Office Depot Funnels Small Business Clients to AdWords

Office supply store Office Depot has partnered with Google to bring AdWords to small business customers. A co-branded portion of OfficeDepot.com will teach small businesses how to access certain Google products. The site will feature information on AdWords, the Google Apps suite and other enterprise offerings. Small businesses that register for AdWords from OfficeDepot.com will receive $50 […]

Posted: Wednesday, May 14th, 2008

Live Nation Launches Ad Network for Local Concert Promoters

Concert promoter Live Nation has made its own contribution to the DIY online ad network market. The promoting crew-cum-management company — which signed Jay-Z in a 10-year contract last month — will tap a roster of local concert marketers and invite them to become online advertisers. Live Nation's ad network allows local promoters to run targeted […]

Posted: Monday, May 12th, 2008

Startups Explore 'Interactive' Alternatives to Old-Fashioned Banners

Slowdown in the online ad market has many startups — which count on ad revenue to push otherwise unprofitable ideas onto the production floor — seeking alternatives, reports the Wall Street Journal. Models of particular interest are ad formats that add "value" to the "user experience" instead of operating on a pure pay-per-click basis. meebo, for […]

Posted: Tuesday, May 6th, 2008

Borrell: 'Traditional' Online Ad Spend Gives Way to Online Sponsorships, Promotions

Spend on online sponsorships and other promotions are rising at the expense of "traditonal" display advertising, reports Borrell Associates. Borrell says spending on "online promotions" reached $8 billion this year and is expected to hit $22.8 billion in five years. National advertisers are leading the charge toward promotions and sponsorships, with local advertisers following suit. Meanwhile, display […]

Posted: Wednesday, April 30th, 2008

Newspaper Ads Drive Online Research, In-Store Purchases

Print newspaper ads reach people at all stages of the buying cycle, inspiring web research at the beginning, and prompting in-store/web purchases at the end, said the Newspaper Association of America (NAA), citing a Google study (via MarketingCharts). Clark, Martire & Bartolomeo conducted the study for Google. "Newspaper advertisements drive readers to the web, where they search, […]

Posted: Tuesday, April 22nd, 2008

Industry Buzz & Snippets: 4/10/08

Ad Networks and Analytics: TargetSpot added eight stations to its lineup, including FoxNews Radio. aCerno is a new network of e-commerce sites that targets ads based on past purchasing behavior. The ads are served based on what the person is expected to buy next. Agencies and Execs: Richard Kirshenbaum of kirshenbaum+bond is launching a talk show on Plum.tv called […]

Posted: Thursday, April 10th, 2008

Digital Media Screens in Quick-Service Restaurants Get Attention

Millions of US adults visit quick-service restaurants each month, and they constitute a prime audience for in-store digital media, according to an Indoor Direct study conducted by Arbitron at Wendy's, Denny's, Hardee's, Arby's, and CiCi's Pizza stores, writes MarketingCharts. Nearly 100 million people - about 42 percent of the US adult population - visit at […]

Posted: Thursday, April 10th, 2008

More Coupon Use Planned for Recession, Many Like Paperless

Tough times and technology advancements portend a renaissance of coupon use among shoppers. 67 percent of those surveyed by ICOM Information & Communications (ICOM) saying they are more likely to use coupons during a recession, writes MarketingCharts. Of the 1,529 US consumers participating in the survey, 45 percent said they were much more likely to do […]

Posted: Tuesday, April 8th, 2008

DoubleFusion Goes Virtual With Habbo Deal

DoubleFusion has signed a deal with Habbo to manage all ad inventory for the virtual world's US operations. The ad network operator will take on responsibility for media sales and ad placement in-world. This is DoubleFusion's first large-scale foray into virtual worlds, having previously worked on a smaller program with Cyworld in South Korea. DoubleFusion will be […]

Posted: Monday, April 7th, 2008

Influential Online Hispanic Consumers: Super 'E-fluentials'

Influential online consumers ("e-fluentials") among Hispanics use the internet to connect with friends and family, as well as share views about products and brands — often in higher proportions than other e-fluentials, according to a Burson-Marsteller study, writes MarketingCharts. Below are key findings from the study. Online Interaction High "Hispanic-fluentials" spend more time interacting with others online […]

