Ad:Tech New York - "Attack of the Verticals"

by Warren Huska

Every second vendor this year seemed to be cozying up to the agency-speak with their own 'vertical' offering. Contextual ads promising exposure to category audiences like automotive. And so on and so forth. In-text ads (certainly one of the more intriguing recent developments for a word guy like me) assuring me access to say, the hipster demographic.

I was left wondering how distinctive these claims were, what with only a few primary sources for information like demographic profiles.

Sundance Media's consumer metrics partner data have certainly shown the value of 'vertical' marketing - HDTVs, for instance, show a huge mean propensity to be researched online in specific technology channels. Not really a surprise, you say - but the measurable extent to which this is true is startling.

So why bother calling consumer online behaviour "research" - when what it really is - is SHOPPING.

So how best to work with the shopper online?
What do they want? What do they need?

...the age-old questions of Nature vs. Nurture - updated for the Internet. Style vs. Content. Brand vs. Customer Experience.

How best can we position a client to not just 'push' marketing - advertising - out there, but to 'pull' as well? This last would be the role of context, relevancy, and of course under it all, good content.

At Sundance Media we dance with the balance - and a crazy new partner has brought some amazing moves to the floor. Imagine ... your web site could dynamically respond to search engine trends - and re-generate your site to provide pages organised to respond to search engine traffic. Talk about magic.

Those "verticals" - we love them. They drive us crazy figuring them out - but consumers make life interesting - because they want interesting experiences. And it is our job as marketers to make sure they get what they most want and need.

Drop Warren a line at whuska@sundancemediainc.com - or drop in to have a look at what we offer to make your business extraordinary.