• by September 7, 2004

America Online is preparing a trade advertising campaign to highlight the offerings of AOL Media Networks, the Internet media giant's ad sales unit, according to people familiar with the situation. The campaign, which is being developed by Hill Holliday, Boston, and could launch online as early as next month, is AOL's first return to trade advertising in nearly three years. Print advertising and support for trade events are also part of the plan. The campaign budget was not known. An AOL spokeswoman confirmed that a campaign was in the works, but declined to elaborate.

AOL has quietly been ramping up broadband video advertising products and creating "sweet spots" within its inventory to sell to advertisers. Its challenge is to amass millions of eyeballs to key content areas; it needs to find a way to shepherd millions of Netscape, AOL.com, and AIM users, in particular, to key properties. AOL's $435 million acquisition of Advertising.com in June also makes a trade advertising effort much more important. AOL will deploy Advertising.com's technology across its network; Advertising.com also makes it possible for AOL to sell its inventory on other publishers' Web sites. Advertising.com also gives AOL the opportunity to do sophisticated ad-serving and targeting--both services that the online giant is eager to peddle. AOL also is looking to tout advertising services to industry verticals, including the automotive, consumer packaged goods, retail, and financial services sectors.

Separately, AOL recently hired The Martin Agency for a consumer brand assignment that will result in print advertising by October. The objective and budget for that project was undisclosed. AOL's agency of record remains Omnicom Group's BBDO Worldwide, New York. BBDO is in development on a multimedia brand campaign that will launch in the fall, roughly in the same time frame as the print effort by Martin. Initiative Media, New York is AOL's media agency of record.