Wanted: an e-breed of sales professionals
Remember when spam and pop-up advertisements were a source of never-ending despair and frustration? Fortunately spam filters and pop-up stoppers came along. Fortunately, too, online marketers realised they had to employ more effective tools if their messages were not to be swiftly eviscerated by delete buttons.
That those tools have become increasingly effective was demonstrated in Google's first-quarter earnings report last week showing earnings of $52m, driven by a continued surge in online advertising. As a whole, US online revenues have been soaring. In the first six months of this year, they rose to $4.6bn, nearly 40 per cent up on the first half of 2003. In the second quarter, they totalled $2.37bn, marking the seventh consecutive quarterly revenue increase.
“Internet advertising is without question taking share from the other media at this time and for good reason,” says Greg Stuart, president and chief executive of the Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB). “Marketers have figured out that online advertising is often the most cost-effective medium for influencing both branding and sales results.”
Much of the growth is abetted by changing demographics, according to Robert Fleming, president of the eMarketing Association, a group of marketing professionals. Television still reaches more than 95 per cent of the population. But the percentage of people using the internet has risen from 52 per cent a year ago to 62 per cent. Those who use the net have greater purchasing power than those who do not, and they are inclined to use it in their shopping.
Many new tools are drawing shoppers to the net, including coupons, customer targeting, celebrity endorsements and high quality advertisments which show details in a way that other media cannot. Eric Hadley, marketing director at Microsoft's MSN.com, says the industry has come to understand the need to improve the online environment by cutting down on spam and pop ups.
Emily Kutner, director of public relations at the Interactive Advertising Bureau, says the industry has changed radically over the past five years. “Five years ago there was not good data to support the theory that online advertising worked. Now there is copious research and marketers know it works. We are not ‘new' media anymore. Most marketers include online as a part of any marketing campaign.”
The success of on-line marketing has meant a restructuring in company advertising budgets. According to IAB, advertising on search engines rose from 31 per cent of 2003 second-quarter revenues to 40 per cent of 2004 second-quarter revenues. Revenues for newspaper display and classified advertising revenues declined in terms of their share of total budgets.
This also means a gradual shift in the talent requirements for many jobs in the field. Advertising executives now need wide-ranging capabilities They might, for example, need to understand the effectiveness of traditional media forms television, print, direct mail and billboard but they must also comprehend the role of online in the mix. Note the wide range of responsibilities listed on a Monster online job board for an integrated marketing associate manager at a large multinational company:
“Support the development and lead the execution of strategically relevant promotional plans that meet the brands' marketing objectives; provide the creative resources, manage the budget, execute the integrated marketing activities and provide detailed results; design integrated marketing programmes that are capable of delivering short-term volume goals, while still contributing to overall brand equity; support the integration of the communications idea with PR, trade, advertising, online and media agencies.”
The new internet marketing and advertising firms are all structured differently. Some traditional agencies have added interactive units. Young interactive agencies are finding niches, merging with others, or selling their firms to larger competitors.
For example, Seattle-based aQuantiv is a fast-growing digital marketing services and technology company. Founded in 1997, it now has four operating units. One of them, Avenue A/Razorfish, claims to be the largest independent interactive agency. It offers solutions “entrenched in deep technology and rigorous analytics” to plan, buy, do search-engine marketing, target and profile customers, design web-based systems and create integrated marketing programmes. Another unit, i-FRONTIER, specialises in creative development for website and ads, e-mail marketing, search engine optimisation, and media planning and buying.
A third, Atlas DMT, provides digital marketing technologies to advertising agencies and direct advertisers. DRIVEpm serves as a liaison between online publishers and advertisers by buying blocks of online ad inventory and reselling it to advertisers on a targeted basis.
Teri Donnelly, aQuantive human resources manager, says the company and its operating units hired 100 people this year and they are looking for 100 more for their offices across the country. The company is seeking such hybrid professionals, who are both analytical and creative, and both high-level strategists and implementers.
They want analytical, project management and hi-tech skills “people who are fascinated by the possibilities” online. “We need people who can measure results or know the cost of acquisitions for the company. We don't need to just create the most memorable ads. We need innovators of process rather than content.”
Most of the company's candidates have bachelor's degrees in business, liberal arts or computer sciences or even advanced degrees. But holders of mathematical degrees are welcome to apply.
It is not easy for traditional advertising professionals to make a transition to online advertising. Robert Fleming eMarketing chief, says most jobs in the field require some form of relevant experience or education.
“Unfortunately, you are dealing with a field that is less than five years' old. Demand is strong and supply is limited,” he says. “There are not that many teachers out there.”
The association offers very affordable month-long courses and certifications. The basic course provides an overview of e-marketing techniques and processes. More advanced units offer lessons in e-mail marketing, search engines and site designs. When hiring, employers now first look at experience, then education and certifications, Mr Fleming says.
Candidates should be good at marketing in general, he says. “We need analytical minds coupled with creativity people who can understand markets and can communicate with different groups.”
