• by Cory Treffiletti , Featured Contributor, October 1, 2003

It's a very simple thing, but why do we still call it "Rich" Media? Is there anything but Rich media (and don't answer "text", that doesn't count). Is there room for "Bland Media" to come back?

Over the last few weeks I've heard presentations and discussions centered on the benefits and the evolution of Rich Media, but what do you really run these days that is not "Rich?"

The Interactive space has progressed far enough that I think it is safe to say that a .Gif is no longer the standard ad format that's used. Flash is pretty much the standard, and there are numerous types of advertising that go beyond what a basic Flash developer can put together. Shoskeles, Eyeblaster, Unicast, This-Stitial, That-Stitial... There are more ad types than I can possibly keep up with and these don't even include video and other types of advertising that are finally becoming more pervasive online.

So are we afraid to call it plain old "Media?"

In the offline world, is there a distinction made between the type of print ad that is run or the type of camera lens that is utilized for a commercial? A print ad is called a "Print Ad" and a video that runs on television for marketing purposes is called a "Commercial." There are no "Rich Print Ads." There are no "Rich Commercials."

The only reason this bugs me is because it is related to one of my standing pet peeves, which is that our industry overcomplicates itself on a regular basis. We give too many names to one type of creative, we over-complicate the planning process, and we make it hard for the less involved media people from the offline world to have any understanding of what we do.

To bring back one of my old articles, if you can't explain what you're selling in 3 sentences or less, than you probably don't understand it yourself. Try explaining online advertising creative in less than 3 sentences (and please ensure proper grammar, no run-ons, or I'll sic Jim Meskauskas on ya').

As we progress and mature in the medium, we need to ensure simplification of ideas.

What we place is Interactive Media. This media can run in any of a number of formats, all aimed at driving an interaction, whether it be a click-through or some other action. We use video, Flash, or any other digital technology at our disposal to reach the target audience in an efficient manner.

That was 3 sentences, just in case you weren't counting.

It's a very simple idea, but we need to have everyone start to tow the company line on this. Our industry should move to banning the term "Rich Media" as it implies that there is an option that is not "Rich." This can be confusing to a newbie. This can be confusing to any person who is not familiar with our terminology, and I don't think that many people will argue this point, so why do we keep doing it?

That's it this week, nice and short and simple.

What do you think?