The definition of auditing is “an official inspection of an organisation’s accounts, typically by an independent body” (Oxford Dictionary, 2017). Here we will be looking into one of the 6 channels presented by Chaffey. (2011) which is Interactive Advertising.

Interactive Advertising is a very modern method for marketing. Even in the digital age which allows the exploitation of the internet. What is so modern about Interactive Advertising is that it provides a two-way channel of communication with intended audience unlike most other channels of advertising. Normal advertising is also highly unfocused as there is no interaction and the audience is unable to guide the organisation as to what it wants to look at. Chaffey (2011) himself has elaborated, explaining that there are three large advantages that stand out when using Interactive Advertising.

 

 

The first of these?

 

• Direct Response: Allowing the advert to be interactive means that the consumer might be on a similar website or a competitors site and can gain a direct response via click-through adverts taking them to the website, this will generate direct hits on their site.
• Enhancing brand awareness and reach: Having a strong visual ad can generate significant awareness about a brand or a product which an organisation is trying to sell. A direct correlation to watch out for is if one design generates a lot of clicks and one doesn’t, then the ad it’s self may not look appealing to the targeted customer.
• Media Buyers: “Media buyers can select the right site or channel within a site to reach the audience. Audience can also be targeted via their profile through serving personalised ads, or ad in email if visitors have registered on a site.”

 

More information and examples of Interactive marketing can be found here: http://online-interactive-advertising.blogspot.co.uk/2009/07/interactive-advertising-9.html

 

Interactive Advertising has 4 main outlets of interaction which customers can directly click and be sent to an organisation’s website. This falls generally under the category of Ad Networks. The first network in which interactive ads seem prolific is of course Social Media. Using social media to advertise to a consumer is a really well focused method of advertising, this is because social media requires you to follow things you are interested in and display them publicly. Companies can now use that to advertise on your social media pages offers and links to their sites which e courage you to leave your social media platform and to join their site where you can browse, shop or be informed about whatever it is they have to offer.

 

The other 3 methods mentioned are Videos, Pop-Ups and Displays. A video will display a short advertising message on the side of a website. This usually helps to build brand recognition, these can also go at the start of a YouTube Video where the consumer can click on the ad to be taken to the organisation’s site. Pop-Up’s are generally used by a company attempting to gain the interest of a new customer, using advertising rich content they’ll attempt to rapidly sell products or show very top end offers to gain attention and clicks to the site. Finally, Displays. These use visually pleasing and stimulating colours and images to gain the attention of the consumer where a product is usually advertised. If affective, the customer will click the ad to gain additional information about the product or services offered.

An example of a pop up ad.

These main sources can all be measured by the organisation and each one reviewed allowing them to work out which method is most affective for them as an organisation. It is also interesting to look into how well a company is utilising the method of Interactive Advertising.

What is interesting to note about the method of Interactive Advertising is that it is a very modern approach and allows a consumer to have much more of a say in what they are and are not interested in, allowing the organisation to tailor its advertising process towards its audience. Being able to audit this and ensure that you’re gaining maximum results from this method is crucial to ensuring you have a growing audience and are improving your brand reputation at all times. Fail to do this and competitors can pass you rapidly and cause you to look archaic and even mistrusted.

This link shows you a real-time example of Interactive Advertising and explains how it can be put to use using mobile online technology: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxwnsfrU3zQ

One critical element of this channel is that consumers might not trust this form of advertising as many different cons and viruses also transmit this way.

References:

(SPD4290), I. and profile, V. (2017). The Advantages of Interactive Advertising. [online] Online-interactive-advertising.blogspot.co.uk. Available at: http://online-interactive-advertising.blogspot.co.uk/2009/07/interactive-advertising-9.html [Accessed 28 Nov. 2017].

Chaffey, D. (2017). Digital marketing channels | Smart Insights. [online] Smart Insights. Available at: https://www.smartinsights.com/reach/attachment/digital-marketing-channels/ [Accessed 28 Nov. 2017].

Oxford Dictionaries | English. (2017). audit | Definition of audit in English by Oxford Dictionaries. [online] Available at: https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/audit [Accessed 28 Nov. 2017].

Smallbusiness.chron.com. (2017). Examples of Interactive Advertising. [online] Available at: http://smallbusiness.chron.com/examples-interactive-advertising-10996.html [Accessed 28 Nov. 2017].

YouTube. (2017). Interactive advertising example. [online] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxwnsfrU3zQ [Accessed 28 Nov. 2017].