Session: Rich media- Cost Justifying, Implementing and Tracking Across Flash, Pops and Overlays

I just got out of the Rich media: Cost Justifying, Implementing and Tracking Across Flash, Pops and Overlays. At first I wasn't sure if this session would draw a crowd, as it was scheduled against Michael Tchong's and Geoff Ramsey's Interactive Outlook, but an enthusiastic crowd of about 60 assembled before the session began.

Rob Graham, author and founder of LearningCraft and Roy DeSouza, president of Zedo, kept the room engaged. When I asked Rob what the key to success in rich media was, he told me it was back to the basics: "You have to develop the right message to the right customer." He went on to say, "The beauty of it is human behavior. You can track and measure like never before."

No matter the stats, we have to take Rob's comment on targeting to heart. As a media person, I always look at the lowest common denominator when planning. Some topline stats they shared:
Seconds % Who View Consumer Attention
Banner gif 0.6 48% 0.3
Flash Popunder 2.6 87% 2.3
Overlay 10 90% 9.0

The "duh" factor here is don't interrupt of intrude. Roy and Rob commented on those advertisers who miss the boat on this.

The audience tended to ask very detailed questions in relation to the speakers viewpoint of Flash technology, as well as Flash usage. It's funny, but it seems like each session I attended had groups of people slamming Flash.

Roy commented on the use of microsites. He compared an interactive ad to that of a microsite. But he warned that marketers have to first ask themselves why they are trying driving someone to a microsite in the first place. It will sometimes serve only as a distraction from real campaign objectives. It can certainly be an undesirable distraction to the user.

The bottom line them for the session was that making an "impact" is not the same as intruding into the normal course of the viewer's Internet experience. And yes, you certainly can be too "rich."