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Win 2 Round the World Tickets @Digital Experience Day

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Hunt for clues and hidden codes on MediaMind destinations around the Web, and you could win round-the-world airline tickets for two.

 

Pack your e-bags, because you’ve got some travelling to do.

 

We’ve placed four clue questions and coded Post-It™ notes in MediaMind locations around the internet. Find the Post-It notes, answer the questions, crack the code at your local Digital Experience Day, and you could win round-the-world airline tickets for you and the travelling companion of your choice.

Here’s your itinerary:

  1. Your journey starts at the Digital Experience micro-site with your first clue question, aided by a hint.
  2. From there, you are guided to four other MediaMind Web hotspots including Twitter, MindMindTube on YouTube and Facebook.
  3. As you go, answer the clue questions and collect code numbers for a word scramble displayed on Post-It Notes. Keep the answers and numbers in a safe spot – you’ll need them later.
  4. At your local Digital Experience Day, pick up the 5th and final code number in person to solve the 5-letter word scramble.
  5. Complete your online entry form anytime from September 7th thru November 18th using the clue answers and number codes you’ve gathered, and you’ll be on your way to a once-in-a-lifetime travel experience.

Bon Voyage!

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Won’t Build a Rich Ad without Smart Versioning

Meet Paul Scanlon (Fat Banner Paul) Interactive Designer / Rich Media Specialist at Natural Born Banners .

Your idea about the perfect working day?
Working with a brief that has been properly scoped out, has a strong connection with the brand and makes use of technology in a interesting and innovative way. Together with an stress free journey to work and a nice cup of tea and a roll up when I arrive.DED Clue #3

Your muse best comes when?
Pressure usually inspires me, knowing that the next brief is only around the corner, I’m constantly on the look out for new and interesting ways of doing new and interesting digital stuff. Taking the time to read about advances in industries other than digital advertising always proves useful, chatting ideas through with people outside of the industry can often put a interesting and alternative spin on things, sometimes this has been very useful, other times this has been complete waste of time, but communicating is the name of the game. So running it by the people who we’d intend on targeting gives us the opportunity to test drive much of the work before the project goes too far.

Favorite Brand Experience?
The Foster’s Twitter ads were a great challenge. At the time, Smart Versioning was in BETA and we had a chance to really put it through its paces. We learned a lot about how to best utilise such a product and from then on we won’t build a rich ad without Smart Versioning.. Neither should you!

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Who is your mentor/how did you start working in digital advertising?
Mentors come in many forms, I have learned from almost everyone I’ve worked under but have also learnt many valuable skills from people junior to me. Industry professionals and artists alike have paved the way in many areas that interest me, reading and learning from them is a day to day objective.

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Hot Campaigns August 2010

Humor and interactivity typify this month’s new and notable campaigns.  Click here for the full August Newsletter.

The Spotlight Campaign went to the brilliant set of video clips perfectly timed for Orcon.

“A great example of what can be created when the objective is on the banner experience rather than counting clicks. The hard work came from the planning of the set, the shoot and the choreography required for the cast so that we could link the video sections together as seamlessly as possible. We employed some smoke and mirrors to get it to work but the result is a fantastic use of the banner medium. Everything is hooked up to MediaMind custom interactions so we can measure all the interactions, video views, dwell time and share functionality. So far the stats are looking exceptional. Hats off to Special Group for coming up with a great concept and to Exposure for shooting it. And check out the moving wall on wheels!”
- Michael Chalberg, Creative Director, Salt Interactive

 

Orcon ‘Special Office’ Video Select, AUspotlight_photo_aug2010
Client: Orcon
Lead Agency: Special Group
Interactive Agency: Salt Interactive
Production Company: Exposure
View demo

 

 

 







New & Notable Campaigns

The Black Keys Brothers w/Download Poster, US
Media: The Gary Group
Creative: Pixel Hustler
Format: Expandable Banner
Interactive Features: Download, Video, MP3
Vertical: Entertainment
View demo

 

 

Rowenta Cyclonic Expandable Banner, FR
Media: KR Media FR
Creative: Little Big Web FR
Format: Expandable Banner
Vertical: CPG
View demo

 

 






Vodacom Broadband Video Banner, ZA
Media: OMD Digital
Creative: Draft FCB
Format: Polite Banner
Vertical: Telecom
View demo




Modern Family Homepage Takeover, MX
Media: Punto Fox Ar
Format: Homepage Takeover
Vertical: Entertainment
View demo

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 







Ferrero Milch-Schnitte Homepage Takeover
Media: Xenion (Carat Germany)
Creative: Xenion (Carat Germany)
Format: Homepage Takeover
Vertical: CPG
View demo

 







Fiesta Homepage Takeover, MX
Media
: Mindshare MX
Creative: Wunderman MX
Format: Homepage Takeover
Vertical: Auto
View demo

   
   

Follow Your Heart or Get Out of the Way

Pixel Hustler takes us behind the scenes of a successful online campaign for the new Black Keys’ Brothers album.

What was the goal of the campaign for Black Keys?

