Embattled ad network 24/7 Media is undertaking a new trade advertising campaign designed to increase its appeal to advertising agencies.
This month, ads began appearing in trade print magazines will tout 24/7 Media’s expertise in technology, consulting and managing online marketing and advertising campaigns.
The company, which emerged in 1997 from the union of Petry Interactive, Katz Millennium Marketing’s interactive unit and Interactive Imaginations, says it’s got plenty of experience in every facet of online marketing. And now that ad space is cheap and competitors are relatively silent, it’s offering to share the knowledge it’s gained.
“It’s the start of us getting far more active and aggressive in the trade advertising world,” said 24/7 Media’s Jay Aber, who is senior vice president of marketing. “As everyone sits back and says we should be trimming our marketing budget, we’re feeling exactly the opposite. There’s a tremendous opportunity to tell the 24/7 Media story.”
Internally developed ads appearing in advertising and media trade magazines and online news sites will use a tennis metaphor to communicate 24/7’s prowess.
“This summer, brag about your net results,” reads the campaign copy, showing a graphic of a tennis court. “Get in the game with seasoned pros.” The ads also list 24/7’s capabilities — permission-based e-mail, search engine optimization, online promotions and Web site advertising.
“We’ve been doing this for a long time, and in a time when people are uncertain, you want to turn to people who have a lot of experience,” Aber said. “We think there’s some huge opportunities for marketers to work with us. We can be a supplier to someone who can be a hero to their client or in their own business, and that’s the position we’re going to the marketplace with.”
Of course, the downturn in advertising isn’t only making it easier for 24/7 Media to advertise. In fact, the sluggish ad market — especially in Web media — has promoted the company to embark on a complex turnaround effort. To date, the company has trimmed a large portion of its staff, sold several of its business units, and is contemplating the sale of its European division.
Like other competitors who have reduced their offerings, 24/7 made most of these cuts in an effort to save money. Most companies also believe it prudent to reduce their discretionary budgets — that is, marketing.
But Aber sees it differently.
“As an online marketing company, even in definitely leaner times we need to make sure we’re advertising our message, and we think there’s a huge opportunity to steal share and tell the world about our great products and opportunities,” he said.
The media buy includes print runs in iMarketing News, DMNews, Strategy Magazine in Canada, Direct, and the Adweek group. (Financial specifics of the media buy were not disclosed.)
However, most of the company’s media budget will be going online, with buys on INT Media’s internet.com (which is the parent of internetnews.com) and Michael Tchong’s Iconocast, as well as standalone e-mail and newsletter sponsorships.
The campaign will continue to roll out periodically through July, and will resume in autumn.
The company will also be using its own internal search engine optimization and promotions groups as well. A contest, which is still in the planning stages, will launch sometime next month in an effort to attract marketers with prizes like specialized analyst reports.
“We really feel quite strongly that 24/7 is a partner who will make any advertising agency or advertiser look good,” Aber said. “With the breadth of experience we have in so many different marketing media, whether it’s marketing on Web site, or when to use [Unicast] Superstitials, opt-in e-mail, search engine optimization — we’re the one-stop shop.”
