Digital Marketers Take on Traditional Advertising (Billboards, Radio, TV, etc.)

[HashtagJeff]

So I have some questions (probably more of a discussion really) about how to do traditional advertising in 2015. I started working with a local company that has done very well for themselves throughout the years but has lacked in the digital marketing space. Today we are doing a lot better digitally and I have been put in a position that will also affect how we do traditional...which I've never really done before (I'm a digital marketer so why would I?).

Here's my question (or discussion item): If we have always done radio jingles (include Pandora here too), cheesy commercials, and traditional billboards and they seem to have done well through the years should we keep doing those?

I have 2 issues here as a digital marketer:

1. I have virtually no data on people that see or hear our advertisements because there isn't an Analytics platform for the real world. This means that I can't stay with them, better their experience, or nurture them along the way with my advertising. My thinking here is that I want to get them to my website then -- Please correct me if I'm wrong or if there are other ways of thinking for this out there that make sense.
2. I want to test test test these jingles, commercials, and billboards but I'm unsure how to. How can you tell what's working and what's not? Also, are there others out there doing things like this that can at least show me that jingles work (or do not work)? My impression is that they work because people remember the cheesy jingles and such but also that they don't work because everyone's take on them is "they are so annoying!" -- Again, please shed some light here and correct me if I'm wrong in my thinking.

My final note here and MAIN purpose for posting here is because I want to change the way things are done with traditional. It all seems to be the same thing over and over, and I want to get creative with this and push the limits. This is why I have turned to the Moz community, because I think we have those types of minds here.

[MiriamEllis]

Just speaking from personal experience on this as a consumer rather than as a marketer - some jingles are annoying in actual sound, but regardless of that, I can remember word-for-word, note-for-note, jingles I heard 30 years ago, some for businesses that are no longer even in business. And, in chatting with peers, you start singing one of those jingles and everyone joins in, laughing, because they have these burned into their brains as well. In fact, if someone mentions the name of a business, I find it's very common for someone else to chime in with the jingle, just because they associate the brand with the tune and find it amusing that they do so.

Now, I was too young to be a consumer of anything more than dolls and Kit-Kat candy bars 30 years ago, but these days, my family listens to the radio at least once a week to hear football games. One jingle we hear over and over again is a really simple one for an auto parts store. It says, "Oh, Oh, Oh, O'Reilly - Auto Parts!". We've noticed where the local O'Reilly auto parts store is, we sometimes can't keep ourselves from singing the jingle if we notice the sign while driving by and if we need to replace our windshield wipers this winter, you can bet that's the first auto parts store that will come into our heads. We don't have a similar jingle in our heads for Joe's Auto Parts or Bob's Auto Parts because they're not on the radio. Songs are really magical. Listen to how simple this jingle is, but how the repetition of the word 'Oh' makes it feel energetic and fun to mimic:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JkSDGk67IWI

So, again, speaking purely from personal experience, I do hear jingles, I do remember them if I hear them frequently enough, and they do make me feel sort of amused about businesses ... and, while feeling amused, I've given space in my brain over to the business to be recalled when I need their product, because their advertising has put a tune to a spot in the local business landscape where I live.

[vital_hike]

Are the activities/methods deigned for marketing or branding?

Branding is a difficult thing to measure....those "annoying" jingles can be very strong for a brand.

If you have specific marketing agenda then trying to measure them might be worth a try. For example you could have a different phone number on specific campaigns and use phone number tracking to try and calculate return on the investment. Obviously this is just one example. Trying to completely apply online techniques to offline will not always be possible.

You could try specific landing pages or offer codes that can be tracked back to specific billboards. Again you may have an issue with people passing these around to friends or coupon code sites etc so perhaps use single-use codes.

There is also the issue that offline brand reinforcement (jingles etc) often results in an online interaction where the person may even search for the jingle name in order to come to check out the website.

certainly a big task for one person....i hope you have help

[ClaytonJ]

Jeff

We do alot of work in above the line advertising and digital. We have two divisions effectively applying the same science, but presented in different formats.

Firstly above the line advertising for most businesses is an integral part of their business especially branding of that business. Digital or SEO specialists can form a negative view on above the line advertising - this is often because the cost per click is so much lower for SEO. Also the divisions sucks money from SEO - because they do not understand it.

That said we see the results for good above the line advertising and it is gold - though as you know most cannot afford it.

Also you do have data on above the line advertising on WMT's. You should be able to correlate traffic with above the line marketing campaigns. Page views, impressions, even page position improves for campaign durations. We use a science called discrete choice modelling - to model facebook ads, billboards, organic ads etc.

Great to see you adding science and analytics to marketing as that is how the big boys all get their results.  Netflix did not pluck Orange is the New Black & House of cards from thin air - they used science.

[seomozinator]

Hello, my friend.

I have been asking myself the same question you ask here

Well, i have done very scientific statistical research on a corner of newspaper while i had my morning coffee And the results I got weren't surprising at all. The conversion rates on traditional advertising are way lower and much more expensive.

Now, as to the question you asked. The only(!) way to do this properly is to run only one(!) type of advertising at the time, for somewhat significant period of time (i'd say at least three months, plus another three months to track "snowball" results).

So, this is the way I'd do it (requires lots of time, money and several clients who are ready to be lab hamsters

1. Let's say you have 4 non-seasonal-type-of-business clients, without any advertisement/marketing running at the moment. Track their conversion rates for three months, traffic spikes, growth over this time and all metrics like this.
2. Then start only one type of marketing per client. Let's say first client gets internet marketing, second - TV, third - radio, fourth - billboards/outside display marketing. Let it run for three months, see how their metrics are relatively changing (or not changing). Also dont forget about post-advertisement snowball period (may another 2-3 months).
3. Compare impacts and ROIs - now you gonna have somewhat "scientific" results.

While running all those experiments, it'd make sense to use promo urls for non-internet marketing channels, e.g. domain.com/nameofradio - this way you can promote your website with certain landing page and track visits to it.

P.S. Of course, three months is short period of time to see good results. Extend it to 6-12 months if it's possible Also, if you do it on 4 different clients, there is gonna larger margin of error. So, in perfect world you'd do it on the same client

Hope this helps and good luck

[EGOL]

It sounds like you have some knowledge of your clients.  That's great.

My first inclination is to look to them to see where they anticipate increasing their future spend and where they plan to decrease or quit.  That is the first indication of demand for your services.  If they foresee cutting these other areas then you will have to figure out a way to Change Minds if you hope to grow your business in these other areas.

I would start attending the trade meetings and conferences of these other "advertising industries".  There should be presentations being given by foreward-looking people of experience.  Join these organizations, learn if their membership is increasing, falling, that often reveals the "health of an industry".

[HashtagJeff]

So these guys have been in business 20+ years now. I have had similar experiences with other businesses who have had a lot of success through traditional like these guys and it also a similar experience when you ask them that question. It's always a resounding yes, it has brought positive results. Beyond that it becomes very hazy as to what has the most effect. Where is the data? Maybe there isn't a way to get data like I'm wanting.

I want to get creative with this but I don't want to take away the safe route (aka, what they've done forever) that is obviously working and get too creative where it hurts business. I also don't want the alternative, which is missing out on potential by not being creative and going the safe route.

[EGOL]

Ask your clients who have been in business for at least twenty years.   Ask what the web has done for their business.  Ask if their spends on other types of advertising have brought positive results.   Ask if they still spend money on that stuff.   I bet you get an education.