Planning a media buy can be a rather complex and difficult thing. You have to worry about click-through rates, content compatibility, campaign objectives, traffic analysis, ad units, pricing and the list goes on and on. These are all important, but the most important decision you will make is picking the site on which to place your ad. Every other decision you make will revolve around this choice.
So let’s take a few minutes to research the different types of sites out there. Almost every site currently on the Internet can fit into one of the following categories: Ad Network, Affinity Groups, Content Providers, eCommerce, Local, Niche, Portals, Rep Firms, Search Engines, Utility Sites, or Vortals.
Ad Networks, like DoubleClick and RealMedia, offer a wide reach for relatively low costs. You are only able to specify your target by general categories because one buy will be placed on hundreds of sites. The main benefit ad networks offer is easing the headaches of planning multiple buys.
Affinity Groups usually provide user-created content therefore you may have little control over the quality of the content. However, do offer great target marketing opportunities if your product or service deals with very focused special interest areas. Examples of affinity groups include GeoCities and About.com.
Content Providers give general news and information. The larger they Are, the better. Large content providers like CNN and MSN offer consistent, high-quality content which brings a high profile and high traffic.
eCommerce Sites, like eBay and Ticketmaster, usually provide high profile and high traffic. There are only limited ad opportunities, but they offer excellent opportunities for strategic alliances if you offer a complementary product or service.
Local Sites can offer general news and info targeting a specific geographic area. They usually have relatively low traffic numbers, but they are great places to start if you’re not ready to go global. Some examples of localized sites are MapQuest and CitySearch.
Niche Sites are usually very small and produce lifestyle or product oriented content. If you have a clear understanding of the definition of your target market, then niche sites are the place for you to establish name recognition and gain market share. Examples of niche sites include E*Trade and iVillage.
Portals, like Netscape and AOL, serve as the gateway to the Web. They offer high reach and mass exposure along with relatively low CPMs.
Rep Firms allow you to place one buy across multiple, usually newer and smaller, sites. Some well-know rep firms are CyberReps and Advertising.com.
Search Engines and Directories offer high reach and mass exposure. They reach specific target audience through the use of keywords. They are also the biggest and most well-known brands on the Internet, like Yahoo and Excite.
Utility Sites can offer high value but only if the utility is actually useful, like Quote.com or Weather.com. They are best for seasonal or activity-based ad placements.
Vortals or Vertical Portals are based on special-interest content. Although their traffic levels are lower than other sites, the quality of their prospects is much higher. Vortals will frequently have high ad costs but they offer the best B2B opportunities.
You have now passed the first hurdle and you can go on fully-aware and make an educated decision about which type of site will work best for you. Good Luck!
Appealing to the Individual
Advertising used to mean appealing to the masses. However, these days the Web offers the ability to target advertisements like no other advertising medium. Using cookies to determine patterns of Internet interests, advertisers can display ads which would most likely appeal to a given Internet user. Does this actually work? And, how far away are we from truly being able to serve up individualized ads?
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