Marketing in Today’s Changing World
Mark Suster
BlueGlass – April 2012
@msuster
Ex software developer (‘91)
BuildOnline (’99)
Koral / Salesforce.com (’05)
VC at GRP Partners (‘07)
Both Sides Of The Table
The Marketing Landscape Changes Very Quickly These Days
OfflineOffline
• TV• Print• Radio
Pre Web
OnlineOnline
• Display• Email• SEO• SEM
95 - 2007
SocialSocial
• FB Ads• FB Likes• Twitter• FB Timeline
08 - Now
Mobile, Video, Images
Mobile, Video, Images
• Pre-roll• Overlays• Brand Integration• CPI
10 - Now
Who The F Knows?
Who The F Knows?
Future
What IS Clear
Pace of change will accelerate
You need a strong POV / strategy Are FB “Likes” better than FB ads that convert directly? Are Twitter Sponsored Tweets a good ad unit?
You need to be metrics driven & test a lot
You need to monitor emerging trends Should we put energy into Pinterest? Is the celebrity endorsement model worth it?
As a VC it’s my job to stay ahead of these
trends
Investment strategy
Portfolio advice
The Move to Online Forced Standards That Sub-Optimize Experience & Performance
BannerBanner
Skyscra
per
Skyscra
per
99% of User Attention
99% of User Attention
Banners are a brand category. The Internet has been about purchasers (DR)
Jakob Neilsen eye-tracking has confirmed we are trained to ignore banners (CTR = 0.08%)
Big dollars still pursue brand campaigns. They just keep their money offline.
But didn’t Google prove you could make
money with “side links” ??
Paid Search Worked as a Text-Based Side Link Because of “Intent”
1. Intent-Based Ads
2. Organic Result
3. Google Comparison Shopping
Many technologists confuse this. They
think:
“The best ads are those that are ‘not in the way of the user
experience’ ”
Facebook Ads initially much less effective without intent & integration (but targeting
helps)
SAP?
Is My Site Optimized?
Get Sales Cloud?
Seamless?
We all know what really converts in non-intent ads:
Cleavage
Not joking. Ad studies consistent
Twitter’s came up with a “side link” product – “Promoted Tweets”
#Droid Charge
“Screwed up battery”
“Not the phone I’m looking for”
“What the fuck is a Droid Charge?”
My Biggest Marketing Themes of Past 5 Years
Have Been Integrated
Targeted
Personalized
Measurable
We Know How Powerful Images are in Advertising.
Images = Content = Ad (integrated)
We Even Know How Valuable Images are in Today’s Applications
Images avoid the blind spots & aren’t spammy like double-underlined text
BannerBanner
Skyscra
per
Skyscra
per
Integrated Images: Higher CTR, Higher Brand Recall, Automated & Relevant
In video, YouTube standard ad units work well at scale
Pre
-Roll
Pre
-Roll
VideoVideo
Translucent OverlayTranslucent Overlay
$4 CPM
$1 CPM
But integrated campaigns are performing off the charts, even for niche audiences.
Example: Style Hauls
Blair Fowler Elle Fowler
750,000 views
Integrated YouTube Campaigns Have Proven Successful at Conversion
Authentic
Engaging
Youth Demo
Call-to-Action
Mobile Games have offered opportunities for “integrated ads”
Ad as Part of Game Incentivized Ads
And an increasing part of media conversions is moving to “sponsored stories” – an
integrated ad unit
Excellent engagement, even on
sponsored posts
Other companies betting big sponsored story model
Converts better media-to-media
More cost effective than SEM
Gravity is even personalized
Measurement is an important part of
managing effective campaigns.
But social has been measuring vanity metrics,
not businessLikesClicks
Link tracking shows clicks. Awe.sm tracking shows bottom-of-funnel conversions.
$57.50$18.41 $68.11 $72.41$34.60 …
SHARING:
321downstreamclicks
$3293.32total revenuefrom this post
+ =$2159.03purchases
611clicks
+ $1134.29downstreampurchases
It also tracks down-stream influence / conversion
$94.09direct purchases
$97.09downstreampurchases
2downstreamshares
14downstreamclicks
19clicks
$78.12direct purchases
9clicks
$19.78direct purchases
5clicks
$18.41direct purchases
7clicks
$57.50direct purchases
$331.22downstreampurchases
6downstreamshares
58downstreamclicks
15clicks
$74.21direct purchases
1downstreamshare
7downstreamclicks
11clicks
$65.02direct purchases
7clicks
And through cookies can auto incentivize your best “sharers”
Welcome back, Suzy!
4 of your friends have bought because of your sharing — you’re a Fashion Maven!
Thanks for spreading the word! Enjoy 50% off your next purchase.
Share the good news with your friends!
Internet marketing is changing rapidly. It favors
those who are
Integrated
Targeted
Personal
Measurable
</end>
Thank you
Mark Suster :: BlueGlass – April 2012 :: @msuster
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