MRG Evening Meeting: “The click means nothing”

Online advertising is yet to maximise what it can achieve because the industry is too focused on “the click”, according to comScore’s executive chairman Gian Fulgoni.

Speaking at last night’s Media Research Group evening meeting in London, Fulgoni used comScore’s latest research study to try to convince delegates that the click is not a good metric to use, because “the figures just don’t add up”.

In terms of US figures, click-through rates are going down, Fulgoni said.  In March 2009, only 16% of the US online population clicked on display ads, which means metrics are ignoring the other 84% of users who may well have seen and been influenced by the ad.

comScore found that global CTRs on individual ad campaigns are even lower, with only 0.8% of the UK online population clicking-through.

Fulgoni argued that the industry isn’t maximising the amount of “branding dollars” – with only 5% being spent on branding display ads in 2009, according to figures from the IAB.

“The internet has not maximised what it can achieve because people focus on the click,” Fulgoni said.  “The click means nothing.  It is not just about CTRs, but about engagement, site visits, and the change in buyer behaviour.”

For this reason, Fulgoni says researchers are using the “wrong metrics” to measure the success of online ads.  comScore’s study found that UK online users are exposed to 11% fewer display ads per capita; UK users conduct more searches; there are lower CTRs in the UK; and stronger creatives in the UK – all of which affect the UK v US results.

The key to understanding how to build brands using online advertising is to realise that clicks are the wrong metric and the focus should be on measuring the effect ads have on consumer behaviour, said Fulgoni.

comScore is due to launch its new advertising effectiveness solution AdEffx, which has a fully-integrated platform that combines panel-based digital consumer behaviour with surveys and third-party database matches (taking into account cookie-deletion rates), next month.

The “unified platform allows marketers to see multiple points of impact from a campaign and develop models and best practices for campaign success based on the entire campaign lifecycle,” according to comScore.