MADISON  WALLACE  ADVERTISING  BRAND  IMAGE  AND  CULTURAL  SPACE  -­‐    ADVT14-­‐101_143  

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ONLINE  ADVERTISING  ESSAY  

LECTURER/TUTOR:  CHERISE  HOEFLER    

INTRODUCTION Today, technology and the Internet have revolutionized all aspects

of the advertising, marketing and PR industries (Goodson, S. 2011).

This report details the impact of online advertising on the media

and communication industries ability to successfully launch brands.

Looking further into the progressing timeline of brand effectiveness

in virtual environments, the report will review the changing industry

and focus on the concept of social media and content marketing as

elements that have significantly transformed the approach to launch

or maintain a brands presence and standing. The brand, ‘Lorna Jane’

will exemplify how a small brand can develop as a key player,

through the use of well-managed and maintained online content.

Traditional forms of advertising have become obsolete as a large

percentage of potential consumers now gather at social media sites,

therefore forcing the communications industry to adapt as this

technology continues to evolve.

 

 

A CHANGING INDUSTRY Online advertising has experienced phenomenal growth since its

inception in 1994. By 1997, the Web had gained broad commercial

acceptance as a sales medium, and businesses flocked to the Web

to create e-commerce sites, content sites, and to offer advertising

space. As advertising began to saturate the Web, marketers tried

new tactics to gain attention. By the end of 1997, pop-up and pop-

under ads became common, and U.S. advertisers spent $940

million on online advertising for the year (Goodson, S. 2011).

Agencies and advertisers quickly realized the value of online brand

advertising, especially for hard-to-reach demographics such as

working adults and teens. Through no other media channel could

advertisements be targeted and measured the way they could be

online. It had become clear that online advertising was effective and

here to stay.

Since 2004, there has been a rapid adoption of the online medium

by advertisers as a branding mechanism and a vehicle to

successfully launch new products. Similarly, there has been an

increasing use of the Web by agencies as part of an overall

marketing campaign or even as the central focus of a

campaign. Additionally, search has become an important marketing

tool and now roughly equals display ad spending. Finally, with the

increase in broadband adoption starting in 2005, advertisers began

adopting streaming-video ads, and they have become the prevalent

form of display advertising today. Video advertising is now growing

faster than all other online ad formats. According to the latest

forecasts out from ZenithOptimedia, Global Internet advertising

spending will account for nearly $121 billion (Lunden, 2014).

TRADITIONAL MEDIA

VS.

NEW MEDIA

SOCIAL MEDIA With the emerging technologies such as mobile and the impact of

social media platforms, it is far more effective for advertisers to

utilize the web and market to consumers in the format that is

easiest for them. With the enormous increase in the popularity of

social media platforms such as YouTube, Facebook, MySpace, blogs,

and Twitter, millions of potential consumers form a ready audience

for advertisers (Schmidt, 2010). Not only can target demographic

groups be easily located (geo-targeting), but also the cost factors

are quite economical when compared with costs for traditional

advertising. Companies today that are communicating directly with

their customers and taking the time to build relationships will stay

competitive and survive in an ever-changing marketplace. It has

also created huge tracts of information about consumers and data

in relation to consumer behavior.

“An advertising model that stood for more than half a century is

being replaced by one that fits today’s technology-dominated global

marketplace” (Schmidt, 2010). Advertisers and advertising

agencies are in the process of restructuring their businesses based

on this and the newfound power of the consumer.

CONTENT MARKETING

Significantly, Internet users have started to take more control of

content creation, becoming active participants in creating content

as opposed to paying advertising agencies. The concept of content

marketing has given way to the trend of user-generated

advertisements for small businesses to become key industry players

(CAMERON, 2013). “Content marketing’s purpose is to attract and

retain customers by consistently creating and curating relevant and

valuable content with the intention of changing or enhancing

consumer behavior” (Content Marketing Institute, 2014). It is

an ongoing process that is best integrated into businesses overall

marketing strategy, while focusing on owning media, rather than

renting it. Through the creation of something innovative that makes

the competition irrelevant, content marketing can effectively create

brand relevance with the targeted audience.

