• by June 17, 2002

Covering the industry for a varied audience of planners and buyers, we often wonder about the actual level of technological sophistication out there. Just how do you go about doing your business—and by you, we mean you personally as well as your company. On a continuum beginning with the pre-PC era of faxes and phones, through the desktop, Internet, and wireless revolutions, where do you fall? To get real answers, we asked a few of the media buyers and planners we met at the recent @dTech show in New York. We invite you to add your thoughts to the discussion by visiting www.mediapost.com/sparkdebate.

Media: What tools have you added to your toolbox in the past ten years?

Elaine Burks, media director, Forza Marketing Group: Here in Arkansas, we’re a rural state and there are people who want to be on the Internet but they don’t understand why they want to be on the Internet. When I worked on Arkansas Tourism, in the early ‘90s, I started advertising on the web on sites basically that had accountability. And the only site at that time that could provide me with click-throughs was CNN’s travel site. I had been doing my research on the different search engines. Just recently in the last couple of months, I started working with the AdWeek resources. Before that, I was searching with keywords. Until I went to @dTech in New York last month, I had no idea there were so many resources out there.

Media: So you’ve been using the web to help you in your business? Burks: Exactly. Going to the American Demographics Magazine site, clicking on the different links for resource information. That’s what I have been doing. From my perspective, it’s so fractured out there, as far as the tools to use. When I was program director at a television station here in Little Rock, we had just gotten our first computer. We weren’t doing any faxing or FedExing. So it’s just amazing in the last ten years what’s come out. And now we’ve gotten used to the speed that we can—or are supposed to—do our work. Technology has advanced before the human brain has had a chance to advance.

Media: In terms of communicating with your clients and coworkers, do you use email regularly or still rely mostly on the phone?

Burks: Email is definitely becoming the best way and the way people are really finding that they like to do business. Of course, you know, you can’t take that personal touch away with the phone. But I think email gives people more time to communicate business.

Keith Alexander, manager of wireless and mobile technologies, BBDO’s @tmosphere Interactive: The great thing about email is that it allows time-shifting. It allows you to take care of different things at different times. And you can prioritize it yourself. At @tmosphere, we’re using Instant Messaging a lot internally.

Johan Schwartz, interactive media planner, Mullen Advertising: One of our clients is GM Credit and we use @plan, which allows us to input the demographics that we’re trying to target. And it indexes sites according to the reach of the target. And we also use Nielsen//Net Ratings, which allows us to go in and see what the site traffic is, both on the client site as well as the competitive sites.

Media: Are both of those accessed through the Internet or through in-house software?

Schwartz: All are accessed through the Internet.

Media: When did you start doing your work that way as opposed to having proprietary software or something else?

Schwartz: We started using @plan about a year ago, and Nielsen//Net Ratings is probably six months. And then we have another web-based service called AdRelevance, where we can go in and see spending for competitors as well as their banner advertising creative.

Media: And as far as you personally, are you wired in terms of cellphones, wireless web, PDAs, and the like? Or are you more comfortable using the older technologies?

Schwartz: Well, I use the phone a lot. I’m constantly using the web for the research I was talking about as well as for researching the site that comes up with good index numbers. I’m also using a cellphone and the Palm, which is one of the best tools I ever had, as I can sync it up with my computer.

Media: What does the Palm allow you to do that you couldn’t do before?

Schwartz: It allows me to have my schedule with me at all times, as well as my addresses. When I’m on the computer at work, I enter all my information on my calendar. Everything is electronic for me; I don’t have a paper calendar anymore. And I enter that into my schedule and sync it up with my Palm, so I always have it with me. If I’m out in the field, then I can make appointments on the Palm and sync it up to my computer calendar. So I constantly have everything sync-ed up to eachother.

Media: Which Palm do you use? The one that’s wireless and always connected?

Schwartz: I don’t know if it’s always connected. Mine is the Palm V.

Alexander: The Palm V with the OmniSky modem is always on. It uses a cellular digital packet data connection, which is on all the time.

Media: Can you also get email on it?

Alexander: Yes. Actually, I’m using it right now for AOL Instant Messaging, Yahoo Instant Messaging, email, web clipping, as well as accessing regular http websites. The OmniSky modem is probably one of the most important tools that I’m using right now.

