NEWSLETTER

The Total Media weekly newsletter brought to you by Madeleine Ware of the Total Media Marketing Team

PRESS

The National Readership Survey has announced that, from spring, it will produce figures using UK Online Measurement research, which will declare overall readership across paper and online platforms for newspapers and magazines. This will give us a richer sense of how the audience is distributed across platforms, enabling publishers to trade on more robust audience data.

Recently appointed chief executive of the Newspaper Marketing Agency, Rufus Olins, and Chris Amor both believe that 2012 will be a year where newspaper will need to co-operate and present a “united front” as “more data will enable publishers to follow their consumers’ media behaviours more accurately”. (Source: Campaign, Marketing Week)

TELEVISION

2011 was a good year for TV advertising. It maintained its place at the top of the table for return on investment, mainly a result of the cost of TV advertising falling and its effectiveness remaining largely undiminished, returning £1.70 for every £1 invested, and according to ThinkBox a record number of 2.7 billion ads were watched every day.

So what can we expect for 2012? Well it is looks like it is going to be an exciting year for television as not only is there the completion of analogue switch-off which will send the UK 100% digital in April, but TV viewing and advertising is set to get even smarter. The highly criticized, yet eagerly awaited, YouView will transform the way we watch terrestrial TV, greater integration will see an upsurge in second-screen viewing, and even more social media tools will be integrated with TV.

Our very own Leila Gould has given further insight into this, and stated that: "Social media integration is giving television advertising a boost and it's creating enhanced shared-viewing experiences. TV is more affordable now and together, we're getting cleverer at integrating ad-funded programming with social channels on behalf of clients."

However, despite the developments or newly available ad solutions, ITV’s Daglish, along with Channel 5’s Nick Bampton still laud the 30-second spot as integral to the future of commercial broadcasting. Daglish states “In partnership with creative agencies and clients, we need to focus on well-produced content such as the pre-Christmas John Lewis campaign”, and Bampton agrees by saying “Iconic adverts are what TV does best and we should never loose sight of that…The 30-second spot is more powerful than any other medium and when it's done right, audiences are drawn to the messaging through the creativity”. (Source: Media Week)

RADIO

Despite the doom-monger predicting that the rise in on-demand content would accelerate a slow and lingering death for traditional media channels, offline broadcast linear media – radio and TV – continue to be in remarkably good health. Figures for 2011 show radio is still a popular medium in Britain with a record 47 million adults listening every week, and it is unique in that it plays a highly emotional role for the listener lifting their mood when engaged in other tasks, whenever, wherever - a role that it is impossible for other media to fulfil to the same degree.

This incomparable nature of radio also provides a quantifiable advantage for advertisers as the RAB 'Media and the mood of the nation' research study from 2011 revealed how people consuming radio, on average, feel happier and more energetic than those consuming television or online. These mood-enhancing effects are proven to extend into the ad break, generating higher levels of positive engagement with radio advertising, which is further supported by evidence set out in the 'Radio: Online Multiplier' report that demonstrated radio's effectiveness in driving people to interact with brands online. More so than other media, radio stations are avid and active users of social media, wielding high influence over their followers.

In terms of mobile, latest Rajar stats highlight that 16% of adults, and a third of 15- to 24-year-olds, listen to radio via a mobile phone. It is estimated that more than 10m commercial radio station-specific apps have been downloaded. Radio apps on mobile devices offer opportunities for advertisers, such as visuals and content tagging, all of which are being tested currently. So rather than following the path that the doom-mongers predict, radio is allowing advertisers to become smarter and more innovative by exploiting the symbiotic relationship between radio, mobile and social to unlick the full potential of these channels for brands. (Source: Marketing Magazine)

OUTDOOR

One trend that is set to become a more established part of the Out Of Home community is interactivity. High-profile experimental campaigns, such as last year's augmented reality Lynx "angels" installation, are leading to larger-scale use of interactive creative. Ford, IBM, Colgate, Foster's and Heineken are also among a growing number of major brands that are taking digital OOH media into the mainstream. This approach is setting the tone for the industry and there is no doubt that consumers want to interact with brands outside of the home. The strides made by linking campaigns with social media and location-based communications mean OOH has become a relevant and connected communications medium in the context of the rapid growth of digital technology and its impact on people's lives. (Source: Campaign)

DIGITAL

While figures show Facebook is having a “positive effect” on the UK economy, contributing £2.2bn to the UK in 2011, and YouTube stating that it is streaming an incredible four billion videos a day, the story is not so bright for all social media platforms as Myspace’s well documented decline demonstrates. As one of the original social networks to emerge after the dotcom bubble in 2003, it has since been left behind, with Facebook and Twitter dictating this arena. Even Rupert Murdoch admitted, ironically via Twitter, last week that his company, News corporation, had ‘screwed up’ in ‘every way possible’ in its acquisition in which they paid $580m for in 2005, and sold for a mere $35m back in July.

Now, it has unlikely new owners in ad network Specific Media and musician and actor Justin Timberlake. The latest 'new direction' for Myspace, though, has been kept under wraps. However, the industry was given a taster of Myspace's future earlier this month - a social TV venture to bring music channels and, eventually, more content to consumers via a connected TV app. But as site visitor numbers continue to plummet with unique visitors being down by 25%, will this sort of innovation be enough to win back its audience or attract a new crowd? (Source: The Wall, Media Week, Marketing Magazine)

CINEMA

Of all the media channels listed, cinema looks to be the medium that is less inclined to change with ad revenues and admissions all predicted to be static over the course of the year. However, the type of film that’s on the schedule is noteworthy as now that the Harry Potter franchise has finally come to an end, the industry is looking to other blockbuster movies to deliver the box office takings. That's a hole of more than £71 million that needs filling. That said, 2012 will see the release of Skyfall, Daniel Craig's next James Bond outing, and this is predicted to deliver mass audiences and a box office figure of around £50 million, compensating for the lack of Potter.

So, what about 3D and digital? Well the novelty of 3D has been seen to be wearing off. In 2010, of the 3D movies released, 74 per cent of viewers saw the 3D version. So far, for 2011, that has decreased to 58 per cent. This shows that high-quality 3D will result in high box office, but poor quality will no longer be accepted. Quality should improve in 2012 and beyond.

There have been notable positives from digital advances. For the consumer, improved picture clarity means a better experience. For advertisers, the benefit is the reduced production cost. With 90 per cent of screens predicted to be digital by the end of 2012, there will be considerable cost savings, although the full benefit of improved delivery has yet to be realised.

Therefore, although cinema looks to be static in terms of admissions, digital, live events and a host of great movies may mean a positive year for cinema advertising. (Source: Marketing Magazine, Campaign)

EDITED BY MADELEINE WARE