In what is likely the most significant change in the methods Nielsen uses to measure TV -- and potentially all forms of video content -- the ratings company this week quietly began informing clients of a major initiative to develop a suite of new audience meters and digital tracking codes that could begin replacing its current meters as soon as 2014. Dubbed “GTAM,” which stands for Global Television Audience Metering, the initiative includes the development of four new audience metering technologies designed to deal with all of the conceivable challenges involved in measuring the viewing behavior of contemporary consumer households. The initiative is significant for several reasons beyond the technologies being developed, including the fact that it is a major reaffirmation of Nielsen’s strategy for basing audience measurement around in-home viewing, which has been the foundation of its audience measurement systems, although some components of the GTAM initiative will make it easier for Nielsen to incorporate mobile, wireless and Internet-based video audience exposure as well. The other major reason the plan is significant is that as its name might imply, it will be a global effort -- and the technologies being developed would likely be deployed as part of a standardized methodology across the 16 international markets Nielsen currently measures media audiences in. The four new metering solutions include the so-called “GTAM meter,” which will be the primary device Nielsen plans to use for audience measurement. The GTAM meter is said to be smaller, more ergonometric, easier for consumers to interact with, and far less “invasive” than Nielsen’s current industry standard “A/P meters.” Like the A/P meters, which stand for active/passive metering components, the new GTAM meter is expected to utilize a combination of active and passive measurement technologies, but unlike Nielsen’s current meters it will not require it to be physically connected to any household media devices, such as a TV set, set-top tuner, DVR, etc., to function. The second technology in development is a lighter, somewhat less sophisticated meter, aptly named the “GTAM Lite Meter,” which is capable of measuring TV audiences in households that have fewer electronic devices in them and are less complicated to measure. A third device, code-named the “Code Reader,” is an even smaller device that relies entirely on its ability to monitor the digital codes associated with TV and video programming. All the new metering technologies are being designed to work with a new, bulletproof digital watermarking technology Nielsen has developed that is capable of surviving any conceivable compression technologies that would otherwise strip away current versions of digital codes and watermarks. Dubbed “Watermark,” the new code is said to be integral to Nielsen’s plans to accelerate cross-platform video measurement and integration, because it is also a solution to measuring video exposure across wired and wireless Internet platforms. The fourth metering technology in the initiative potentially may be the most controversial in the mix, because it is designed to explicitly replace its current people meters, now the state-of-the-art in Nielsen’s TV metering portfolio. Unlike Nielsen’s current generation of people meters, which utilize blinking lights to remind viewers to push buttons to indicate they are actively watching TV programming, the new meters will feature an LED screen that will give respondents written instructions and prompts for complying with the measurement process. That meter is dubbed the “Scrolling Text People Meter,” and it could be controversial, because it is designed to improve the cooperation and compliance of people watching TV in a sample household, which could potentially influence the way they watch TV. Nielsen is expected to vet the new approaches and technologies among its various client groups, and industry bodies before deploying anything, and the likely time frame is that the first versions of the new meters would not be installed in sample households until early 2014, following a year of evaluation during 2013.
If moms weren’t already the focus of many an online marketing campaign, new data from Nielsen provides fresh evidence that they are right in the middle of key Internet trends. The influence moms wield as household decision makers stretches across social media, e-commerce and mobile. When using social networking sites, for example, moms are 38% more likely to become a fan or follow a brand online, and those who blog are more than twice as likely to follow brands and celebrities compared to the online average. Three out of four moms visited Facebook in March, and almost 5 million headed to new social media darling Pinterest. That total represented more than a third of the site’s unique visitors on the desktop Web in March. Product-focused Pinterest overall has proven especially popular with women, who make up about 60% of its audience, according to findings earlier this year from Web measurement firm Compete. Part of Pinterest’s appeal may be its link to online shopping. Nielsen found that moms are at least 23% more likely to buy or shop for things like toys, clothing, e-books and music in the last 30 days than average. Moms are also holding their ground in the mobile sphere. Overall, 54% own smartphones, and at least half use social media on mobile devices versus 37% of the broader online population. And since “mommy bloggers” have become an online demographic unto themselves, it’s not surprising that moms are about 25% more likely to visit blogging software sites like Blogger and WordPress.com. The Nielsen findings about the online habits of moms did not extend to Web video. But the lineup of shows introduced by Yahoo last year aimed specifically at women 25-54 clearly reflects a desire to reach the mom audience in that realm as well. The same goes for AOL. Among its new slate of shows debuting May 13 is “Little Women, Big Cars,” revolving around “four soccer moms struggling to balance their busy schedules, family lives and sanity.” With a little help from the Web.
