I was reading an article by Cheryl Kellond titled “Shining A Light on Performance Display Advertising.” In it, she breaks down the components of what makes a successful advertising campaign – that it’s a two-part system, where it’s not all about creative size, better positioning, and smart campaigns, but that it’s also making each ad relevant to the customer. She asks the question, “What good is a perfectly branded, perfectly placed, creative ad if it’s for a product the consumer doesn’t need or want?”

I agree with her wholeheartedly, but my spin on successful advertising campaigns focuses not on the need and rather on the want. According to Maslow’s theory of basic needs, the two most basic needs that must be met are deficiency and physiological needs. These two needs must be met in order for any other higher need to come into focus.

So how does this hierarchy of need fit into a good advertising campaign you may ask? Well, I’d like to think a good marketer is a marketer that can turn any consumer want into a need. Now some of you might think that this is exactly why performance marketing has come under heavy fire, because of deceptive marketing tactics. However, there is a huge difference between using Oprah’s face to market a product when she has not endorsed it versus using a customer testimonial who praises a product.

Put together a campaign that focuses on your product as an aid, a facilitator (not as a panacea) to helping customers fulfill whatever need they are looking to fill and you’ve got yourself a happy customer as well as money coming in.

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I stumbled on to a poll on Adotas.com the other day that asked, “Is a permanent decline in affiliate marketing imminent?” The choices were

1. “Yes – New state taxes, increased government restrictions and shady marketers have doomed the industry. “
2. “No – Affiliate marketing is changing not declining.”

I voted “no.” Change, as in any industry, is inevitable. In fact, it is to be expected. From having been in the industry for a good number of years now, I saw the internet go from the” wild wild west” to a carved territory that even my mom has a stake on, a la myspace and facebook.

New state taxes and increased government restrictions are all signs of a growing industry as it shifts towards establishment and organization. And yes, it is at this period of time where shady marketers will be weeded out, a beneficial change for other honest marketers, advertisers and consumers alike. The marketers who survive this shakeout period stand to become the legacy companies who need to set an example to any newcomers.

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With Oprah Winfrey and celebrity surgeon, Dr. Mehmet Oz, filing lawsuits against makers and marketers of dietary supplement products recently, online marketing practices in regards to products like Acai and Resveratrol are currently under heavy fire. And with good reason. Dr. Oz praising the anti-aging properties of acai berries on the Oprah Winfrey show is being translated into ads by some internet marketers as these two celebrities endorsing the products when they have not.

What happens when people find out they have been misled? According to an article by the Chicago Tribune, Oprah’s web site has fielded more than 2,000 complaints related to acai-berry products. In addition to the complaints, I imagine this resulted in many charge backs for those marketers who chose the misleading route and a damaged reputation.

Rather than using celebrity names and gimmicks, makers and marketers need to go back to the basics of honest salesmanship – using scientific studies, statistics and testimonials from actual users as the driving force as to why a customer should be purchasing a product. Just as brick and mortar shops need to establish a name and reputation, marketers need to look at their online marketing practices the same way – perhaps even more so, as all you do have on the internet is your name and reputation.

Blue Phoenix Media

With customer spending going down, layoffs sweeping through traditional marketing and media channels, and marketing and advertising budgets being cut, the fate of online marketing may look like it’s in for a grim state. However, there is still hope – performance marketing.

For Advertisers, cost-per-acquisition (CPA) marketing provides a pay-as-you-go solution as opposed to pre-paying for estimated leads that may not come through. It also cuts cost in online real estate since some CPA networks do not require a pre-pay to advertise with them. Also, unlike traditional marketing methods, online marketing allows you to track and measure your success rate and be able to target your audience better. CPA networks have a gamut publishers targeting all types of consumers and using various methods such as display, email, and search marketing. This provides you plenty of opportunity to make money without draining your budget.

Publishers can benefit from CPA marketing as well if they keep an open mind. “Those who adapt will do well; those who have a more rigid structure will find it tougher to thrive even though they are in the performance space.¹ This means moving along with new verticals that are currently successful and possibly moving away from what has worked in the past but may not be in tune with today’s economic climate.

Blue Phoenix Media/Blue Phoenix Network can be that beacon of hope for advertisers and publishers now and into the New Year. We provide advertisers cost-effective solutions to guarantee high success rates with their campaigns. This includes providing a clean network of hand-picked publishers and a self-service tracking system that provides real-time reporting. For publishers, we provide a variety of verticals to choose from and though we stick with our tried and true education and health campaigns, we also adapt to the ebb and flow of the market and provide relevant campaigns suited for the current state of consumers needs. Contact your account manager today to find out how performance marketing can work for you!

Sources:
http://www.dmconfidential.com/blogs/column/Trends/2091/
http://www.dm2daily.com/

¹http://www.dmconfidential.com/blogs/column/Trends/2091/

Amy Sheridan is a season media maven. With over 9 years of interactive marketing experience under her belt, she decided to venture off on her own and launch Blue Phoenix Media Inc. which owns Blue Phoenix Network. Check out the article on her in TheCoregInsider.com , where she has gained honors as a featured owner of Coregistration companies.