Integrated/Cross-Media/Convergence

Some consumers are noticing brands' attempts to promote their social presences in advertising, with some media channels more likely to elicit a response than others, according to [pdf] results from a Burst Media survey of more than 2,500 US online adults. Respondents reported being most likely to notice brand-related social accounts in online banner ads (27.2%), but a relatively high number also notice them in TV (24.1%) and print (21.1%) ads. Among those who recall brands promoting their social assets in digital ads, about 6 in 10 say the efforts are very (29.4%) or somewhat (31.6%) effective in prompting social interaction with those brands. A similar percentage (58.7%) feel the same way about social cues in TV ads. Read more »

For all the research and attention paid to showrooming, webrooming (doing research online and then buying in-store) is actually a far more popular activity among Millennials (aged 18-35) across several product categories, according to [pdf] survey results from the Urban Land Institute. For electronics items (computers, tablets, cellphones, TV/audio equipment, etc.), 50% of respondents prefer to research online but buy in-store, compared to 11% who prefer to do their research in stores but then buy online. Similar gaps exist when looking at Millennials' shopping preferences for shoes (25% vs. 10%), sports equipment and accessories (21% vs. 13%), and cosmetics and personal care items (20% vs. 8%). Read more »

Made-for-web content performs just as well as repurposed TV content when it comes to ad engagement, according to research from Tremor Video. The study, named "Upfront, NewFront, Nupfront," compared ad metrics for 5 publishers that repurpose TV content on the web with 4 made-for-web content publishers during the first quarter of the year, finding the click-through rates for the repurposed TV content (1.11%) and for the made-for-web content (1.09%) to be evenly matched. Engagement rates were also similar, with made-for-web content (2.72%) slightly ahead of repurposed TV content (2.68%). Read more »

Wealthy consumers are as likely to make purchases in-store as online, and few have embraced showrooming, loosely defined as the practice of checking out a product in-store before buying online. According to new research from the Luxury Institute, 78% of wealthy consumers (earning at least $150,000 a year) had bought something in a store in the previous 12 months, and 77% had ordered something online via computer. Only 1 in 4 reported buying online after checking out merchandise in-store (the study did not mention the use of a mobile device in-store). Read more »

Few companies believe that their content management system (CMS) facilitates a brand-enhancing digital presence, finds Econsultancy [download page] in a new report sponsored by Adobe. Instead, while a majority believe that content management should help them meet a variety of business goals, such as improving user and customer engagement and brand-building through positive experiences, less than one-third rate their CMS as good for helping them deliver against those objectives. Additionally, 6 in 10 respondents don't believe their CMS allows them to have a complete view of engagement across all channels. Read more »

B2B publishers, especially larger publishers with more than $5M in annual revenues, continue to have difficulty diversifying their revenue sources away from print advertising, finds FOLIO: magazine in its latest annual B2B CEO survey. Print advertising was the dominant source of revenue for the larger publishers last year, at 48% share, which actually represents a small increase from 47% in 2011. E-media (20% from 17%) and events (17% from 14%) are the only other sources contributing double-digit share of revenues. Read more »

An average of just 44% of viewing of full-length TV shows is live, according to [download page] respondents to a study from Vubiquity. However, the survey was limited to consumers with access to video-on-demand services from a cable/telco/satellite provider, meaning that it may not be representative of the entire TV viewing population. (Previous research from Nielsen indicates that around 90% of broadcast and cable primetime viewing is live.) Still, the results suggest that live TV viewing is falling victim to alternative sources of content: respondents to the Vubiquity study indicate that 22% of their viewing of full-length TV shows is from a DVR, 14% is on demand, and 6% is via an online source, among others. Read more »

75% of ad agencies responding to a BrightRoll survey believe that video is equally or more effective than TV, and that's up from 64% who believed that to be the case in last year's survey, according to a new BrightRoll report [download page]. Even more respondents (91%) believe that digital video measures up well with display, although they're less convinced about its effectiveness compared to social media (68%), search (52%) and direct response (45%). The most important aspect of video advertising to clients is its targeting capabilities, according to 45% of respondents, with reach (27%) also valuable. Read more »

Netflix is by far the most popular application used on connected TVs, according to new figures from The NPD Group. 40% of connected TVs (either through the TV or through another device) are streaming content from Netflix, compared to just 17% used to watch video on YouTube, and 11% to watch Hulu or Hulu Plus. The research also indicates that among home entertainment devices, internet capable TVs are least likely to be connected and used for online features. Read more »

The IAB has released a new research report [pdf], conducted by GfK, in conjunction with the 2013-2014 NewFronts event. As part of the study, the researchers reveal that among monthly users, network TV shows online ("TV Online") has the same "wantedness" score as sports on regular TV, and also rivals regular primetime TV, meaning that these viewers attach a similar importance to online and regular TV content. But what motivates viewing of different streaming video types? Read more »