Why Aren’t Brands Accessing Online Video Ads?

[shikharkamat]

Online video viewers’ attitudes of TV are changing. Today, 66% of online video viewers watch more online video now than they did a year ago. Among online video viewers 35% claim that online video has cut into their TV viewing. Perhaps most importantly to marketers, consumers skip more ads when watching TV than when watching online video. So, why aren’t brands accessing online video ads more?

[Saumya]

traditional advertising agencies have been caught sleeping in the digital growth. They have concentrated far too much on the more 'glamourous' and 'lucreative' (for the agency, as someone rightfully put, in these forums) Television.

Source: BBC, 2009
Online advertising spending in the UK has overtaken television expenditure for the first time, a report has said.
Online spending grew 4.6% to £1.752bn in the first half of 2009, while TV spending shrank 16.1% to £1.639bn.
Overall advertising fell 16% compared with the same period in 2008, said the study by the Internet Advertising Bureau and PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Since I am an Indian, I can only speak for us. In the typical Indian advertising setup, which is pretty feudal, like most Indian socio-economic activities, copywriters have wielded more power and influence over graphic designers (even though, the last decade saw ONLY visual ads and barely any good copy around, and when someone says 'its the idea', the fact is, the idea can come from anyone. But the excellent growth in visual quality can NOT be attributed to writers. Right?)

Copywriters have also traditionally excluded art directors from film. Film is seen as glamourous, money making activity which excites the agency. And with vague numbers (TRPs) almost anyone can be sold any idea. Agency reps get to travel to exotic locales for shoots and of course the underhand moneys are huge. HUGE.

These people, who run the agency policies, have no clue about the digital media. While they have been busy with their slow laid back feudal attitude, the world has changed. It is no surprise that the largest online properties, Facebook, Twitter, FourSquare, Groupon etc have had NO AD AGENCIES!!! And these companies are worth much more than traditional brands.

I have a friend who works for one of India's largest TV Channelnetworks. And he claims TRPs are all bullshit and the sample sizes etc are so skewed, you cant know the real picture.

But in Online you can. And agencies are ill equipped to digest that!

[shikharkamat]

Waow. That is some new revelation. Atleast for me. I've never really seen these the STICKERS kinda creatives anywhere in India, nor have I seen much digital stuff. Shows like MTV Roadies got a lot of digital action since they setup a parallel installment of the show online where people could compete. If I am not correct all that was initiated with Video ads and promos. Its really sad now that I have realised that a lot of agencies have not broken out of tradition. If the internet and 'being in the network' is so important right now, how big and home much more a part of advertising and everything else is it going to be in the future? They need to realise that sometime soon.

[Paromita]

there is some truth in what saumya is saying.

the agencies will start changing the traditional approach of 'lets do a TV, shoot abroad, and do a print adaptation', ONLY when the current order gives way to a younger more current-trends savvy order.