystem?

Submissions for the new mobile ad units will be accepted until October 15, and the selection process will span the remainder of 2011. In 2012, a set of Rising Stars Mobile ad units will be chosen and subsequently evaluated in-market based upon consumer and business adoption, with new IAB-endorsed mobile ad units named by the end of the year.

To submit prospective mobile ad units and to learn more about the criteria, please go to: http://www.iab.net/risingstarsmobile

To find out more about the Mobile Marketing Center of Excellence, please go to: http://www.iab.net/mmcoe