Discuss the phenomenon of digital media convergence in relation to advertising and new media
By Courtney Levin 42859816
Buy one get one free! 50% off! SALE SALE SALE! Consumers are
constantly bombarded with a flood of advertisements in an era of new media. Media
itself is “anything associated with film, television, radio, magazines and
newspapers” (Tony Purvis 2006: 3) Subsequently, media convergence is a
combination of these mediums which in turn creates new media forms,
technologies and platforms. A medium according to Jenkins “is a technology that
enables communication” (Jenkins 2006: 13) such as the Internet and mobile
phones. It is therefore clear that digital media allows for “new ways of
configuring issues of production, consumption, and distribution of media”
(Anandam Kavoori 2010: 1) In other words, it creates new ways to produce,
consume and distribute advertisements. A greater range of platforms to produce
advertisements has resulted in quicker and cheaper forms of advertising. These
new forms of converged media give advertisers and consumers more power than
ever before.
CONVERGENCE
New digital media is the result of media convergence-
the merging of old technologies into one place, platform and device. Dwyer
refers to media convergence as “the process whereby new technologies are
accommodated by existing media and communication industries and cultures.” (Tim
Dwyer 2010: 2) Examples of this can be seen through new devices such as
the iPhone, which incorporates mediums that offer the ability to communicate,
download, store and play music, take and store photos, and provide quick access
to the Internet. Products of convergence have also allowed for advertising to
take place across “several platforms" (Dwyer 2010:2). Ultimately,
convergence has played a major role in developing today’s era of advertising
and new media.
ADVERTISING
New media has generated new forms of advertising.
Christina Spurgeon states, “new media... such as the internet and cell phones,
invite us to think in exciting new ways about advertising, as an industry...as
well as a crucially important influence in consumer and public sphere.”
(Spurgeon 2008: 2) This illustrates digital advertising as a new and
relevant market. Similarly, “Advertising agencies...are taking steps to find
ways to increase audience engagement...regardless of the venue.”
(Bartel-Sheehan, Morrison 2009) Thus, this new market is utilising the Internet
as a source of “advertising-funded media services” (Spurgeon 2008: 25). One
recent advertising campaign that demonstrates this new market is the Range
Rover Evoque campaign ‘Pulse of the City’ http://www.landrover.com/gl/en/rr/range-rover-evoque2/presence/reveal-to-launch/pulse-of-the-city/
which “targets young and energetic, stylish and dynamic citizens of the
world’s biggest cities as they represent the core audience of Range Rover
Evoque”(Inna Krivoruchko 2011). The campaign not only influences the
consumer and public sphere through television, but it also targets the internet
through its website www.helloevoque.com , YouTube and other search engines with its products,
as can be seen through the first result "brand new Range
Rover". Convergence of the Internet and advertising clearly allows consumers
to search information and products simultaneously. YouTube being a digital
sensation with thousands of views daily is an advertisers dream. Upon entering
the site consumers are provided with advertisements, such as the campaign for
Range Rover. New media obviously has an infectious impact on advertising with
modern and converging technologies allowing greater platforms for advertising.
NEW MEDIA
The creation of new
media has resulted in quicker and cheaper advertising. Online advertising “includes any paid advertisement,
from banners to sponsorships, which appears on the web or other
Internet channels, including e-mail”
(Barnes 2002: 400). Facebook for example, invites companies to
advertise, by allowing advertisers to “select your audience by location, age
and interests” (Facebook Ireland Limited 2011) in the space of minutes and to “connect
with more than 800 million potential customers”(Facebook Ireland Limited 2011).
In a case study provided by facebook, “Over
12 months, CM Photographics generated nearly $40,000 in revenue directly from a
$600 advertising investment on Facebook”. The small cost of online
advertising, through websites like YouTube, allows companies to spend big bucks
on their actual campaign. This can be seen through Honda’s $6.2 million Cog
Commercial. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ve4M4UsJQo
Thomas Elsaesser explains how “This ad had ‘made history’ not only because its
fame and success proved the power of the internet as a ‘window of attention’
for advertisers, but also because its production values – around six million
dollars for these two minutes – put it squarely in the Hollywood league of
blockbusters.”(Elsaesser 2008: 21) According to Sean Wetherell “Honda saw a quadrupling
in inquires about its Honda Accord in the U.K and sales doubled” (Wetherell
2011: 9) Therefore it can be understood that the fast and cheap nature of
online advertising not only provides an effective testing ground for new
advertisements without having to pay large sums for television time, but also allows
for ‘hollywood’ sized advertisements to flourish successfully in the digital
world. Evidently, new media provides quicker and cheaper forms of advertising.