Using Yahoo’s IntoNow system, ABC will allow viewers to enter a sweepstakes while watching freshman drama “Revenge” live. An IntoNow app allows users to “tag” content by pointing a mobile device at the screen, which kick-starts a version of interactive TV. For this season’s final two “Revenge” episodes, viewers can enter to win a week-long trip to the Hamptons -- where the show is set -- in a promotion backed by Lexus. IntoNow, which is available on tablets, was acquired by Yahoo last year and could benefit from the emerging second-screen viewing trend. The companion use will also allow “Revenge” viewers to interact with others via Facebook and Twitter as the show airs, answer trivia questions, and watch related videos ABC and Yahoo used IntoNow functionality earlier this year during a Republican presidential debate. The IntoNow functionality can also be deployed to allow viewers to point a device at the screen to identify programming, including particular episodes. The company’s database is compiling an index from over 160 channels. On the marketing front, last year Pepsi ran a program where IntoNow users could point an Apple device at the screen during a Major League Baseball-themed spot and have a digital coupon -- via a barcode -- sent to the device. The user could then take the barcode to a store, where it would be scanned to redeem a free bottle of Pepsi Max. Pepsi was the first advertiser to take advantage of IntoNow.
Technology companies may believe that the bells and whistles that come with a technological breakthrough are enough to sell a product, but consumers want a much simpler understanding about how it will relate to their lives. According to new research conducted by Ketchum, three-quarters of consumers around the world are still dissatisfied with technology’s ability to make their lives simpler. According to the survey of more than 6,000 consumers in six countries, more than half (54%) said they want technology to be easy to use. Consumers also wanted devices to simplify their lives (46%), provide entertainment (35%) and express who they are (11%). “The bottom line is people are looking for simplification,” Esty Pujadas, partner and director of Ketchum’s global technology practice, tells Marketing Daily. “That’s not to say that they’re not appreciative of features and functionality, but it’s more that they want to understand better the benefits.” Consumers have a basic understanding that technology can make their lives simpler, Pujadas says, but they are short on specifics. Communications from the technology makers and marketers often get weighed down in the technical specifications, rather than focusing on the user experience, she says -- noting that among the survey respondents, those who “liked” their personal technology far outweighed those who “loved” it. “[Companies] tend to focus more on the features and functionalities, and what we would suggest is bringing more of the human experience to balance that out,” she says. “If the manufacturing world can balance the story and communicate the human experience in it, they can move more of the ‘likes’ to the ‘loves.’” The global survey also notes some cultural differences. The number of Chinese who claim to love their smartphones (44%) is nearly double those who say the same in France (24%). Usage patterns are also every different: the Chinese are more apt to use technology to manage their relationships and health, while the French tend to use technology to create experiences. “People in different countries use and relate to technology differently,” Pujadas says. “[Marketers] might take into consideration how they’re telling the story [of a piece of technology], and how that can relate the experience behind the technology.” At the same time, the survey enabled the company to break technology consumers into four distinct groups, which would serve marketers better than traditional demographics when it comes to technology, Pujadas says. The largest group, comprising 37% of the study’s global population, are the Enthusiasts. They are passionate about technology and are willing to sacrifice simplicity for empowerment. The next group, Infomaniacs (25%) value getting information and experiences over improving or managing relationships. The Pragmatists (22%) don’t love technology, but see the value it provides in managing relationships and getting things done. Finally, the Disconnects (16%) place a high value on simplification over the empowerment or enrichment that technology provides. “Different people are going to require different things,” Pujadas says of those breakdowns. “Don’t give in to the idea that the technology sells itself for everybody everywhere. There are more people who can embrace it even more and you have huge opportunities to go beyond that if you tell the human experience around it.”
