|
 |
Online Media Planning and Buying
Vertical Ad Networks
The trend towards fragmentation of the online audience continues and is challenging generic online media buying strategies that are tied to major portal or social media networks like Yahoo, Facebook or MySpace. The next phase of the online advertising is increasingly focused on building broad, deeply targeted and highly efficient online advertising campaigns using vertical ad networks.
There are more than 100 online vertical ad networks in the marketplace today and yes, there is some debate about the value, credibility, reliability and services they provide. Vertical ad networks are combinations of smaller, highly targeted web sites in specific business categories, that are gaining momentum as marketers and media buyers are seeking to narrow their focus and spread their message out to ‘the long tail’ of online audiences.
While large ad networks follow the horizontal approach of aggregating a wide variety of web sites from different categories into a network, vertical ad networks consist entirely of sites within a specific industry or interest, such as weddings, politics, automotive, gays and travel.
Technology and Reach
The more advanced vertical ad networks have improved their technology and ability to target ad placements to specific web sites and audiences. Ads are primarily served as category or keyword-based contextual placements alongside news stories and other content. Some are also beginning to offer advance targeting and rich media ad units, such as behavioral and online video.
By aggregating common audiences, vertical ad networks get enough scale to become valuable ad placement options for marketers and media buyers. Vertical ad networks can create a deep reach into highly desirable audiences across many premium niche publishers. The larger vertical ad networks can easily deliver between 5 million to 10 million monthly visitors.
CPM Cost
While some marketers and online media buyers still seem to have the impression that the inventory on vertical ad networks is of low value because of its relatively limited reach or specialized nature of the audiences ads are delivered to, the value in CPM of these ad slots can be quite high. Some vertical ad networks charge CPM rates in the $10 - $15 range because they provide critical mass and because they have long-term agreements with vertical niche publishers providing them with premium inventory. Some vertical ad networks count Fortune 500 companies such as Microsoft, Verizon Wireless, Sony and HP as their clients.
Competition
Vertical ad networks compete for the same audience as the major horizontal ad networks. Google’s Adwords Content Ad Network, DoubleClick’s Exchange, Yahoo’s RightMedia and other ad networks aren’t sitting still. Google recently beefed up its head count in New York and other cities to target ad agencies across the country, and Yahoo, the current leader in the online display ad market, has already a large active sales force on the ground.
Benefits for Advertisers and Media Buyers
Vertical ad networks can offer advertisers and media buyers various benefits over horizontal ad networks:
Convenience and efficiency. With an increasingly fragmented audience the vertical ad networks provide a high level of convenience for the online advertising and media buyer who wants to reach highly engaged niche audiences because they eliminate buying media on a site-by-site basis, effectively handpicking the web publishers that meet their requirements and fit their budgets.
Exclusive inventory. Vertical ad networks can often offer highly targeted premium inventory because they build tight, and often exclusive sales relationships with publishers.
Vertical expertise. Vertical ad networks have a deep understanding of the niche they serve. This vertical industry knowledge allows them to take a consultative approach to media selling and offer tailored media solutions. Vertical ad networks offer advertisers and media buyers an ease of administration, insights into a specific industry or industries, and the creative guidance that the larger horizontal ad networks like Google AdWords, ValueClick, RightMedia and others do not offer. Most vertical ad networks also offer some degree of transparency on where ads are running and deep and effective targeting.
Extended reach. General branding campaigns can do as well on general horizontal ad networks as on vertical ad networks. In this case, a vertical network becomes a part of a media plan, alongside the horizontal ad network serving the long tail of the ad campaign.
Here are some examples of vertical ad networks:
VERTICAL AD NETWORKS
Competition between Horizontal and Vertical Ad Networks Benefit Marketers and Online Media Buyers
The new competition between horizontal and vertical ad networks is an advantage to media buyers and online marketers. After all, competition makes companies better at what they do, and pushes them to offer more at reduced prices and better service. For companies interested in online direct response marketing and branding, buying advertising on both types of ad networks can be a good strategy. For companies needing specific targeted online advertising, vertical online ad networks are the best bet. Either way, a detailed analysis of the campaign goals and objectives will decide which type of online ad network works best.
|
|
| |
| |
| |
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
Recent Presentations
128 Business Expo 2007
"Blogging and Podcasting For Business"
Click here to play the video.
495/Metrowest Business Expo
Pre-Expo Keynote
"The Rise of the Internet as a Mass Advertising Medium"
Click here to play the video.
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
| AMPTalk, our monthly audio podcast show on Internet Marketing is jam-packed with interviews and commentary on a wide-range of topics ranging from paid search advertising, ecommerce web site building, social media marketing and online media buying. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
| |
|
|
|
Copyright © 1996-2008. Advanced Media Productions, Inc.
Advanced Media Productions, Inc.
251 West Central St., Suite 28, Natick, Massachusetts 01760, USA
Tel: 508-647-5151 Fax: 508-647-5150
E-mail: info@advmediaproductions.com
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
