Display On Ropes As Search Sets Agenda
DIGITAL display advertising appears to be in steep decline – or at the very least suffering an identity crisis. Over the past week a major analyst has claimed publishers were cutting their own throats by discounting and switching to Click Through Rates (CTR) over space rental , while the Flossie Media Group, which counts a number of female-skewed sites as network members, will no longer offer its publishers display advertising.
“We recognize the challenge for networks such as ours to sustain revenue from display advertising,” said Flossie Group CEO Jenene Freer.”It is difficult to negotiate the large scale deals that the portals are able to offer (and buying agencies want). From January 2010 will longer be offering display advertising. Instead we will focus on solus emails, newsletters, content syndication and integration into social media.”
Meanwhile, Dr Stuart Pike, Research Director at Nielsen Online, told B&T Today that year on year display revenues were down “despite increases in banners and advertisers suggests an increase in discounted online rates.” He said publishers are placing too much emphasis on CTR. “Display advertising needs to focus on its unique capabilities – those that search doesn’t offer – and that is clear its ability to impact perceptions of the advertised brand.” Search Engine Room, December 3, 2009
