Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Are Internet Ad Clicks On The Way Out???

Radio should keep an eye out for a new movement that could make internet ad clicks or impressions a thing of the past. Three advertising industry trade associations are doing a media study called "Make Measurement Make Sense." According to Broadcasting Cable, the initiative will try to create a new currency for online media platform marketing programs. The groups conducting the study are the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), American Association Of Advertising Agencies (4A's) and the Association Of National Advertisers (ANA). The trade groups have hired Bain & Company and MediaLink to support the initiative...

"The goals of the program are to define metrics and measurement systems to simplify planning, buying and evaluating digital media and come up with a common currency for measuring online exposures and developing a methodology for cross media measurement." Translation: let's get rid of the clicks and convince advertisers how smart it is to buy internet ads. Of course, now they have to find a reason for buying those internet ads. Nancy Hill, president of the 4A's describes the problem: "The confusion in this area has added costs to advertising agencies, which have been forced to use, subsidize and staff around increasing numbers of metrics and data in order to plan, purchase and post-analyze their media buys. This initiative will streamline and simplify those processes." ...

Apparently the number of clicks per ad is not working that well, otherwise these three advertising industry trade associations wouldn't be looking for an acceptable currency or consistent measurements which can be used as a selling point for online ads. That common standard is needed and we should all wish them well in their efforts...

10 Timeline Memories:
1.1932] Kidnapped: The 22-month old son of Charles and Anne Lindbergh is kidnapped from the family house near Hopewell (NJ). The baby’s lifeless body will be found in May…
2.1953] What should we call it?: WJZ-AM becomes WABC in New York City, which led to this legendary station
3.1954] Shoot-out in the gallery: Puerto Rican nationalists open fire from the gallery of the U.S. House of Representives, wounding 5 congressmen…
4.1961] Spreading peace: President John F. Kennedy establishes the Peace Corps
5.1962] Flight 1 is down: American Airlines Flight 1 scheduled for Los Angeles, goes down in Jamaica Bay after take-off from New York’s Idlewild Airport (pre-JFK). 87 passengers and a crew of 8 are all lost…
6.1968] Hotter than a pepper sprout: Johnny Cash and June Carter are married…
7.1969] Curtains: Mickey Mantle tells the Yankees: “I can’t hit anymore” and with that, retires. Number 7 will return in June for “Mickey Mantle Day” at Yankee Stadium. The Mick will be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1974 with 88% of the votes…
8.1974] Watergate busts: Former Nixon White House aides H.R. Haldeman, John D. Ehrlichman and former Attorney General John Mitchell are indicted on obstruction of justice charges related to the Watergate break-in
9.1981] Fatal hunger strike: Irish Republican Army member Bobby Sands begins a hunger strike in a Northern Ireland prison. He dies 65 days later…
10.2003] Gotcha: Suspected September 11 mastermind Khalid Shaikh Mohammed is captured by CIA and Pakistani agents…

Music Memories:

  • 1957] Recorded on this date: The Everly Brothers sign with Archie Bleyer's Cadence Records and wasting little time, record "Bye Bye Love"...
  • 1957] Released on this date: "School Days" - Chuck Berry...
  • 1975] Number One on this date: "Best of My Love" - Eagles...
"Happy Trails": Jane Russell (1921 -2011)...


WRKO...The Launch (Part 1): (March marks the 44th anniversary of WRKO Boston. All month long I will be serializing the story behind the actual launch of what would become one of the country's legendary Top 40 radio stations and today continues to be a radio mainstay in New England)...

On March 13, 1967, WNAC , the flagship station of the Yankee Network gave way to one of the most exciting contemporary radio stations ever heard in New England and there are those that would argue, the entire United States. The genesis of WRKO began when General Manager Perry S. Ury dispatched Program Director Bob Henabery** to research the feasibility of following in the footsteps of RKO General's successful sister stations in Los Angeles (KHJ) and San Francisco (KFRC). The results of that study indicated that we could be successful if we positioned the station correctly . There was room in Boston for such a station if it was positioned somewhere between WBZ's variety of contemporary music, heavy news and public affairs commitment and WMEX's more frenetic approach to Top 40. We pledged to be the exciting, new top 40 station that would turn Boston radio on its ear with exclusive releases, great disc jockeys, promotions and presentation and we delivered on that pledge. I was fortunate enough to play a part in the success of WRKO-FM *( click "WRKO-FM" in left column) ("ARKO, your friendly robot"), the first Boston rocker in the fall of 1966. In March we moved the format over to AM and in the summer of 1967, I was named Program Director of WRKO-AM**. (Tomorrow: Part 2: The Road To Success)...(Many photos, memos & airchecks are available from WRKO.org by clicking here). * (Click "WRKO-FM" on left side of page). **(Click "WRKO People - Program Directors" on left side of page)...

Commentary:
Those born on February 29th are known as "leaplings". In non-leap years most people celebrate on either February 28th or March 1. Here's a special "Happy Birthday" to all you leaplings. These are some you might know:

Ja Rule (35), motivational speaker Tony Robbins (51), Dennis Farina (67), Henri Richard (75), Tempest Storm (83) and Al Rosen (87)...

(3/1) Justin Bieber (17), Dave Coveney (39?), Javier Bardem (42), CSI's George Eads (44), Tim Daly (55), Ron Howard (57), Catherine Bach (57), Alan Thicke (64), Roger Daltrey (67), Robert Conrad (76), Dick Asher (79), Harry Belafonte (84) and Robert Clary (85)...

Timeline Countdown: 12 days until Daylight time, 19 days until the first day of spring, 19 days until MLB opening day, 49 days until Passover & 54 days until Easter...