By Alan Coleman on 29 Nov 2012
Digital marketing…we Wolfgang Digital people eat and breathe the stuff. We thrive on trends, insights, and the general feeling of being ‘in the know.’ Currently, there are two interests making our hearts race: the Irish consumer and digital advertising. The Irish Consumer Sure Paddy cannot be any different to his European counterparts, right? WRONG! Recent research indicates that Irish consumers are ahead of their European counterparts in internet adoption, with 8 in 10 adults using the internet on a daily basis. They are also spending more time and money online than other Europeans. A survey by Visa Europe, Irish consumers will spend an estimated €420 million online this Christmas, with each individual spending an average of €227. Great news for Irish businesses, yes? It should be! However, even though Irish consumers spend close to €4 billion online per year, a whopping 75% of this expenditure goes to overseas vendors – a figure which is set to rise to almost €21 billion by 2017. The reason for this is simple. Irish businesses do not have the web presence their global competitors have. 61% of Irish consumers claim they would purchase from Irish websites if they mirrored their favourite overseas websites’ offerings. It seems that Irish businesses are laggards when it comes to digital marketing. A perfect example lies in household names such as Dunnes Stores and Penneys, who do not allow consumers to shop online. Furthermore, it is estimated that less than 21% of Irish SMEs operate through e-commerce websites. This represents a massive opportunity for Irish businesses, as well as the Irish economy, as SME’s represent 98% of businesses in the Irish economy. Digital Advertising and what it means for Marketing Budgets You may have seen or heard the new ‘Unforgettable Brands Advertise’ campaign which highlights the importance of advertising though traditional advertising channels, and how it is dangerous to ignore them. We completely agree with the notion that even the biggest brands need to advertise. However, we believe that smart advertisers are NOT those who invest long-term in heavily in branding-type advertising. Smart advertisers are spending their money on direct response advertising online, which wins customers at the critical time when they are seeking to buy or enquire, and are reducing spend on television, press and radio. Huh? Are you sure?
We could forgive you for thinking we were wrong. After all, if we consider that the average Irish person spends two hours and 49 minutes watching TV per day, and two hours and 44 minutes on the internet, you would think that these two media would be as important as each other. However, think about those who use their time online to research exactly what they want to purchase? Once they are researching, consumers are actively considering alternatives and ultimately making a purchase. Investing your money in those consumers is far more worthwhile and profitable than in those who are not even aware they need your product yet. You can read more about how to target these consumers in the ‘Services’ section of our website. Just so you know that we are not talking through our blow-holes… Nike is a perfect example. In the last three years, Nike have reduced their TV and print advertising by 40%. Yet their overall advertising budget has reached an all-time high of $2.4 billion dollars – most of which is going towards their online advertising efforts and creating interaction with this target market. On the flipside, Nike reported a 10% increase in revenues in the first quarter of 2012. This budgetary reallocation is indicative of a paradigm shift in the advertising industry worldwide. If you want to get your business going in the direction digitally, check out the Wolfgang Digital award-winning Google AdWords formula for more information. Alan Coleman
