Netpop | Response Report Finds That Bigger Isn’t Always Better For Online Advertising

New study from Media-Screen shows consumers more responsive to ads on niche web sites

(SAN FRANCISCO)- Dec. 12, 2006 - New research shows that when choosing where to place their ads, brands can no longer ignore smaller sites with lower traffic. As online consumers pursue their personal passions to the outer-reaches of the web, they visit a variety of large and small sites along the way. Netpop™ | Response, a new report on online advertising, finds that consumers are more responsive to advertising on web sites that best serve their personal interests.

The new study by Media-Screen, a market research firm that focuses on the online consumer, examines how broadband users respond and react to advertisements online. Netpop | Response finds that small, long tail web sites, are indispensable to consumers and provide a new way for brands to place ads based on where users want to see them.

“Consumers have gained control over the content they consume online and advertisers need to adjust their strategies to match,” said Josh Crandall, managing director of Media-Screen. “By advertising on smaller web sites, those that consumers are visiting based on their personal interests, companies can reach a highly engaged consumer with a message that relates to a subject that is important to them.”

Participants in the Netpop | Response study were asked to identify three websites they use for each of their special interests. Respondents listed more than 17,700 mentions of web sites. By analyzing these sites, Media-Screen found that smaller sites are not only more likely to advertise products and brands that consumers are interested in, these sites are also more likely to prompt consumers to recommend or purchase the products advertised on these sites.

In fact, 42 percent of the sites with less than one million unique visitors are likely to advertise products or brands of interest, compared to 39 percent of sites with one million visitors or more. There is statistical evidence that consumers feel that the advertising included on smaller sites is more beneficial to them than the advertising on larger sites.

“Search engines are a driving force behind these trends, enabling broadbanders to venture beyond the major brands to the niche sites they previously never knew existed,” said Cate Riegner, research director of Media-Screen. “62% of sites that respondents mention receive less than one million unique visitors.”

In addition to special interests and size of site, Netpop | Response examines the impact of type of site (e.g., shopping or search engine), demographics and psychographics, on response to advertising among broadband consumers. Netpop | Response is available through prepared reports and custom consulting engagements to address specific client needs. For more information about Netpop, please visit www.NetpopResearch.com or call 415-647-1007.

About the Research
Netpop | Response explores consumer response to online advertising among broadband users ages 13 and older. The study investigated 118 special interest categories, generating 17,772 site mentions and spanning 4,150 unique Web domains (e.g. www.wikipedia.org). . This portion of the survey was fielded to a random sample of 1,356 people in the U.S. who access the Internet via a broadband connection.

About Netpop™
Netpop is an ongoing study that marks the maturation of the consumer broadband market in the U.S. The study highlights the diversity within the broadband population, with a special focus on their attitudes and behaviors around advertising, shopping, entertainment and mobile devices. Netpop helps companies better understand their customers, constructing an industry-wide framework to drive more successful online products and marketing initiatives. For more information, please visit www.NetpopResearch.com.

About Media-Screen™
Media-Screen provides strategic market research services focusing on the online consumer in the US and around the world. Since 1997, the firm’s research and consumer insights have influenced the product development and marketing decisions of companies competing in the digital and physical marketplaces. Based in San Francisco, Media-Screen works with Fortune 1000 companies interested in competing effectively in the modern consumer market. For more information, please visit www.media-screen.com.

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Ellisa Feinstein

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Media-Screen

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