Tablet PC Ownership, Interest Increases Interest in owning a tablet PC has increased among people with household incomes over $100,000, even as overall tablet ownership rates have also increased, according to “Catching the Tablet Wave,” a new study from Ipsos MediaCT. Overall tablet PC ownership increased from 10% in September 2011 to 16% in March 2012, according to the Ipsos study, which broke down ownership rates by various factors. Ownership among men increased from 11% to 15% over the same period, while among women it more than doubled from 8% to 17%. With respect to age, tablet PC ownership among adults 18-34 increased from 12% to 19%; among those 35-54, from 12% to 13%; and among 55+, from 9% to 15%. Among individuals in households earning less than $100,000 per year, tablet PC ownership edged up from 9% to 12%, while among individuals in households earning more than $100,000 per year, ownership increased from 21% to 28%. At the same time, interest in owning a tablet increased from 59% to 65% of people in households earning over $100,000 per year. The proportion of adults who are either “probably” or “definitely” planning to buy a tablet PC this year increased from 17% in September 2011 to 26% in March 2012. Among men it increased from 20% to 28% over this period; among women, from 14% to 24%. Among people in households earning less than $100,000 per year, it increased from 11% to 25%, while among people in households earning over $100,000 per year, it increased from 21% to 41%. Publishers and advertisers are scrambling to keep up with the surge of interest in tablet computers and digital publications designed for them. Last week the American Association of Advertising Agencies sent an open letter to the MPA asking publishers to provide more specific information to advertisers about digital magazine readership on tablets. Their list of requests includes breaking out tablet-audience metrics into subscription and single-copy sales, as well as distinguishing between subscribers who bought a new digital-only subscription and subscribers who simply verified a pre-existing print subscription to receive the digital counterpart; unduplicated numbers for readership on tablets, other digital and online platforms, and print; “an accredited, third-party research vendor for measuring readership across these new devices,” along with a consistent template for reporting tablet readership metrics from different publishers; data on consumer engagement with digital magazine ads; and separate print and digital ratebases. Wired Introduces Wired Live ExpoWired is launching a new event in the business-to-consumer space, the Wired Live Expo, which will help technology companies meet consumers with a retail component, according to Folio, which reported the news earlier this week. The Wired Live Expo is targeted at categories including science, technology, music, fashion, cars, space travel, entertainment, computers, and mobile phones, Folio reports. Expo participants will include NASA and TEDx, which will be discussing the future of space exploration. Scheduled to take place at the Washington, D.C. Convention Center from November 15-18, the Wired Live Expo should attract 50,000 attendees, according to Folio. Outdoor Life Launches Sportswear Line at Sears In September of this year Bonnier Corp.’s Outdoor Life will unveil a branded line of sportswear for men at Sears, the magazine publisher announced this week. Available at over 800 Sears locations nationwide, the sportswear line will target the “guy’s guy,” combining “utility, comfort, and quality for the outdoorsman.” Lana Krauter, senior vice president, Sears Holdings, and president, Sears Apparel, stated: “Through this collaboration, Sears and Outdoor Life will provide outdoorsmen with clothing that fits their lifestyle and their budget with convenient mall based shopping.” Sears Outdoor Life collection will appear in branded Outdoor Life mini-shops and include items like cotton flannel shirts, thermal crews, Henley shirts, hooded fleece zip jackets, and cotton canvas cargo pants, among others. Bennet to EIC, The Atlantic James Bennet has been promoted from editor to editor in chief of The Atlantic -- the first time in the 155-year history of the publication that someone has held that role. Atlantic Media Co. President Justin Smith also promoted editorial director Bob Cohn to editor of Atlantic Digital, and The Atlantic Executive Editor Scott Stossel to editor of the magazine.
