I am NOT Maverick Marketing Sydney

A NEW survey reveals Virgin Atlantic has the most attractive flight attendants with 53 percent of those surveyed picking Virgin’s “red hotties.

According to the survey of 1000 people by the Business Travel and Meetings Show (BTMS), Virgin Atlantic scooped the pool for the most attractive cabin crew.

Qantas didn’t rate a mention. Read more at News.

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Hot on the heels of advertising that upset certain quarters over their “adultifying of kids”, the latest advertisement to cause a furore is this one above, depicting a woman in the company of three men.

On one side are the “experts” that say this kind of advertising can fuel cases of gang rape. On the other, the people that say it takes more than an ad for someone to commit a crime.

(See the argument here and make up your own mind.)

Of course, Calvin Klein is no stranger to sexy ads or controversy. This ad below, from last year, got the tongues wagging in Soho, New York City, and attracted plenty of mainstream media publicity, simply for being racy while a TVC produced in the US earlier this year never made its way past the broadcast censors.

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Video campaigns that combine pre-roll and banner ads deliver the highest recall rates, according to research from Sky, the IAB and media research agency Decipher.

The UK study, conducted over 12 months, examined the branding effectiveness of five online video ad formats against short-form content.

Of the 6,000 respondents interviewed, nearly half (47%) recalled ads which used a combination of pre-roll and banners, although 44% said they remembered the ad when pre-roll alone was used.

The research tracked 24 campaigns from 11 brands in FMCG, finance, motoring, technology and travel sectors across Sky Sports and News, Sky 1, Sky Showbiz and non-branded sites Golf 365 and Planet Rugby.

Five video ad formats were examined. Of the 2,400 people who recalled a video ad, 6% claimed they then clicked through to make an immediate purchase, while over half (54%) said they either delayed purchase or wanted to investigate the brand further in their own time.

Dwell time is highest on branded video players, according to the research, which in turn deliver better direct response, with an average 1.23% click-though rate across all campaigns. Pre-rolls combined with companion banners generated a 0.89% click-through rate, followed by post-roll at 0.83% and pre-roll on its own at 0.77%. Overlays were the least effective, averaging a 0.16% click-through rate.

Quality content remains a key driver of ad performance, according to the study, with 10% of respondents more likely to remember the ad if they enjoyed it.

Viewers are least tolerant of ads around user-generated content, with 83% of those who recalled ads saying they found them inappropriate around content posted by others.

Almost half of those who recalled ads (47%) said they were appropriate around entertainment clips, and 46% around TV programmes.

Over two-fifth of respondents (44%) said they recalled ads at work, compared to 39% who recalled them at home. However, click-through rates were higher at home, with respondents saying they’re more willing to alter their online journey when at home relaxing.

Users’ journey to content was also found to affect brand recall, with over half (53%) recalling an ad when directed there from a specific link, while just under half (48%) remembered ads when looking specifically for certain content. Nearly a third of users (39%) recalled an ad when they were just browsing content.

Read more at UK Marketing Week.

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Fashion retailer, Witchery, is the latest in the growing list of brands that has raised the ire of child advocate groups and their high-profile reps.

In the current series of ads for a range of clothing for two to nine year olds, brooding young girls are portrayed in adult poses and the brand stands accused of “adultifying” children.

Former Play School presenter (and Barnardo’s ambassador), Noni Hazelhurst joined forces with Kids Free 2B Kids to denounce the direction advertising was taking.

“They look like recalcitrant teenagers, I think this is a really dangerous direction,” she said. “Children as young as five are now going on diets, are worried about how they look, how they present – this just should not be an issue for children. It’s really sad that people are trying to redefine what early childhood means.”

Retailer Bonds, promoting mini-bras for children as young as six, bowed to public pressure, withdrawing its line of “bralettes” following pressure.

In the meantime, Witchery has defended its decision to run the ads by saying it thought the ads fun and playful, and claiming that the majority of feedback…regarding our campaign and product range has been very positive.

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Players from Google’s display advertising team presented seven predictions on the outlook of display advertising for 2015, as part of Google’s “Watch This Space” campaign.

They were:

1. Video: 50% of display ads will include cost-per-view video. The prediction comes with the launch of two new video ad formats on Google’s YouTube: an “in-slate format” that allows users to choose video ads to view, and an “in-stream format” that auto-selects video ads and allows users to click out of the ad after a few seconds.

2. Real-time: 50% of ad buying will happen in real time. Instead of a passive price ceiling or automated bid price, Google sees a trend towards ad buyers bidding on display advertising on the fly.

3. Mobile: The most popular screen will be on-the-go. Google is banking on “media bridging” off-line and online advertising with tools like Google Goggles.
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Apple is expected to control 21% of the U.S. mobile advertising market by the end of this year, grabbing share from both Google and Microsoft, BusinessWeek reported, citing data from market research firm IDC.

Google, which accounted for 21% of the U.S. mobile ad market last year, is expected to end the year with 21%, while Microsoft’s share will fall from 10% to 7%.

Yahoo will see its share drop from 12% to 9%, while Nokia will slip from 5% to 2%. Independent ad network Jumptap is expected to increase its share to 13% this year, from 10% a year ago, while Millennial Media will end 2010 with 11% of the market, up from 9%.

Read more at Digital Media Wire.

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Rumour is doing the rounds that Australia’s Channel 7 Network is looking to squeeze another $10 million out of the AFL grand final replay on Saturday.

Last Saturday, Channel 7′s audience was estimated to reach 2.76 million nationally.

The result, a draw, required a replay rather than an allowance for time on, a rule that has received mixed, and largely negative, reaction from the Australian public and other sports affected by the decision.

Despite this, it is expected that a large TV audience will watch the replay and club ticket allocations are sold out.

For every five minutes of advertising, Channel 7 will earn around $1 million. A 30 second slot will cost advertisers up to $100,000 according to a seasoned media buyer.

Under the terms of the AFL agreement between Channels 7 and 10, the windfall is all Channel 7′s since the deal for Channel’s 10 and 7 means each channel can broadcast the grand final in alternate years.

Ten is focusing on the Commonwealth Games which is itself controversial due to the state of construction and security in India. Ten’s coverage is due to begin on Sunday evening.

Photo: Herald Sun (check out the rest of its 2010 Photo Grand Final Gallery)

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Spending by advertisers increased by more than expected in the first half of calendar 2010, a survey of advertising executives finds.

Advertising expenditure rose 6.8 per cent in the first six months of 2010, Starcom MediaVest Group’s half-year update to its annual Media Futures survey found.

The result was better than the 5.3 per cent increase tipped at the start of the year.

The survey, conducted by Roy Morgan, also found that 45 per cent of national advertisers experienced a year-on-year increase in expenditure during the first half of calendar 2010, compared with the prior corresponding period.

The respondents said they expected advertising expenditure would rise 6.4 per cent in the second half of calendar 2010.

More at the Sydney Morning Herald.

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Companies worldwide will spend nearly half a trillion dollars on advertising this year.

But spending that money wisely is more of a challenge now than ever before because of the changes brought about by the growing importance of digital media.

According to its latest Global Media Intelligence Report, eMarketer found that there will be a 12 per cent growth this year alone, with investment in video advertising boosting the amount which is spent on online marketing.

“The global advertising and media industry has been going through massive changes in recent years, between the inexorable shift from traditional to digital channels and a recession that damaged markets around the world” says eMarketer.

The “Global Media Intelligence Report” provides insight into many trends, large and small, and raises questions that may prove important for marketers in coming years.
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