US consumer electronics marketers spent $1.9 billion online in 2006, or 13.7% of their ad budgets, according to new research from eMarketer.
However, according to the
Consumer Electronics Online: Converged or Confused? report, skepticism about ease of use, integration and hidden costs are keeping many would-be buyers on the sidelines.
eMarketer says that the industry may not be using the effectively as a medium to educate consumers. According to Deloitte, more than half of the consumer electronics devices returned to stores last year were in working condition and the average consumer spent just 20 minutes trying to set up a new device before giving up.
Emerging tactics such as microsites, blogs and viral marketing are already integral parts of online campaigns in the consumer electronics industry.
Though they may be ahead of their peers, “trying for cool and edgy online brings risks,” says Lisa Phillips, senior analyst and author of the report. “Sony, for example, is still feeling the backlash among bloggers who last December exposed its alliwantforxmasisaPSP.com site as a fake blog created by an agency.”
Recent research from comScore showed that the owners of digital music players (DMPs) in the US represent an attractive audience for consumer electronics advertisers (see Owners of Digital Music Players Have High Affinity For Online Shopping).
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