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'Integrated' Ad Programs a Given—Today's Buzzword Is 'Customization'
Jay Lauf
Friday, August 27, 2010
I have a visceral aversion to catchphrases or words that our industry misuses or overuses and thereby often strips of real meaning.
Over the years these have included formerly great words like “solution,” “synergy,” “dialogue,” “engagement,” “buzz,” “content” and the classics, “outside the box” and “never been done before.”
The latest word I’m finding hard to spit out without cringing is “integration.” To be clear, it’s not because I don’t believe in the concept (all the other hackneyed phrases and words try to convey a valid proposition), rather, I think we’ve lost sight of what meaningful, effective integration is. Perhaps more importantly, we’ve moved beyond it already.
Integration is really the minimum barrier to entry for “magazine” brands at this point. If you can’t offer cross-platform integration of a program or can’t find an adept method of integrating advertisers with the content, you’ll be left out of far too many important opportunities. The real word/concept of the moment is customization.
Clearly, the Web in general has been steering us toward more and more customization across so many aspects of our lives—from designing our own footwear or car to creating playlists and friend lists to tailoring news and experiences. And the same holds true for advertising.
Really smart, effective integration almost demands customization because each marketer’s objective, message, target, offering is different. This clearly poses a number of challenges for us on the sales and marketing side of the “masthead”:
- It means building new programs from scratch each time.
- It requires a deep knowledge of your customers, which means you have to have a very strong relationship and access to their time and unfiltered thinking.
- It requires a lot of time on the part of not only our business-side teams, but also on the part of the clients and agency contacts.
- Our media brands have sections, design treatments and editorial missions for a reason—they work, so tinkering with any of that too broadly or frequently can erode the benefits of all that “design.”
- Advertisers have design treatments, unified messaging, consistent look and feel for a reason—it works, and builds mind share and opinion.
- Approval processes can be onerous on the client side.
But the fact remains that when you have an advertiser who can be flexible and nimble and an editorial product that offers natural opportunities for customization, you can create tailored programs that outperform simple, traditional, un-customized “integration.” So while there are a number of challenges with executing strong customization, the rewards are also numerous:
- A well-done customized program stands out and has shelf life in the reader’s mind.
- The same holds true for the client’s mind.
- Stronger relationships and deeper communication evolve through the customization process—think about the post-program thank-you dinner/drinks and the feeling of camaraderie with your partners when it’s worked.
- Often, the ads perform demonstrably better.
- They reflect well on your brand in the marketplace.
- They typically command premium rates and larger volume buys.
At The Atlantic, we’ve seen a huge YOY increase in the number of customized programs we’re executing for our advertisers, the percentage of our clients that are working with us on customized programs and in the revenue generated. (Not all of these programs are “integrated” across channels by the way—sometimes a single channel is perfect for the client and the idea.)
I’ve also seen interesting stuff of late like Continental Airlines sponsoring its own “Mile High Innovation” blog on Wired.com; a Shell-owned “The Shell Energy Challenge” on the New York Times Web site, which combined an energy quiz with an archive of energy-related Times content; and a unique video cartoon series designed by Elle.com for TRESemmé.
So the latest word I’m likely to shelve in my own presentations (as much as I’m able) is “integration.” We shouldn’t even be in the “conversation” if we’re not providing that “solution” for our “partners.” Instead, I’m going to be having a “dialogue” about “thinking outside the box” and embracing the “synergy” to be had in deploying my favorite concept of the moment, “customization.”
I remind myself of a routine from one of Steve Martin’s hit albums in the late ’70s: “Some people have a way with words, other people……...uh……..not have way, I guess.”
Minsider columnist Jay Lauf is publisher of The Atlantic.
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