Advertising and New Media
Media convergence, as described by Dwyer, denotes the
“process whereby new technologies are accommodated by existing media and
communication industries and cultures” (Dwyer 2010, p.2). Online advertising is seen as an extension of this process, where advertisers
move their products online to expand their potential markets. However, this
movement is not without its flaws, specifically relating to issues of
creativity and innovation in such advertisements. This essay critically
examines the phenomena of digital media convergence in relation to the dimensions
of online advertising, using the restaurant chain ‘Subway’ as a case study
throughout.
The mere presence of the television within the household
allowed televised advertisements to thrive in popularity, as the removal of
time and place from the point of operation allowed advertisers room for
creative potential (Spurgeon 2008). The emergence of new media has brought
advertising into an entirely new market, one that is defined by flexibility and
individuality. This new market, however, is shaped by internet revenue
generated by online advertising, which “now frequently exceeds outdoor, cinema
and magazine advertising expenditure” (2008, p.25). Google Adwords, which
incorporates text advertisements and search banners onto its pages, is an
example of this type of market, as revenue can be generated for the company and
advertisers without affecting users’ personal details or files (Meikle and
Young 2012). This success has allowed the company to expand to applications
such as YouTube, where ad placements can be inserted onto online videos. The
result is Google emerging as “not just a software service but a media company…active
across a range of content and communication areas” (2012, p.48).
However, there are notable flaws to the phenomena of digital
convergence; on the same hand Spurgeon writes that “creative and persuasive
techniques have received less consideration because they seek to influence
purchasing decisions by indulging human emotions and wants, and…fabricating
difference” (2008, p.24). This is certainly true of Subway, which offers online
discounts, ‘freebies’ and competition rewards in exchange for personal details (see
Figures 1&2). Such actions signal the prioritisation of laziness over
proper marketing tactics to generate a mass audience, and can best be termed as
a focus on exposure as opposed to identity (Lister et al. 2009). The digital
convergence of advertising tactics thus renders creative advertising techniques
redundant as focus is diverted onto brand engagement. Lister et al. (2009) draws
attention to the practicality of such a focus, where “our web media experiences
are interrupted by, suffused with, and sometimes nearly drown[ing] in, a sea of
advertising and sponsorship content” (p.173).
 |
| Figure 1 - A Subway online promotion offering a trial of the video game 'DC Universe Online' as a competition reward. Advertisements that prioritise such tactics over creative ones become detrimental to the user and consumer alike. Figure 2 - A similar advertisement for the video game 'Uncharted 3', which again offers an inert product experience. |
Central to the phenomena of digital convergence is the idea that
advertising is ‘dead’ – a term coined by Rust and Oliver (1994) to describe
“the dramatic shift away from a product-oriented economy toward a
services-oriented economy reduces the effectiveness of traditional advertising
approaches” (p.71). Digital convergence can be seen to amplify the loss of
creativity in a market that requires its demand, giving rise to an advertising
market of limited agency and effectiveness. In addition, a challenge is
presented in that advertisers must branch out to audiences that are seen as
more itinerant, without sacrificing creativity. Online efforts, however, continue
to present disappointments in their marketing strategies by seeking exposure
and not investment in their product. As mentioned before, this is seen through Subway, which shamelessly offers free promotions
that do not innovatively entice users and consumers. Pop-up advertisements on
websites serve as another example, as they additionally target audiences
through lazy exploitation and promotion, but they also become more detrimental
to the web experience of the user by distracting them from browsing and forcing
them to engage with the product in a way rendered meaningless. Such detrimental
tactics are an indication that “mass media [can] no longer deliver a mass audience.
At the same time, consumers demanded more customization in their products…or
flexibly manufactured hard goods” (1994, p.73).
Less discussed, however, is the issue of intellectual property,
which becomes a serious concern as advertisements merge into an online context.
Pelton comments on the issue:
The “currency” of high-technology global
enterprises is now, more than ever, intellectual property. These are
copyrights, trademarks, patents, exclusive and nonexclusive licenses, joint
license agreements, and much more…new international subsidiaries based on
leveraging mutually owned and protected technical and intellectual knowledge.
Pelton
2000, p.125
The distinctive brands of well-known corporations can
thus be potentially seen as the primary revenue generator rather than the
product itself, an example being the restaurant chain Subway; a lawsuit brought
into question the ownership over the term ‘footlong’ (used to describe their
signature sandwiches) and a dispute over their attempt to make it their
specific property (Leibowitz 2011). Advertisers that launch their products
online face such difficulties due to the ‘connective competition’ between
different corporations over the pressure to reach their respective audiences.
Sheehan prescribes the antidote to these difficulties, asserting that “advertising’s
innovation ecosystem is dependent on the mixing of digital, intellectual, and
creative capital, which involves utilization of ideas from a range of people
involved in the communication process” (Sheehan 2009).
Media advertising has been undoubtedly reflexive over
its short history, with the phenomenon of television commercials allowing
advertisers to easily access average Australian households and effectively
branch their products towards the consumer. The movement towards a digital
media through the internet has provoked a marketing sensation amongst
advertisers to address their target audiences in a method that remains
circumscribed within the parameters of this emerging new media, yet is still
creative enough to be accessible.
Reference List:
Dwyer, T 2010, Media
Convergence, McGraw Hill, Berkshire, p.2
Leibowitz, B 2011, ‘Subway Restaurants Face Lawsuit Over "Footlong" Trademark’, CBSNews, 15th February, accessed 31st August from http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504083_162-20031887-504083.html
Lister, M, Dovey, J, Giddings, S, Grant, I & Kelly, K 2009, New Media: A Critical Introduction, 2nd ed, Routledge, London and New York, p.173
Meikle, G & Young, S 2012, Media Convergence: Networked Digital Media in Everyday Life, Palgrave Macmillan, Great Britain, p.24
Pelton, JN 2000, e-Sphere: The Rise of the World-Wide Web, Quorum Books, Westport, p.125
Rust, RT & Oliver, RW 1994, ‘The Death of Advertising’, Journal of Advertising, Vol. 23, No. 4, December 1994, pp.71-73
Sheehan, KB & Morrison, DK 2009, ‘Beyond convergence: Confluence culture and the role of the advertising agency in a changing world’, First Monday, Vol. 14, No. 3, 2nd March 2009
Spurgeon, C 2008, Advertising
and New Media, Routledge, Oxon, p.25
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