The goal was to simply let Black Keys fans know about their new album and introduce more people to the band. The concept was very straightforward. “This advertisement is interactive. Experience it – Rollover”.

We focused on the copy and style of the album cover and drove it with animation. We added some social networking share options, a “print a poster” feature, music video, sample audio tracks and a photo gallery.

Although the animation for the ads was pretty straightforward, they were time consuming and could have made it difficult to finish the ads on time and to spec. I developed a Flash tool to speed up creating coded animations and keep the file sizes down so I could focus on the added features and still meet our deadline.


How did you come up with the idea of the ad?

The music, the band and Michael Carney – the album cover artist – set the tone. It only made sense to bring the message to life and amplify it on the rich media stage. The initial banner animation was done, the panel was finished and the social networking features were added. At the last minute I added the “Print a poster” feature which extended the direct nature of the campaign with “This is a poster” messaging. Lastly, we took a chance on having the messaging change on rollover a few times in hopes of peaking curiosity and urging a click.


What feedback have you received?

Although everyone was happy with the creative concept, we really weren’t sure if it would translate as well to our audience. We launched the campaign with our fingers crossed and. Phew! (Wiping sweat off brow)… Success! The results demonstrated that users were printing the poster, checking out the media and sharing on social networking sites. Most importantly… many flights performed well over benchmarks in regards to click through rates. It was a huge success and so much so that we are in the process of revising the banner and launching a second round of the campaign.
You take a gamble when you don’t follow the usual models and do something a bit out of the ordinary. There’s a lot on the line, but you have to take a leap of faith and take a chance on the creative concepts that come from the heart. It takes courage to take the risks necessary for higher returns on investment. Time and time again, these campaigns derive better than expected results and reinforce the notion that everyone should follow their heart or get out of the way.


Your idea about the perfect working day?

No pending deadlines. A slow morning filled with coffee and mindless web browsing all in preparation for lunch and drinks with an eclectic, fun and intelligent new client. The client would ask me to work on an interface design and develop the software for an innovative new device that would merge the capabilities of the internet, social networking, GPS satellites, mobile, desktop, broadcast, etc… like no one’s ever done before. It would be stylish, efficient, convenient and easy to use. Money would be no object and I would have all the time in the world. I would be allowed to take an “open source” approach and allow other developers to contribute to the project.


Your muse best comes when?
pixel hustler
…I’m not working and simply enjoying some good food, wine, music, people, friends, fun, and philosophizing on the nature of existence, as well as the future of technology.

What every advertiser should learn from Gilt.com

Already at 11:30 am I started feeling the thrill.  At 11:55 I went on Gilt.com and started refreshing the page.  Finally it happened.  Exactly at noon, the site started another sale of luxury brands. 

I immediately went browsing with full force—my chance of owning an Ermenegildo Zegna, for 70% off, or just for a few hundred bucks.  Apparently, however, I wasn’t the only one there, and within minutes all that was left was empty online shelves.


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Gilt Groupe is an invitation only site that sells designer brands in up to 70% off their retail price.  Each sale lasts for 36 gilthours and is then removed from the site.  The sales are first come first served, and the number of items is limited, so typically many items are sold out a short time after the sale begins.


What has made a calculated guy like me go wild and be willing to spend hundreds of dollars on a whim on items that I am not even sure that I am going to wear?  What is that spell that Gilt casts on its members that pushes them to spend?  Gilt is using three powerful techniques that can help any advertiser get better performance and increase sales on his or her campaign:




  • Perceived value – As the famous phrase of many infomercials go:  “you’re not spending, you’re saving.  Gilt provides their members the sense that they are getting a great deal that they cannot get anywhere else.
  •  Time limit – Buy now or be silent forever.  As each sale is for a limited time, you are constantly under pressure to make the purchase immediately.
  • Value of scarcity – There is limited stock from every item.  Items are also sold out pretty quickly.  Therefore, start practicing the art of browsing without blinking.  If you like a specific item, you need to make a decision on the spot, or it’s gone.



When combined, all of these techniques push even the most astute consumer to an online shopping spree.  Try any combination of these techniques in the message of your ads to push users to action now, and you too should be able to get users to pull out their credit card.



 

Ariel Geifman | Principal Analyst, MediaMind Research






 

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Love the site, love the brand

Can the same food taste different when served in a five star restaurant from when it is served in a fast food joint? Obviously environment matters, and when we taste, we consider not only what is on the plate, but also the décor, Ambiance Mattersenvironment, the ambiance and the crowd. A recent OPA study shows that we engage in the same process when considering our attitude towards an online ad.

In a recent research, “A Sense of Place: Why Environments Matter”, the OPA suggests that the manner in which an individual perceives the site has an impact on the manner in which he or she perceives the brand featured in the ad, and determines whether the user will respond to it. OPA sought to understand how users’ perception, rather than the mere quality of content, affects the responsiveness of users to advertising on that page. The OPA conducted quantitative and qualitative research, analyzing participants’ perceptions of the site’s content and examined the correlation with their opinion on the brands advertised on it.

Read the rest of this entry »