On any given Thursday or Friday evening, millions of people have gotten into the habit of flipping out their mobile devices to check what movies are playing in their area. The explosion of activity in the movie-finder app category has been tremendous in recent years, catapulting companies like Fandango and Flixster to the top of the mobile app charts. Entertainment marketing is among the most evolved categories in mobile advertising. It leverages full screen takeovers, multimedia, and a range of deep appeals that other categories are only beginning to try. In one mobile campaign I saw for the "Paranormal 3" release, the campaign literally tricked the user into believing his phone had become as haunted as the scenes in the film were. On the whole, most mobile advertising for studio releases tends to go for the big effect and big reach. Such ads will own the app experience for the days leading up to a release. But for other advertisers trying to get into the flow of this massive consumer hunt for information, these apps often cast off enormous amounts of interesting data that could be harvested for targeting. “We have a database of over 2.4 billion reviews and responses from users,” says James Smith, CRO of Flixster. The cross-platform movie guide (handsets, Web, tablets and connected TVs) is owned by Warner Bros. and also operates the longstanding reviews site RottenTomatoes.com. An app like Flixster is able to see what specific audience segments are looking for weeks in advance, what they are excited about, beyond the targets studios may think they have for a film. Just on mobile apps alone they are streaming from 2 to 6 million trailers a month. In a new project, the company is using information it gathers from searches, traffic flows and user comments and social sharing to understand what titles are trending with which specific audiences. This is “Social Movies Targeting.” Smith says that beyond the appeal of a film’s story, most people are making a decision about which movie to see based on the opinion of people like them. “You want to tap into the movies that are trending for that demographic,” says Smith. “There is no source of data for that. Most advertisers can’t drill into the movies that will be popular, and most of that data is unreliable.” Otherwise, perhaps, "John Carter" would have been a hit. Flixster is looking across the data people are leaving behind when they search for titles or comment or consult Rotten Tomatoes and the number of people who are saying they “want to see” something. “If you are an XYZ advertiser that wants to target men 18-to-23, we offer them social movie targeting that targets against movie content where we see that demographic active.” Smith says that unlike the targeting often attached to movie content with presumed audiences, here the consumer tastes gauged in real time are driving the targeting. While the major studios are still likely buying into the big reach and conquesting campaigns, this is a style of targeting aimed more at non-endemic clients. “This allows advertisers without industry knowledge to tap into the real buzz and associate themselves with the buzz around a title that coming weekend. We can measure the intensity of the buzz against other titles and only put you in the top three most intense against some demographic.” This also lets brands target against unlikely suspects like titles that are not necessarily big blockbusters but sleepers, and films that are generating niche appeal. Flixster is running the targeting for MSN, which is buying against film titles whose audience buzz maps correctly against their target. “We have seen-click through rates for this tool stronger than run-of-site consistently for the last four weeks,” Smith says. The MSN target mapped well against the audience buzzing in advance of "The Cabin in the Woods" horror film release earlier this month. According to Flixster, click-throughs on MSN ads running against this target were especially high. Flixster gets about 10 million uniques each month, with 2 to 5 million every Thursday through Sunday.
Location-based social networks are an acquired taste, since not everyone necessarily feels like sharing their whereabouts with friends. But the location-based model just got a bit tastier with the advent of Slingr, a mobile app that lets friends buy each other food and drinks in distant locales. After signing up for Slingr, you just check in at a participating venue, automatically posting a link to your personal feed on Facebook, Twitter, or a number of other compatible social networks. Friends who see the link can click on it to view a menu of items available at that venue, which they can purchase and send to your table. You can specify which items you’re interested in (“I’m at venue X and in the mood for a martini”). The idea certainly is nifty, although it assumes a certain generosity which may or may not manifest itself in the ways promised on the Slingr.net site: “Imagine dinner on your birthday paid for by Mom and Dad, dessert sent from your boss, and a steady flow of drinks from your best friends, all free to you thanks to Slingr.” (Personal note to my boss: you are welcome to send me a supply of Nutter Butters in the mail, should the fancy strike you). It also remains to be seen if people will continue feeling generous after the novelty wears off. On the other hand, in situations where it does work, Slingr is a potential goldmine for restaurants with well-connected patrons whose friends feel like splashing out from afar (presumably a good barkeep won’t serve you all 20 drinks at the same time). There are also lots of obvious integrations for Slingr with other platforms: I’m thinking it might fit nicely with mobile city guides and online daily deal services, for starters.