I was reading a post the other day in
adsurd.blogspot.com where according to New York Times and media buying agencies, the growth of UK advertising is roughly 40% per
year and the overall spending for online advertising will reach 14% of overall ad spending. It is more than clear that
Web 2.0 is leading us into a new communications era where the consumer has more control than ever before.
In order to build a brand and create a relationship between the consumer and the brand, today's marketers must explore all the different tools, techniques and channels that this new communication technology provides.
It seems that "integrated communications" combined with "creativity" is the key of success in this new communication age. More and more marketers lately expanding their boundaries, beyond the traditional promotion techniques by taking advantage of the broad array of options the new communications technology offers!
The most recent example is that Bud launched an online TV network earlier this month! In Bud.
tv,
Anheuser Busch and
DDB Chicago came with the idea to hype the product by using online channels other than
youtube and
myspace, and what is a better idea than creating your own online TV network!?
The concept behind Bud.tv is to produce compiling content that is not another ad but stuff that people are willing to spend time and watch. Bud.tv have already agreed with the writers of "Saturday Night Live" and "The Howard Stern Show" as well as with Hollywood stars such as Kevin Spacey, Ben Affleck and Matt Damon.
The expected cost will be approximately $30 million for the first year and it clearly broadens the horizons the of marketing communications!
On the other hand, in order to prohibit underage access, the site has a lot of entrance barriers that make it extremely hard to visit (especially for non-Americans), asks for your driving licence number, zip code and a other personal information that a lot of people even if they have, are not willing to share with a beer company.
At the bottom line, it is a ambitious and innovating concept at an early stage, with advantages and disadvantages, that moves marketing communications and advertising in another platform...let's keep an eye on it!
