If I had a dollar for every time I heard someone in our industry explain that what’s needed in order to avoid problems in the creative process between agencies and publishers is an updated creative specs database, I would be able to make a handsome media buy for a campaign to promote such a database. But if I did, I am not sure my money would be well spent…

It’s not that we don’t need a regularly updated, standardized creative specs database – we do. We need it so creative designers and developers can build their ads to specs or according to a lowest common denominator across publishers and avoid trouble down the road. Actually, we do have some spec databases that can be helpful. The IAB introduced its creative specs database last year; Eyeblaster has recently revamped its spec search tool and updates it regularly.  While it is true that availability of specs is important, it is not the whole story.

If I had another dollar for every time I saw creative shops submit ads to publishers despite clearly knowing they are not up to specs, I would be able to “accessorize” the ads on my campaign to the extent that no publisher would ever run them…  Why do creative shops do that? Well, some folks are plain lazy – they figure they can throw the ads out there and see what happens. But there’s another reason – one no one likes to talk about, and that is – the theory of general relativity applies not only to time travel but also to publisher specs.

In reality, often there are no valid creative specs – each agency negotiates its own version of the specs with publishers, many times per client and sometimes even per campaign. Technology may have developed over the last millennia but good old-fashioned haggling remains unchanged. Publishers understand they have to demonstrate flexibility to attract and retain the big fish. The agency that sits on top of the Toyota budget can get away with much more than the one that represents “Joe’s Jersey City Repair Shop”. Many creative agencies maintain their own records of “what we can get away with” creative specs and thus have limited use for the official, equal for all, databases.

Who knows, maybe one day we’ll see publishers and agencies negotiate creative specs through an online automated exchange… In the meantime, I will hang on to all my virtual dollars.

Eldad Persky, Director of Product Planning

 

 

Alec McCrindle
Head of Interactive Advertising
Yahoo! Europe   

Your idea about the perfect working day:  When I get enough time to spend on a piece of work, it’s really what makes me the happiest in my job. It’s difficult finding the space needed for critical thinking at the right stages of a project in this industry.

Your muse best comes when: Anytime when I’m working with smart, professional folk on a project with a clear, sound strategy.  Or from deep inside, near my left kidney. 

What needs to be changed/improved in order to achieve ultimate online engagement with users?  To continue to decrease the gap between what we (creatives and advertisers) want people to do, and what people might actually want to do. There are loads of inspirational figures in our industry who are leading the way in this regard, but there is unfortunately still a lot of ineffective work out there, even in such an accountable industry. I do get the feeling that we are waking up to that, and it’s what makes for a fun filled adventure looking forwards. Don’t ask me this question again when next we’re waist-deep in JavaScript errors at 3am.

As a long standing rule in our team, ideas have to be beneficial for both users and advertisers. We find it a productive approach. I also don’t think either of us, users or creatives, know everything that is possible when we start playing and creating in the digital space, so we are learning all the time.

Favorite Brand Experience:  The Swatch Chrono campaign on Yahoo from last year – it was groovy. Okay, I mean it was a simple, well executed idea aimed at improving campaign resonance. Swatch are an important client for us, and they push creative boundaries in the best way and have done so for years. We had a behaviourally sequenced parkour inspired animation running across different pages, culminating in a short video ad. This demo is best viewed in IE (not so good on a Mac). Refresh three times for full effect. http://creativezone.eyeblaster.com/#ItemName=Swatch

An article just out in iMedia Connection discusses the 99.5% of ads that aren’t clicked on and why marketing professionals should pay more attention to their impact on consumers. 

“If you’re like the vast majority of consumers, you’re not clicking. And if you’re not clicking, traditional measures of display ad effectiveness would conclude that your exposures to online banners are not leading to conversions.

But such traditional measures fail to consider the entire consumer lifecycle, says Dean Donaldson, digital experience strategist for Eyeblaster. Thus, budgets that are being appropriated based on the frequency of display ad clicks are grossly underestimating the value of impressions that don’t generate an immediate consumer action. 

Want proof? Consider the washing machine Donaldson just purchased…”

For the full story, read Lori Luechtefeld’s article in iMedia Connection: The display ad opportunities you’re overlooking .

Scott Jones, Iris (NY)

Your idea about the perfect working day:Â
A perfect working day is a day that involves new things in concept, process, creative execution etc. I always look forward to doing something I have never tried to do before.

Your muse best comes when: Â
A creative process is where I find most of my influences come from. It could be people, environment, articles, visuals. Exposure to all of these things is what I look for in the places or areas I am working in.  

What needs to be changed/improved in order to achieve ultimate engagement with users:
Ridiculous restrictions on k size. I think everyone knows what I am saying here. It’s a shame that sometimes we are subject to restricting creative engagement with users.  Art suffers a terrible fate at the hands of photoshop’s web compression.

Favorite Brand Experience:
MUSIC MANIACS for Sony Ericsson       

Why?
Because we did it… No, actually I feel it was a nice execution and shows the capabilities of rich media format. I believe that everything should be appealing and eye catching in a way the respects a users experience on the web. I think this ad doesn’t yell at you like most banners are guilty of.

Impact the recession will have on online advertising:
For us I think it is a positive thing. The trends before or during the decline of the western world was shifting towards web advertising and now that it is here it seems that media dollars are shifting from store, product display, and TV to web. I think this is due to the fact that companies are realizing that as they close down their literal store fronts they can and still make money promoting their digital ones. In this day and age more people are spending more time on their computers then they are watching their TV’s. So it ends up being the best place to put those almighty media dollars.

 

Our customers are all too aware of the importance of interactive creativity – and if you’re reading these lines on the Creative Zone blog, chances are so are you. But what role does this play in the bigger scheme of things, especially in these times?  If you haven’t already, treat yourself to Randall Rothenberg’s post “A Bigger Idea”: A Manifesto on Interactive Advertising Creativity.  Reading through it is time well spent for anyone passionate about online marketing.