Microsites: Effective Brand Awareness and Messaging Tools
Do microsites really work as effective brand awareness and messaging tools? According to new research from Dynamic Logic they do. An average microsite caused a greater increase in overall brand metrics than display advertising, according to a survey of microsite traffic.
"As shown in the chart, we see that on average, microsites impact 7.8% of site visitors with respect to conveying key brand messages. In other words, after visiting a microsite, 7.8% of people become aware of a campaign's message who otherwise would not have been." (Dynamic Logic)
Some of the success of microsites seems obvious. People (customers, clients, etc.) who visit the site are making a decision to learn more about a brand and already have interest. Still, the substantial increase in purchase intent, brand favorability, ad awareness and aided brand awareness shows that a microsite experience offers a company or brand an unusual level of engagement with specific targeted users.
According to Dynamic Logic’s research certain characteristics of microsites succeeded in moving the brand metrics needles more dramatically than others. For example Aided brand awareness was enhanced when the site made very clear the brand’s benefits and particular relevance to the visitor. A good user experience, where the site is easy to navigate and there are simple clear taglines communicating brand benefits, will help the user associate the messaging with the client brand. Brands that entertained or gave useful information to visitors seemed to be the most well received while those who only pushed conversions and more direct sell methods seemed to fall short. Quality content on a site positively impacts purchase intent. This suggests that visitors like to reciprocate when they feel a brand has given them some kind of value.
Traditional advertising, and its share of marketing budgets, is getting smaller. As marketers move away from traditional advertising they are trying to find different ways to reach consumers through broader “marketing services”. These services are aimed at bringing a client closer to the consumer. Digital projects like branded “microsites” have become a part of most b2b marketers’ portfolio of offerings, and these microsites have become increasingly popular among consumer marketers as well.
Unlike banner ads and other digital marketing techniques, which have years of research and post-campaign analysis to prove value as a branding tool, there has been little research on the impact microsites have on visitors relative to other parts of a digital marketing strategy. While they are more expensive to build and maintain than a simple digital campaign, it is clear that they strongly affect the people that publishers can drive to such microsites. That is where ClickWrite comes in. Clickwrite can provide a solution to building expensive microsites and the problem of updating those sites with current content. The benefits of using microsites are obvious and engaging with your consumer, or clients, is more important today than it has ever been. Are you ready to build your brand, increase your awareness, and engage more effectively with customers and clients? It is time to start using microsites.
For more information on Clickwrite please visit us at: www.clickwrite.com
For full PDF of Dynamic Logic's research on microsites visit: Beyond the Click - First Look at Normative Microsite Performance
Additional Source: Steve Smith, MinOnline.com
