Commentary
The Problem With Online Ad Creative No One Wants To Hear
- by Ari Rosenberg , Op-Ed Contributor, July 26, 2010
The segment is driven by heart-pounding music ("Breathe Me" by Sia) as viewers travel into the future to learn how and when the rest of the main characters we grew to love, take their last breaths. The show concludes with Claire's own future passing well into her '90s.
Many could argue the closing segment from "M*A*S*H" reigns supreme -- and they would likely be right, humming the show's theme song ("Suicide is Painless" by Johnny Mandel) while delivering their winning argument.
What is the common ingredient in both of these achievements?
Music. Mixed with content, music acts like baking powder, binding a connection with the audience. That's why movies rely on music scores and songs in the forefront to elevate the senses of their audience, and television commercials do the same exact thing.
AT&T is despised by most -- but when you watch orange sheets drape over the country to the soothing sound of Nick Drake's "From the Morning," you find it hard to hate the company at that moment. Next time you watch an ad on television, really listen to it, too -- and you will likely hear music.
So what's the problem with online advertising creative? It can't be heard. The Web is overwhelmingly experienced in silence (video content is a tiny portion, and most of that content will never attract advertising). So for the most part, online display ads flash, float, rollover, pop under, and expand -- but whatever shape they are seen in, they are not heard. This eliminates the subtle or overt use of music in the ad experience to help cement an emotional connection.
This problem is compounded because Internet advertising's collective pitch went directly after client's "television budgets" (when will mediums ever learn?). Comparing one medium to another is a natural course of action in the business, but online picked the wrong fight. This inherently caused an unfair yet direct creative comparison.
I realize online advertising creative is far more interactive and can be measured, reported, analyzed and optimized far better than television advertising. Overlooked, however, is the fact that ads are paid for by people we call clients, who like to be emotionally moved by their own advertising -- which never happens online, because sight and motion lack sound. No sound means no music; no music means less effective visual advertising.
Still don't believe music makes such a difference in the connection content forms with an audience? Consider the closing segment for the final episode of "The Sopranos." Many hated the abrupt ending -- but everyone who watched can name the song played at its conclusion.
The journey continues for online display advertising creative, but the road is littered with speed bumps.
This is why radio is and always will be the potentially most effective advertising medium every conceived. It's also why television was more entertaining in its early days when the writers were all radio veterans.
I wrote an article last year for a competing publication that bemoaned the disappearance of original jingles from the airwaves. Case in point, Chevy's use of "Like a Rock" to brand itself. In their failed attempt to recapture the essence of Dinah Shore's "See the USA in your Chevrolet" they convinced me - and thousands of others apparently - that we shore could use a little more Dinah these days.
GM could shore use a little Dinah these days.
Until this article pointed that 'lack of music background' out as far as web advertising is concerned, I wasn't aware of it... but NOW...
I think the point is valid when it comes to an ad on the web: no music = less impact.
I'm a music nut so I'm less than thrilled when good music is used but the ad overall doesn't stand up. When the music is an integral part of the ad content and the ad just wouldn't be the same without that music in there, that's almost art in my book and that's always been the hallmark of any good piece of advertising to me.
As more advertisers listen to your secure advice, the one caveat is that it does not go overboard with an overpowering score that drowns out the surrounding activities of the viewer. The TV screen is still a pivotal experience in the room. Ads on a computer, not so much yet, especially in the midst of an office or other communal situations. The balance between sound and visuals is the challenge since at least before the "talkies".
Ari, the problem you point out is a very real one.
But it misses the essential fact that most online ads are dull because we purposely create them to be that way.
We begin with a *numeric* goal (CTRs, or conversions, or pick-a-metric) and then do creative to deliver on those numeric goals.
Online advertising does not have a heart, or a soul. It has a cash register. It is all about extracting value, not creating it.
If this is what we intend, and we are satisfied with a .1% click through rate, then great. But if we want engagement and brand-building and value creation we need to start with human goals, not numeric goals.
Mike, Joe, Paula and Caroline, thanks for "chiming in" -- this was a "duh" moment for me -- there is just no way online display creative can ever utilize music IN THE ADS the way television does and that was the fight the online folks wanted to pick -- they would have been far better off comparing their medium to "Out of Home" -- which I have always believed is what online most closely resembles (it is the Information SuperHighway right?) -- had this been the medium selected for the direct point of comparison that invariably happens when selling media, online creative would outshine outdoor billboards -- but this wasn't a sexy enough battle for those leading the charge so now online display ads will forever be looked at as a "failure" in comparison to television ads no matter how targeted or intrusive they become.
Good point.
Couldn't agree more that music is an essential part. We at Tongal crowdsource the creation of content through phases allowing anyone/everyone to participate. In breaking down the process, coming out of development, knew that music was extremely important so wanted to allow the crowd to act as music supervisor so we've partnered with Audiosocket who has a massive database of indie artists. The Brands not only procure high quality content but also sponsor emerging talent in film and music. It sounds corny but is a win win.
Mark
mark@tongal.com