In today's market, publishers are challenged to find ways to expand beyond their organic growth to keep up with increased competition for marketing dollars. More inventory to sell means a greater
share of the advertising spend. Unfortunately, publishers are losing a battle with large ad networks for market share, precisely because the networks can grow faster and bigger by aggregating
thousands of other sites.
Ad networks control significantly larger amounts of inventory in core verticals than do large publishers, which equates to a greater share of advertising
dollars for the networks.
If you asked the average person to name which property is the top online sports source in the syndicated research rankings, you'd expect to hear answers like
ESPN.com or FOX Sports. What you wouldn't expect to hear is an ad network like Google AdSense, Advertising.com or Gorilla Nation. But the reality is that in top verticals like sports, automotive, real
estate and entertainment, the big ad networks consistently beat out top Web publishers in terms of online traffic.
The most recent Web traffic data from comScore's reports reveals that
ad networks commanded most of the unique visitors in April 2007. In some cases, the networks had twice the number of unique visitors than the sites usually associated with that vertical. Who would
think that ESPN.com isn't the largest sports property?
Sports: Unique Visitors and Percent Reach | | |
|
Unique Visitors (000) | % Reach |
Advertising.com Sports | 23,508 | 13.2% |
ESPN | 17,689 | 9.9% |
Yahoo! Sports | 15,382 |
8.6% |
Source: comScore Media Metrix; April 2007 | | |
| | |
Entertainment: Unique Visitors and Percent Reach | | |
| Unique Visitors (000) | % Reach |
Gorilla Nation
Media Network* | 60,103 | 33.8% |
IMDB.com | 20,796 | 11.7% |
Disney Online | 19,626 | 11.0% |
* Advertising network Source: comScore Media Metrix; April 2007 | | |
The list of top 50 most visited Web properties continues to include more ad networks, and large publishers need to take an aggressive stance
against Google and the other advertising networks to wrest control over their inventory.
Ad networks are successful because they can manage and maintain strong relationships with lots of
partners and advertisers. The fact that they have the flexibility to be more aggressive and the single-minded focus to build scale quickly puts the traditional publisher at an immediate disadvantage.
So the question remains: How can large publishers take control and gain immediate access to more inventory than they rightly deserve?
One solution is for publishers to
create their own ad network. Large publishers have the brand recognition, resources and advertiser relationships to create their own networks. They uniquely offer a compelling solution for any smaller
site.
These sites, that now feel captive to the likes of AdSense, can join a new network for access to not just cost-per-click dollars, but CPM and video and other branded content.
The largest publisher in any given vertical has the deepest relationships with endemic advertisers because their content resonates with users. As such, they can sell inventory at higher rates
than anyone else. By creating a vertical network, the large publisher can syndicate content and tools to each member site and link to them to increase their own inventory. Quite simply, the Web's best
sites can beat the networks at their own game because, with a vertical network, they have the resources to do so.
It's a win-win-win situation: Large publishers gain immediate access to
inventory they can sell; member sites who join a branded network have the opportunity to align with a larger, respected brand in their category to add more advertising revenue, access engaging content
to enhance their site and increase their traffic; and advertisers have even more opportunities to find and target their customers online.
It's time for publishers to step up and own what
should be theirs.