THE REALITY OF MEDIA
CONVERGENCE
The phenomenon of
digital media convergence in relation to new media has resulted in a boom in
advertising. In the current age of new media, “marketing professionals can actually measure how many prospects
have seen or responded to an advertisement”(Barnes 2002: 400) which
determines how successful an advert is. Consumers are now able to give feedback
and ultimately “comment favourably or unfavourably on advertisements, such as
on Youtube” (Kerr, Dickinson, Waller, Mortimer 2009:1). Due to the flood of
advertising that surrounds consumers today, they now have greater power and
knowledge in distinguishing between poorly produced adverts and well produced
adverts; ultimately making or breaking a product or company. The clip below
illustrates what characterises a well-produced advertisement (the music,
editing, colour quality, filming techniques, choreography etc. have all been
utilised effectively to produce a successful and good quality campaign that is
aimed at the consumer.) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CIC9b4RpiHY
Basically, this
commercial highlights the importance of consumer knowledge when designing and
creating an advertising campaign. The beauty of using sites such as YouTube to
test advert success is being able to visually witness the reaction of the
consumer. Only being posted on the 8th of August it’s almost had
9000 views and already has 34 ‘likes’ and only 1 ‘dislike’.
Evidently digital advertising
gives consumers more power than ever before through it’s ability to provide
feedback on multiple platforms and the idea of success based on
popularity. In addition, advertisers
have more power than ever before due to the ability to select target audiences
based on views and ratings.
The phenomenon of
digital media convergence has a colossal effect on advertising and new media.
Convergence ultimately plays a key factor in this effect through the
combination of old mediums to create new media. New media has infectiously lead
to new forms of advertising, allowing for greater numbers of platforms- due to
convergence, to be available to advertisers. An increased number of platforms
have lead to quicker and cheaper advertising as low cost advertising means
expensive ‘Hollywood’ style adverts can be delivered to the consumer in a
matter of seconds. Similarly, the ability for advertisers to know exactly how
many views an advert has and the ability for consumers to make decisions based
on feedback provides more power for both advertisers and consumers. Advertising
in today’s society can therefore be seen as being result of new media in a
world of digital media convergence.
References
Recommended reading
Bartel Sheehan, Kim., Morrison, Deborah ., Beyond Convergence: Confluence Culture and the Role of the Advertising Agency in a Changing World, Volume 14 Number 3, 2009
Own research
Bartel Sheehan, Kim., Morrison, Deborah ., Beyond Convergence: Confluence Culture and the Role of the Advertising Agency in a Changing World, Volume 14 Number 3, 2009
Own research
·
Dickinson, Sonia., Kerr, Gayle F., Mortimer,
Kathy., Waller, David., Testing Advertising via New Media: An Exploratory
Study of Advertising Practitioner attitudes, Queensland University of
Technology, Queensland, 2009, http://eprints.qut.edu.au/30981/1/c30981.pdf
Own research
Digital Trend Staff, Iphone 4: Everything You Need to Know, Designtechnia Corporation, Portland USA, 2010, http://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/apple-iphone-4/
Readings
Dwyer, Tim., Media Convergence, McGraw Hill, Berkshire, 2010
Dwyer, Tim., Media Convergence, McGraw Hill, Berkshire, 2010
Own research
·
Elsaesser, Thomas., ‘Constructive Instability’, or: The Life of Things as
the Cinema’s Afterlife?, Thomas Elsaesser, 2008, http://dare.uva.nl/document/138294
Own research
·
Facebook, Facebook Adverts, Facebook, 2011 http://www.facebook.com/advertising/?campaign_id=196091829159&placement=exact&creative=5811769952&keyword=facebook+advertising&extra_1=60167d42-d59e-b3a9-fa13-00002fca7856
Own research
Krivoruchko, Inna., New Campaign for Range Rover Evoque to Bring ‘Pulse of the City’, Popsop Ltd, London, 2011, http://popsop.com/44525
Krivoruchko, Inna., New Campaign for Range Rover Evoque to Bring ‘Pulse of the City’, Popsop Ltd, London, 2011, http://popsop.com/44525
Own research
Kovoori, Anandam. Get Set for Media and Cultural Studies, Edinburgh University Press Ltd, Edinburgh, 2006, website accessed:http://books.google.com.au/books?id=QmkQ0whU7EQC&pg=PA3&dq=what+is+media?&hl=en#v=onepage&q=what%20is%20media%3F&f=false
Kovoori, Anandam. Get Set for Media and Cultural Studies, Edinburgh University Press Ltd, Edinburgh, 2006, website accessed:http://books.google.com.au/books?id=QmkQ0whU7EQC&pg=PA3&dq=what+is+media?&hl=en#v=onepage&q=what%20is%20media%3F&f=false
Own research
Purvis, Tony., Digital Media Criticism, Peter Lang Publishing Inc., New York, 2010, website accessed: http://books.google.com.au/books?id=KwfArvyPNAkC&pg=PA1&dq=what+is+digital+media&hl=en#v=onepage&q=what%20is%20digital%20media&f=false
Purvis, Tony., Digital Media Criticism, Peter Lang Publishing Inc., New York, 2010, website accessed: http://books.google.com.au/books?id=KwfArvyPNAkC&pg=PA1&dq=what+is+digital+media&hl=en#v=onepage&q=what%20is%20digital%20media&f=false
Readings
Spurgeon, Christina., Advertising and New Media, Routledge, New York, 2008
Spurgeon, Christina., Advertising and New Media, Routledge, New York, 2008
Own research
·
Wetheral, Sean., Online Banner Effectiveness In the Age
of the Conscious Consumer, Grin, North
Carolina Wilmington, 2011, http://www.grin.com/en/e-book/180354/online-banner-effectiveness-in-the-age-of-the-conscious-consumer
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