Awareness Advertising Lifts Down-Funnel Lead Generation by 350%

The team I managed at CBS Interactive developed marketing programs that delivered the combined prominence, ownership, response and targeting that all B2B advertisers value. A recent study finally proves the value of this approach.

The so called Money Shot: Topical awareness advertising can drive a 160% lift in engagement with related content, a 190% lift in engagement with the advertiser's content, and a 350% lift in the percentage of prospects moving deeper into the "consideration" stage of the marketing funnel. 

Numerous studies show that advertising works. However, it has always been difficult to prove the value of such advertising in more concrete terms. In the real world of banner ads and rich media, ads appear or are given prominent page placement, but after visitors are exposed to them, what meaningful results do they really produce? Do the ads just build awareness, or do they truly change the behavior of the audience that has been exposed to them? And more specifically, do they drive funnel engagement and increase sales? These are critical questions for marketing strategists. Advertisers need to know what they’re getting for their money. Measuring click-through rates only goes so far, since a simple count of responses doesn’t mean much given that only 1-2% that are exposed are actually clicking. The best possible scenario would be to determine: Did viewers of advertising actually move further down the sales funnel? What role did advertising play in that movement? CBS Interactive conducted a Meta study of numerous campaigns over the past couple of years that address these questions.

B2B Up-Funnnel Advertsing Lifts Down-Funnel Lead Generation 350%

Brief Discussion on What Works & What Doesn't in B2B Marketing

Below is a link to a recent presentation about how integrated marketing works and some never seen before direct comparisons to Facebook from a B2B perspective. What Works and What Doesn't in B2B Marketing

View more presentations from Sybase, an SAP Company

Facebook Ads Don't Work: Add These Numbers Up.

"Social Context Increases Effectiveness: 68% lift in ad recall, 2x increase in message awareness, and 4x increase in purchase intent."   - Facebook 

I'm really surprised that the smartest people out there are all touting these statistics about lifts in ad recall, awareness and purchase intent. If you look deeper, this claim is actually comparing the more boring Facebook text/gif ads against the same ads, on Facebook, that utilize Facebook features such as "like", etc. But the claim does not compare Facebook to other advertising channels. So, it's more like, "Compared to Facebook, Facebook increases effectiveness.
 
There is NO comparison to other advertising platforms or properties like Google or product review sites. It turns out that others have from 50% to 33x increases in recall, awareness and purchase intent, compared to Facebook. Look into that. Competitors' claims would read like this:

"Compared to Facebook, we deliver a 50% increase in ad recall, 2X increase in message awareness and 33X increase in purchase intent."  - Facebook Competitors

Netflix "I think we need a break." My Dear Don Letter from NFLX.

Dear Don, We've put your account on hold, as you asked. This temporarily puts an end to your monthly membership fees – and to movies from Netflix. While you're taking a break, could you return the following titles by Monday, September 26, 2011? Unreturned DVDs are billed at $14 each and $20 for each Blu-ray disc, plus tax.

More Than 68% of marketers in b2b don't identify their funnel

What the heck. I thought marketers were much further along.More Than 68% of marketers in b2b don't identify their funnel. Well there is an invisible one. You might want to go and find it. http://marketingsherpa.com/Marketing%20Files/PDF's/InfoB2B200.pdf

ebay vs. Amazon Clicks-to-Purchase. eBay 18, Amazon 1. Ouch!

Wow.  I would have thought that eBay had progressed on the idea of "fewest clicks to purchase". It's a good payoff for everybody in the transaction -- the buyer and seller. But alas I am wrong. No wonder I gravitate to Amazon whenever possible. It takes Amazon literally 1 click. But my recent experience in purchasing HP Ink Cartridges took 18 CLICKS. And I've been using eBay and PayPal for over 12 years. Progress seems nil. See the below history I grabbed after the incident:

How Does Google Make the Big Bucks? An Infographic Answer.

What is your keyword? Insurance, Loan, Mortgage or Attorney? That will be $27.80-$54.91 per click please!