Women's activewear brand Lorna Jane continues to go from

strength to strength in the content marketing stakes, both here in

Australia and overseas where the brand is actively expanding

(Lorna Jane , 2014). Lorna Jane, which was founded by Lorna Jane

Clarkson 25 years ago, has grown their Facebook page to an

average of 5000 likes per week and its posts have an average

weekly reach of more than 2.2 million people, since launching in

2012. The brand’s other social media statistics are equally

impressive: 313,558 followers on Instagram, 28,400 followers on

Twitter; and 37,575 followers on Pinterest.

The retailer publishes a Move Nourish Believe blog, which features

their own unique content of interest to their target audience. This

currently attracts more than 200,000 unique visitors per month

then shared on the Lorna Jane Facebook page. “We constantly

engage with our customers and share information with them that’s

helpful and relevant,” Lorna Jane digital marketing and e-commerce

manager Jessie Dean told SmartCompany (KEATING, 2014). You

will also find photo albums from Lorna Jane events or recipes from

Lorna Jane Clarkson’s latest cookbook Nourish. As well as a

free iPhone app that "Track your runs, walks and cycles via your

iPhone GPS while you move to live an active life". “They encourage

participation with their community and that’s the heart and soul of

social media,” says Pollard (KEATING, 2014).

Through developing content that has consistency, accessibility,

responsiveness and commitment, Lorna Jane has effectively

developed behavioral bonding where their consumers connect with

their brand. Lorna Jane has transformed their marketing efforts to

understand their audience’s motivations and desires and ultimately

formed durable brand equity.

CONCLUSION

In Conclusion, with the shift to new media, advertisers must adapt

and modify their content to the way that the audience is consuming.

The advent of social media in combination with the interactive

capabilities of smartphones has rewritten the book on

advertising. With the new technologies and the impact of social

platforms, it is far more effective for advertisers to utilize the web

and market to consumers in the format that drives the most traffic

and is easiest to target their audiences. Therefore, it is clear that

online advertising has significantly altered the media and

communications industry’s ability to easily launch and maintain a

successful brand presence and standing.

BIBLIOGRAPHY:  

• CAMERON,  N.  (2013,  May  02).  Delivering  the  digital  experience  at  Lorna  Jane.  CMO  .  

• Content  Marketing  Institute.  (2014).  What  is  Content  Marketing?  .  Retrieved  November  25,  2014,  from  Content  Marketing  Institute:  http://contentmarketinginstitute.com/what-­‐is-­‐content-­‐marketing/  

• Goodson,  S.  (2011,  November  19).    Are  you  listening  to  the  future  of  advertising?    Forbes.    Retrieved  from  http://www.forbes.com/sites/marketshare/2010/11/19/are-you-listening-to-the-future-of-advertising/  

• KEATING,  E.  (2014,  July  23).  Lorna  Jane  reaches  one  million  Facebook  likes:  Five  lessons  from  the  retailer’s  social  media  success.  Retrieved  November  16th,  2014,  from  Smart  Company:  http://www.smartcompany.com.au/marketing/42934-­‐lorna-­‐jane-­‐reaches-­‐one-­‐million-­‐facebook-­‐likes-­‐five-­‐lessons-­‐from-­‐the-­‐retailer-­‐s-­‐social-­‐media-­‐success.html#  

• Lorna  Jane  .  (2014).  MOVE  NOURISH  BELIEVE.  Retrieved  November  16th,  2014,  from  LORNA  JANE  Active  Living:  http://www.lornajane.com.au/about/philosophy  

• Lunden,  I.  (2014,  April  7).  Total  Ad  Spend,  Ad  Tech  Boosts  Display.  Retrieved  November  20th,  2014,  from  Techcrunch:  http://techcrunch.com/2014/04/07/internet-­‐ad-­‐spend-­‐to-­‐reach-­‐121b-­‐in-­‐2014-­‐23-­‐of-­‐537b-­‐total-­‐ad-­‐spend-­‐ad-­‐tech-­‐gives-­‐display-­‐a-­‐boost-­‐over-­‐search/  

• Lorna  Jane  .  (2014).  MOVE  NOURISH  BELIEVE.  Retrieved  November  16th,  2014,  from  LORNA  JANE  Active  Living:  http://www.lornajane.com.au/about/philosophy  

• Schmidt, B. (2010, July 10). How social media has changed advertising. Helium.com. Retrieved from http://www.helium.com/items/1889104-social-media-has-changed-advertising