Posted: Thursday, April 3rd, 2008

St. Ives Goes Digital, Helps Ladies Organize Lives

Today St. Ives debuted its first digital marketing initiative. With pastel colors, soothing music and a focus on the elements, "Get a Happy Face" aspires to encourage women to explore the St. Ives Elements product line while plucking up branded widgets that help organize their lives. Widgets are available on individual product pages. They include: A weather widget, […]

Posted: Thursday, April 3rd, 2008

GM, Toyota Vie for Top Online Advertiser among Auto Manufacturers

GM delivered 27 percent more online display ads than Toyota in January. However, Toyota delivered 32 percent more ads per person reached, according to the first public release of advertiser-level data from comScore's Ad Metrix service, in this case for online advertising by auto manufacturers, reports MarketingCharts. GM Leads in Online Ads among Auto Manufacturers General Motors […]

Posted: Monday, March 31st, 2008

Mobile Advertising Brand Recall Up 20 Percent in Q1

Some 41 percent of cell phone users who remembered seeing mobile advertising could recall at least one brand. That's up 20 percent from three months ago, when 34 percent recalled at least one brand, according to Limbo's "Mobile Advertising Report Q1 2008," — via MarketingCharts. "[B]rand recall is at an all-time high in the mobile channel," […]

Posted: Friday, March 28th, 2008

Digital Content Breathes Crisp New Life into Museum Exhibitions

Archived paintings, sculptures, interviews and other data of historical interest — once relegated to the dusty back rooms of museums — are finding new dimensions of usefulness online, reports Reuters. Following two years of market research, the Indianapolis Museum of Art has relaunched its website with links to flickr, YouTube and Facebook. The site avails about […]

Posted: Friday, March 28th, 2008

Whole Foods to Make Podcast Stars of Six Kids

In early March, Austin-based Whole Foods launched Whole Earth Generation, a video podcast series designed to raise environmental awareness among youngsters. To kick it off, Whole Foods announced a contest to find six kids aged 8 to 17 to serve as hosts for the series, which runs through April 29. Children in North America could either submit […]

Posted: Wednesday, March 26th, 2008

New Light-Vehicle Sales in '08 to Reach Lowest Point Since '94

New light-vehicle sales in 2008 - originally forecast to total 15.7 million cars and light trucks - are now expected to reach their lowest levels since 1994, dropping to 14.95 million units, according to JD Power and Associates, writes MarketingCharts. In the first quarter of 2008, sales are expected to average 15.2 million units, with […]

Posted: Friday, March 21st, 2008

Paramount Enlists Clearspring for 'Indiana Jones' Widget Promo

Paramount is kicking off a promotion for the latest "Indiana Jones" film. The two fans who distribute a widget of the trailer across the most media will score tickets to the world premiere. Winners will also become red carpet correspondents. Footage of their debut will be streamed onto the widgets following the premiere, reports The Hollywood […]

Posted: Thursday, March 20th, 2008

Penguin Books Loves Digital, Kicks Off Alternate Reality Story Promo

The UK arm of Penguin Books has launched "We Tell Stories," an alternate reality game that pairs six authors with six game designers. The goal is to create stories that cannot be told on paper, reports Reuters. Week after week the story takes on a different form and absorbs different media; for example, parts of the […]

Posted: Wednesday, March 19th, 2008

Industry Buzz & Snippets: 3/18/08

Ad Networks and Analytics: Yahoo and Microsoft sat down and a had a grown-up conversation about the latter's takeover bid for the former. Tech magazine publisher IDG is launching an ad network consisting (unsurprisingly) of technology blogs. BrightRoll is adding high-definition video to its ad network offerings. Eyeblaster is planning an IPO. WebVisible, which helps small business owners with […]

Posted: Tuesday, March 18th, 2008

Tava Campaign Skips Print, TV; Goes Straight to 'Net

Pepsi's campaign for its new beverage brand is taking the road more frequently taken: cutting out traditional media entirely, reports The New York Times. No-calorie Tava will debut through online promotions and advertising only. Banner ads will point to Tava.com, where visitors will find drink information, downloadable music and news on cultural and arts events in […]

Posted: Friday, March 14th, 2008