Meaghan Hadlock, senior media planner, @tmosphere Interactive: I would consider myself fairly connected as well. I have a Handspring device, which is similar to the Palm, with the attachable modem. I recently demo-ed the BlackBerry, an SMS tool.

Media: Is that the glorified pager that you can do email on?

Hadlock: Exactly. They also have a larger version that you can incorporate all of your Palm data in as well, which is a bit too bulky for me. But, you know, I think it’s all about…what we’re trying to do with this medium is we’re trying to create emotional connections with the brand. And until we, as planners and developers, feel completely comfortable with what we’re using, we’re not going to convey that sense of connection to our users and target audiences.

Media: So it sounds like the @tmosphere folks are wired to the max, and then everybody else is on the continuum somewhere. I guess that makes sense: the more interactive media you’re buying and planning, the more likely you are to be highly wired. How much of the business you’re buying and planning is online or web or wireless advertising?

Burks: Right now, I’m not buying anything online for any of my clients. I’m buying traditional media—newspaper, cable.

Media: How do you buy space in those media now? Do you use or have you investigated the online marketplaces or exchanges?

Burks: I’ve looked into them, and I haven’t found them to be as quick as I need a turnaround. I used BuyMedia.com. I tried requesting avails, requesting demographic information, and so on. And it just wasn’t a good turnaround for me. So I use fax and telephone. I haven’t had the opportunity yet to be as wired as the others, but I can’t wait until I am some day!

Media: It’s just as important to know where you’re at and what you’ve looked at, and why you’ve chosen to do things your way. Johan, you’re an interactive media planner. So most of what you buy and plan is probably online advertising, correct?

Schwartz: Exclusively. But I don’t use the web to purchase anything. I use it for the shopping and research parts of it. What I have is a quote-unquote personal relationship with the salesperson that allows me to call them up or send them an email request-for-proposal that fits the targeting criteria that we have for that particular client.

Media: Do you buy only single sites or do you also use ad networks?

Schwartz: Both, and that’s the procedure for networks as well as individual sites.

Media: Can you give us any examples of networks you’ve worked with?

Schwartz: All the major ones: 24/7, DoubleClick, Engage, L90.

Media: Are you able to buy automatically through any network sites?

Schwartz: No. Even though it might be a run-of-network that we buy initially, we do dynamic optimizing, depending on either the click-through rate or acquisitions, whichever goal that we’re after. That is much more efficiently communicated with the salesperson than trying to do that over the web. Obviously, when you start buying, you get a relationship going with the salesperson and your phonecalls are returned or emails are understood much quicker.

Media: So you don’t think it would be desirable to reach a point where you could purchase and optimize your online advertising automatically online?

Schwartz: I don’t know. But at this point, I wouldn’t go ahead and do that.

Burks: I wouldn’t, either. That takes something out of what we’re doing. I can’t imagine doing that myself.

Hadlock: I think there’s definitely going to be a time when that’s feasible. The biggest issue with that is the negotiation process, which obviously currently is running better person-to-person, being able to capitalize on personal relationships with sales vendors, etc. But I think that as this medium develops and as we start looking at newer and better ways of utilizing it, we are going to have to find new and better ways of buying and selling. And I definitely think that the Internet is going to play a big role in that as well.

Media: Have you used any of the online ad exchanges? How much of your business is online?

Hadlock: Almost 100 percent of our business is online. We have demo-ed some of the networks or the buying tools. But again, as the others have mentioned, it’s not exactly the most optimal right now. The negotiation process, you can’t really utilize through that. Being able to capitalize on personal relationships with vendors, you’re not able to do that yet. Also, right now, we’re really looking to go beyond the banner—we’re looking at customized packages, content-sharing, different ways of communicating a message through a website. And that can’t necessarily be done through a web buying tool. You need to discuss and come up with customized, createable packages with the sites themselves.

Media: Can you give examples of some of the sites and networks you’ve been working with?

Hadlock: We’ve gone across the board. We are in partnership with DoubleClick, we’ve used their network as well as their ad-serving technology. We’ve bought with 24/7, Phase2, L90. One of our biggest clients is Visa, and their focusing on a lot of e-commerce ventures, as well, looking at Buy.com-type sites. One of my clients is targeting the male 18-24 year-old demographic, and we were working with Sony at customized games and sponsorship-type opportunities. Sweepstakes and promotions on the web are key right now with a lot of our clients. And basically, anything and everything we can do online, we do.

