What will make the banner/display advertising valuable again? This is the question posed by “Media Moguls” panel moderator Henry Blodgett, CEO & Editor-in-Chief of The Business Insider. 

Panelists are: David Cohen, EVP, US Director of Digital, Universal McCann; Brian Quinn, Vice President/General Manager, Digital Ad Sales, The Wall Street Journal;

Greg Warren, EVP, Managing Director, MediaVest; Michael Barrett, CEO, AdMeld

Sean O'Neal, Chief Revenue Officer, Datran Media; and Betsy Morgan, CEO, The Huffington Post.

Lots of good discussion from these smart panelists, but frankly, they are avoiding the real question.  If advertisers don’t find value in online banners, then it’s up to the publishers to provide the data and create the subscriber experiences that will engage, not simply distract readers. The dichotomy is real:  There is absolutely value in online brand impressions, and clicks are absolutely an imperfect measure.

The metrics and data needs to evolve and integrate across channels.  A subscriber of a print publication is now online, and should have the same value to an advertiser, but the rates between print and online are vastly different.  Yet, what publisher is going to raise rates, especially in this economy?

Despite this incongruence and vast challenge, the panelists are not coming up with any real actionable ideas around how publishers are actually adjusting their business models to accommodate the digital consumer.

Brian Quinn of the WSJ says there is a paralysis around advertiers requiring a number of clicks from every campaign, even if millions of people saw your advertisement.  It is interesting that marketers want innovation – larger size units, rich media, experiential ads, behavioral targeting.  But very few are actually willing to invest in creating those experiences.  It’s always been true that publishers have to carry the vast majority of the responsibility for response, even if they have no control over creative.  Quinn says, “Advertisers want richer online experience, but are crying out against the high cost of production vs. placement.”

He points to a full website “takeover” advert done by Apple this week on wsj.com.  Quinn says it was high cost but also high impact.  Unfortunately, he says many marketers are not willing to invest at that level.

Moderator Blodgett presses the original question, “Okay, the Apple ad is cool.  But I’m just not sure how that gets translated to a sale.”  Panelists cite that branding and awareness have a place in the sales cycle.   True, but I wonder if we can reasonably expect advertisers to accept that without some level of subscriber data that proves these readers are later searching, downloading content or clicking on email newsletters?

Betsy Morgan of The Huffington Post adds that publishers have a responsibility to think about how ads are integrated into content.  “We need to create a forum for advertisers to thrive.  We must be evangelical about the subscriber experience,” she says.   Greg Warren of MediaVest says that there is a need for balance between innovation and standardization.  “When publishers provide easier production opportunities that have high impact, advertisers will test them.”

The panel agrees that there is a shrinking budget for display.    The largest growth piece of advertising is in data-driven behavioral opportunities like those in mobile, search, email.  Sean O’Neal of Datran says that “Advertisers are chasing ads that demand performance. This is the part of the pie that is growing.  Print will have to catch up, not the other way around.”   He also notes the power of email as one of the centerpieces of a response-driven online strategy.

At the end of the day, however, advertisers want to pay for experiences that engage subscribers.  Content and audience still matters.  Publishers can no longer assume, however, that just because they pay journalists that they have content that is more highly valued than authentic citizens. Look at the success of the Huffington Post and the power of individual blogs.

 

The problem with display is that it’s still based on the old broadcast model, not the new socially savvy, engagement model that consumers use.  In email and direct mail, you can target ads at the household level.  Now we as an industry need to bring that level of targeting to display advertising.  It’s a new era.  Time for publishers to step up – and for advertisers to demand it, and invest in it.

After all, this is what readers want. And the whole cycle of publishing and advertising revolves around the subscriber.  Period. End of story.