E时代的营销人才
是否还记得垃圾邮件和弹出广告曾带给我们无限的绝望和挫败感？幸运的是，后来垃圾邮件过滤器和弹出窗口拦截工具相继问世。同样幸运的是，网络营销人员也意识到，如果不想广告信息很快惨遭删除，他们必须采用更为有效的工具。
这些工具的功效日益强大，Google上周公布的第一季度收益报告可见一斑：受网上广告持续猛增的刺激，Google今年首季收入达5200万美元。从总体上来看，美国网上广告收入急速攀升。今年上半年，收入增至46亿美元，几乎是2003年同期的40%。第二季度的总收入为23.7亿美元，标志着第七个季度的持续增长。
“目前，互联网广告无疑攫取了其它媒体的市场份额，”互联网广告局（IAB）总裁兼首席执行官格雷格?斯图亚特（Greg Stuart）说，“营销人士认为，对品牌和销售业绩来说，网上广告常常是达到最佳成本效益的媒介。”
营销专业人士组织电子营销协会（eMarketing Association）会长罗伯特?弗莱明（Robert Fleming）称，网上广告的增长在很大程度上得益于人口特征的改变。虽然电视仍可接触总人口95%以上，但互联网使用者的比例已从一年前的52%上升到62%。与不上网的人相比，上网的人购买力更强，而且更倾向于网上购物。
现在，已有许多新工具在吸引消费者上网购物，其中包括赠券、顾客定向、名人推广，以及在细节处理上其它媒体无法比拟的高质量广告。微软（Microsoft）的MSN.com市场总监埃里克?哈德利（Eric Hadley）表示，业界已经意识到有必要减少垃圾邮件和弹出广告，从而改善网络环境。
美国互动广告局（Interactive Advertising Bureau）公共关系总监艾米丽?库特纳尔（Emily Kutner）说，在过去5年中，该行业已发生了根本性的变化。“5年前，并没有好的数据去支持网上广告确实行之有效的说法；现在已有大量研究数据，营销人士都知道这是可行的。我们不再是‘新’媒体了。大多数营销人员都将网上广告纳入所有的市场推广活动中。”
网上市场营销的成功意味着公司的广告预算必须进行调整。互联网广告局称，2004年第二季度的搜索引擎广告收入从2003年同期的31%升至40%，而报纸和分类广告收入在总预算中的份额有所减少。
这也意味着该领域内的许多工作对人才的要求逐渐发生变化。现在，广告管理人才需要具备多种能力。例如，他们可能需要了解传统媒体形式的有效性，例如电视、印刷品、直接邮件和广告牌，但他们必须也要了解网上广告在其中的作用。不妨看看Monster网上求职公告牌为某大型跨国公司招聘一名综合营销副经理所罗列出来的各项职责：
“支持开发并带领执行战略上相关及符合品牌营销目标的推广计划；提供具有创意的资源，管理预算，执行协调一致的市场活动，并提供详细的结果；设计能实现短期销量目标的综合营销计划，同时仍能增强总的品牌价值；支持将传播意念与公关、交易、广告、互联网和媒体公司等进行整合。”
新兴互联网营销及广告公司的结构均不相同。一些传统的代理公司增加了互动媒体部门。年轻的交互式广告代理公司在找到自己的特别市场，或与其它公司兼并，或将公司出售给较大的竞争对手。
例如，位于美国西雅图的aQuantiy是一家发展迅速的数字营销服务及技术公司，成立于1997年，现已有4个运营部门，而Avenue A/Razorfish是其中最大的独立交互式媒体代理商。它提供的解决方案“深深植根于技术以及严谨的分析方法”，包括制定计划、采购、进行搜索引擎营销，对目标客户定位和剖析，设计互联网系统，以及制定综合市场营销计划。另一部门i-FRONTIER则专门为网站、广告、电子邮件营销、搜索引擎优化、媒体规划及采购进行富有创意的开发。
第三个部门Atlas DMT为广告代理公司和直接广告客户提供数字营销技术。DRIVEpm购买大批量的网上广告空间，然后有针对性地转售给广告客户，从而在网上出版商和广告客户之间搭起一座桥梁。
aQuantive人力资源部经理泰里?唐纳利（Teri Donnelly）说，今年公司及其运营部门雇佣了100名员工，他们还将为全国各大办事处招聘100人。公司寻找的是复合型专业人才：既有分析能力，又有创造力；既是一名高水准的战略家，又是执行者。
他们需要分析能力强、并具有项目管理和高科技能力的人，而且会为网上存在的种种可能性而着迷。“我们需要那些能够衡量结果，或知道收购成本的人。我们不仅需要能创作最令人难忘的广告，而且需要在过程而不是在内容上有创意的人。”
在公司的应聘者中，大部分人具有商科、文科或计算机科学的学士学位，有些学历甚至更高。但也欢迎持有数学学位的人申请。
传统广告专业人士要转向网上广告并不容易。电子营销协会会长罗伯特?弗莱明表示，该领域内的大多数工作需要一定的相关工作经验或教育背景。
“遗憾的是，我们这个领域还不满5岁，而且供不应求，”他说，“这个行业里的老师并不多。”
该协会提供价格完全可以接受的整月课程和证书培训。基础课程概论电子营销技巧和过程。较高级的课程包括电子邮件营销、搜索引擎和网站设计等。弗莱明说，招聘时，雇主首先是看经验，然后是学历和证书。
应聘者应该通晓一般的市场营销，他说，“我们需要的是善于分析、具有创造力、能了解市场并与不同类型的人群进行沟通的人。”
