Is Multimedia Right For Your Online Business?

Adding rich media to your web site could help you hit the jackpot. When deciding whether it will work for you, here are some things to consider.

It's no secret to many small business owners that Internet broadband penetration in U.S. homes continues to rise, and that most U.S. workers — more than 86 percent in 2005 — have access to high-speed Internet connections, according to Nielsen/Netratings. This translates to more online shoppers than ever before who possess the speed and ability to accommodate sophisticated media. Online businesses should be looking at building marketing strategies that capitalize on this trend. Implementing rich media on your web site could be the right approach.

Rich Media Defined
A term that's open to numerous interpretations, rich media is generally defined as interactive digital media that displays dynamic motion through the use of audio, video, or animation. Some common examples of rich media are banner ads, Flash, or streaming video.
Broadband has given online users the ability to watch television and listen to the radio on their computers. All signs point to online advertising trying to keep up with the latest technology. In fact, Nielson/Netratings reports that since 2000, as broadband adoption has increased, the use of rich media has grown along with it.

A Dynamic Medium
Rich media can add an eye-catching component to your online marketing and advertising campaigns. It effectively delivers subtleties in your advertising message that the old medium, with its static or slow-moving graphics, couldn't possibly deliver. With rich media, your ad can float across a user's screen or appear between the pages of a site as the user clicks through.

Rich media also employs more interactive and engaging experiences exclusively for Internet users, such as pull-down menus to provide more information about your products, or online order forms that automatically populate personal data previously entered by your customer.

Measuring Success
You can choose from several methods to track and measure return on investment (ROI) from your rich media advertising campaign, according to Doubleclick Inc.'s 2005 report, "The Evolution of Rich Media Advertising." These include factors as simple as your advertisement's display time and user interaction rate to brand effectiveness metrics such as customers' "ad recall" and message association with your product.

Some Final Words
Now that you have an idea of what rich media has to offer, ask yourself these three questions before adding rich media to your web site, courtesy of Stephen McDonald, director of RTML Development for Solidcactus.com:

1. Does this really reach your target audience? You should consider as many of your typical customers as you can. If the majority of your customer base is generally not "up" on the latest technologies, or isn't likely to have the most recent versions of everything installed on their PCs, it is unlikely they will be impressed with this fancy addition.

2. Do you have a message that can only be conveyed through rich media, or are you adding flash just to "be flashy?" Most visitors won't appreciate the extra download time unless you have a specific reason to use rich media.

3. Can all the components of your rich media also be accessed elsewhere on the web site? While keeping up with the newest technology is important, you also want your web site to be inclusive. Not everybody has the latest browser or plug-in or even wants to. Some of your customers may still browse on text-based browsers. That being the case, everything that's in your Flash page should also be accessible on a regular page, usually in the footer in a series of horizontal "bar" links.

Back to Top Email Printer Friendly View

RATE THIS ARTICLE
Rate it:

Overall Rating: Very Good