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Rob Crumpler is the CEO of San Francisco-based BuzzLogic.

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Restoring The Ad Equilibrium For Bloggers

Written on
Dec 6, 2007 
Author
Rob Crumpler  |
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Restoring The Ad Equilibrium For Bloggers

Online measurement complicates matters even further: no one can agree on how best to approach a standard of measurement, so marketers’ collective comfort levels in dedicating budget to blog advertising is low. Page views got a real beating in the press last quarter, and, though the time-spent metric didn’t fare much better, the overall take-away is that a popular site isn’t necessarily an influential one. In this fragmented environment, the proxy for what a consumer is influenced by in terms of purchasing behavior is not necessarily tied to popularity.

That leaves advertisers asking big questions–how do we access quality blog ad inventory? How do we measure whether a blog is a good ad buy? How does this approach scale? And of course the biggie–is this safe for my brand?

One key to knowing how to answer these questions is understanding the influence of particular blogs on a particular topic. Isolating influence online is not as hard as it seems. Advertisers just have to know where to look, and what to look for–see beyond who the obvious leaders are, and instead focus on what these people are actually saying, who they go to for information, and who is listening in.

Unlike the offline world, influence online leaves a lasting footprint via links, trackbacks, and comments. These influential “conversations” become influential online content. And with more blogs looking to monetize, this influential content becomes quality ad inventory.

We’re at a very interesting tipping point right now because these influential but hidden gems are becoming less hidden every day. Advertisers are ready to spend money on the goods if blogs can deliver. They have the cash; the problem to date has been a lack of places to spend. The quality stuff sells out first, leaving most advertisers to battle it out over the dregs.

This leaves an untapped opportunity for bloggers who have amassed expertise and have a dedicated following. To date, it has been those sites with the most eyeballs that win the revenue game. However, this philosophy isn’t the way to crack the social media marketing code. What matters is the nature and the quality of relationship a consumer has with you and your content. That’s the piece that will drive where ad dollars go.

If you are a blogger who aggregates an audience ripe for a relevant ad, and you’re looking to get paid–sit tight. Advertisers are looking for you, and influence-targeting is making you easier to find. If you can give advertisers what they want, which are clicks and conversions, your premiums will go up. You are not cheap–and I’m confident you won’t have to feel like it much longer.

Compliments of C|Net News.com





Reader Comments.

Rob:

Great article! As an advertiser, how do we find these “diamonds-in-the-ruff”? I have been looking at the blog ad networks but it is hard to differentiate.

Posted by Mario | 3:18 pm on December 6, 2007.

hey mario –

thanks for the note! i am actually stepping in for Rob, who is getting married tomorrow and as such, is a little preoccupied. ;)

Send us a note at vcombs@buzzlogic.com and rcrumpler@buzzlogic.com so we can continue the conversation!

Cheers,
valerie

Posted by valeriec | 3:57 pm on December 7, 2007.

Well, finding the right places for advertising at the social web is easier than one might think. Most social media networks are offering top lists for blogs and news and some services are specialized in social media marketing,

Posted by mediablogger | 11:07 am on December 19, 2007.

Well, finding the right places for advertising at the social web is easier than one might think. Most social media networks are offering top lists for blogs and news and some services are specialized in social media marketing. Click my name to find out more.

Posted by mediablogger | 11:32 am on December 19, 2007.

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