Amongst the glitz and glamour of Hollywood’s biggest night, advertisers shelled out nearly $1.8 million for 30 seconds in the spotlight. Riding closely on the coattails of the Super Bowl, which drew $2.7 million for the same airtime, big brand advertisers were anxious to put their products in front of the captivated millions that have been so difficult to find throughout the now resolved writers strike. With an increasing trend toward stretching the television media dollar by integrating commercials with follow-up online interaction, advertisers are learning how to do this best and how to track online interaction. Today, online integration is an increasingly important component to advertising strategies as consumers naturally gravitate to the Internet to research and make purchasing decisions.
During the Oscar broadcast, SendTec, Inc. (OTCBB:SNDN), a leading multi-channel integrated direct marketing agency, conducted an analysis of which advertisers effectively connected their TV commercials with their online strategies. This year, SendTec found that 59 percent of Oscar commercials included a Web site in their ad; however, just 15 percent of the ads actually called out the Web site with a voiceover.
This report identifies which advertisers integrated their online and offline campaigns well and which advertisers went home without a gold statue. Each advertising campaign was assessed on the following criteria:
Did the television commercial contain a URL visually or through a voiceover?
Was there a clear call to action to go online?
Did the advertiser buy search keywords related to the commercial theme?
Was the online landing page/Web site relevant to commercial?
The winner was Bertolli, who succeeded in three of the four criteria. The commercial had a Web site, a strong call to action to go online, a relevant Web site that was tied to the content of the television spot and even a sponsored ad on Google for the keyword, Bertolli. User generated content is a hot trend among big brand advertisers and this commercial is sure to drive considerable response. The one criteria that Bertolli fell short on was not advertising on other relevant keywords, such as, pasta, pasta contest and Rocco DiSpirito.
The runner up was Jaguar. Interestingly enough, Jaguar was the only Oscar advertiser found in sponsored search results for Oscar commercial and Academy Award commercial even before the live broadcast of the awards ceremony, with a special site JaguarXF.com; however, the commercial did not include this Web site. Jaguar’s strategy to not include the Web site may seem like a big miss, but the inclusion of an integrated paid search campaign demonstrates that they recognize the need to capture those consumers who naturally turn to the Web. Reportedly, Jaguar’s TV ad campaign targeted a number of large markets, while their search campaign extended nationally.
Going home empty handed is GMC, who failed to connect online in both commercials for the Yukon Hybrid and the Acadia. Most notably, the Acadia commercial touted it as a Crossover; however, searches for Crossover on Google showed sponsored ads for numerous automobile makers including Saturn, Nissan, Chrysler, Ford, Suzuki, Mitsubishi and Mazda, but not GMC.
Dove, a winner in SendTec’s 2007 analysis, provoked increased online interaction during this year’s Oscars by conducting a live vote to determine their contest winner. Even though a clear favorite going into the Oscar advertising extravaganza, Dove failed to show up in paid listings for Dove contest, Dove commercial, speedy spa or Dove contest winner, and was not bidding for Oscars.
JC Penney also fell short with their campaign. While the company bid for the theme of its ad spot American Living, there was no call for action to go to its online store. JC Penney also did not bid for any Oscar related keywords, nor did the television commercial feature a visual of its Web site even though the store has a strong, prominent e-commerce Web site.
While Coca-Cola highlighted a clear call to action to visit their online site, MyCokeRewards.com, this advertiser did not implement any search engine marketing strategies tied to their support of heart health or the contest to win Heidi Klum’s red dress during the live broadcast; however, on the following Monday, MyCokeRewardsRedDress.com does appear on searches for Heidi Klum red dress.
When asked to comment on the Oscar advertisers’ campaigns SendTec Director of Search Strategy and Development, Janel Landis stated, “I would have to speculate that advertisers did not have time to prepare fully integrated strategies this year. With the writers strike looming up until two weeks ago, potential advertisers did not know if the Oscars were even going to happen. While some advertisers still did not get it quite right, it was clear that the majority of advertisers attempted to integrate their commercials with the Web. It is proof of the importance of the search channel in building strong brands and driving sales.”
About SendTec, Inc.
SendTec is a leading customer acquisition ad agency with expertise in multi-channel integrated direct marketing, online and offline. The company builds and leverages technology as an integral part of growing its clients’ businesses. Search engine marketing, direct response television and lead generation are the company’s unique specialties. SendTec is headquartered in St. Petersburg, Florida, with an office in New York City and account representatives serving its clients across the U.S