Media: What about wireless, which is even further out? Keith, what are you doing there?

Alexander: Right now, we’re just waiting to look-and-see. There’ve been a couple of test studies by Windwire and so on.

Media: What about SkyGo, AvantGo, etc.?

Alexander: SkyGo’s test was only to 143 users; I wouldn’t call it much of a test. However, the Windwire test was pretty extensive, and they reported up to 25 percent call-through rates. AvantGo, Vindigo, all of those, we’re kind of waiting to see what form they take. We’re not too excited with the opportunities right now, although we’re watching them closely. Media: Elaine, as someone who uses a cellphone to conduct business, have you been following what may be coming in terms of wireless advertising?

Burks: Yes, especially since one of our clients is in telecommunications. But we’re not really doing that much. We don’t really have the opportunity right now to do very much.

Media: But as a wireless ‘consumer’ yourself, can you see a time when you would readily accept advertisements coming over your cellphone?

Burks: Personally, I think it’s very intrusive. I would have to read more about the success and the way people accept it before I would even recommend something like that. As a consumer, I certainly don’t want every part of my life to have some kind of invasive advertising.

Media: Even if it’s targeted? Because the idea of walking down the street and having my phone tell me that two blocks away there’s a men’s clothing store having a 20 percent off sale is appealing. I wouldn’t consider that intrusive.

Alexander: That’s OK if you’re choosing to opt in. If you sign up for that service and you’re into that service, that’s fine. There’s also the idea of subsidizing your cellphone bill 25 percent off if you’re willing to accept two advertisements a day or whatever they come up with. But if you’re in the market for something, fine. The only time I’ve ever clicked on a banner ad was when I was looking for something, shopping for a new laptop and saw a banner for a new laptop. If I were to opt in to a program that would alert me when I walked by a CompUSA, that’s a different story.

Media: What about these targeted ads that from your behavior patterns, your purchasing patterns, or your demographic information, the banners can be targeted more to the types of things that you’d be interested in?

Alexander: That’s great as long as I get to choose when I receive them.

Burks: Exactly.

Alexander: Also, just because you have my profile from Amazon.com that shows I buy a lot of tech books, I might be in the market for a gift for my son. And you’re going to miss out on that if you’re going to target me too closely. Media: But Amazon knows you have a son, because you bought the ‘Blues Clues’ video for him.

Alexander: On Amazon, I haven’t; I may have on CDnow or somewhere else. So you have to be careful with targeting things too closely.

Media: Are there any other issues related to the question ‘How wired are you?’ that we haven’t touched on? Does anyone feel a need for more and better wired tools or that you aren’t making full use of the ones you have?

Alexander: I think you need to break it out into a few different subsections: The tools are twofold—you have the hardware and the software. So you might not be using a Palm Pilot to conduct business per se, but if you’re actually at a client meeting and you have a wireless connection, you can get up-to-the-minute, the very latest statistics for whatever that advertisement is doing on whatever particular network. That’s the type of wired that you can’t deny the power of real-time information. And then on the other side of it, you have the advertising and that end of wireless. But as enterprise solutions and as far as the tools that we use in-house, the devices are getting better and better. Wireless is approaching broadband speeds in the laboratory; it’s only a matter of time until third-generation services are rolled out here like they are in Europe. I think it’s a matter of leveraging the tools that are available to you now and being aware of what’s six months down the road and how it can help you. It’s a whole new paradigm, things are different now—it’s a two-way communication. It’s really not a matter of sitting down and viewing a print ad or a television ad or a movie trailer. Now your audience can talk back to you. And if that doesn’t make you afraid and you embrace that and use the information and harvest email addresses and create one-to-one relationships, it’s an incredibly powerful way to extend your brand.

Schwartz: I think one point to make on the tools is that I always find there is a delay in the information that’s available on the site regarding either new technologies or anything that the network can offer for advertising. Whereas each time that a network gets a new method of advertising, either targeted or profile targeting, then it’s available, and the sales reps can tell me right away. But it seems like there’s always a delay in putting that up on the site. There’s also new sites coming onto the network, and if you’re seeking that information on a site, the new sites might not always be listed on there. I’d rather just talk to the sales rep.

Media: So the human being is the ultimate wired tool?

Schwartz: For a lot of the things I’m doing, yes.