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Mastering the A,B’s

To successfully execute a digital advertising campaign, you must first master the ABCs of digital advertising.  Generating valuable insights and delivering the best results for ad campaigns starts with testing your messages, images, and target audiences.

A common practice in marketing is A/B testing, which strategically tests two variables against each other. Applying this practice to advertising is not new. In Confessions of an Advertising Man, David Ogilvy discusses the value in testing: “When in doubt as to which of two illustrations to use, test their relative pulling power by split-running them in a newspaper.”

An advantage digital advertising offers is the real-time results that can be learned from each landing page or ad during the campaign. At any given moment, ad buyers can see what ads are performing best and then allocate additional budget to them. Today, you no longer have to wait for readers to use the coupons in newspaper ads to understand which messages, images, or platforms are most effective. Ad buyers can see what ads are working and, if necessary, have design teams make additional changes to ads to further improve performance.

Making iterative improvements to ads is the surest way to maximize the results of your campaign. For example, CRAFT recently ran a campaign for a local business looking to generate leads. We began with two landing pages, and the only difference between the pages were the Call to Action (CTA). After a week, the results confirmed CTA (A) was more successful at converting people than CTA (B). Once we understood which CTA worked best, we then tested two images. Again, after a week (the time necessary, in this instance, to generate statistically significant information), we used the data to determine the best performing image and then paired it with the best performing CTA.

With data-driven creative and additional A/B testing for the landing page, CRAFT was able to drive down the cost-per-acquisition (CPA) from almost $100 to under $20.  This dramatic decrease in the CPA was a result of CRAFT managing our client’s ad buy to ensure we could generate the correct data to make an informed decision.  The reduction can also be attributed to testing various elements on the landing page such as the image, CTA, and even button colors and placement. With the results, CRAFT utilized the data to make informed decisions which eliminated instinct-based outcomes.

A/B testing is not a new technique, but it has yet to become fully utilized in digital advertising campaigns. Testing various elements of your ads and/or landing page provides valuable information that should direct all of your advertising decisions. A/B testing requires significant time, budget, and a team with direct access to advertising data. It also requires the knowledge to understand the data in order to make actionable decisions. In every campaign, CRAFT relies on data to make informed decisions, which can help us drive down the CPA by 80% in some instances.

When running a digital advertising campaign, focus on the ABCs — that way, even your “failures” can ultimately lead to greater success.

Congrats!

CRAFT congratulates the new members of the 114th Congress, especially those we helped to elect.

CRAFT congratulates the new members of the 114th Congress, especially those we helped to elect.

CRAFT’s Efforts to Fight Digital Ad Fraud and Viewability Issues

Fraud and viewability in the digital ad space has been a hot topic in 2014. Recently, Google released a study claiming 56.1% of all digital ads are unseen. These issues should be a concern for any digital ad buyer, but can be overcome using technology and knowhow. CRAFT’s digital buying practice ensures campaigns produce the best results with the least amount of waste and fraud, providing the best value for our clients.

How is this done?

To combat fraud and waste CRAFT has taken numerous steps to empower our ad buying team with the tools and information necessary to make the most educated decisions for each campaign. This began when we built our own trading desk, CRAFT Levers. Using Levers we have direct access into our campaigns and full transparency into where and when our ads run. Using this information we can generate “black lists” of suspect websites so campaigns never run in questionable inventory. This is important because the Google study points out, “a small number of publishers are serving most of the non-viewable impressions.”

Each site our ads run on is scrutinized to determine the credibility of the site and the likelihood our ads will be served and seen. If we believe an uncharacteristic spike in impressions is the result of bots or unseen ads, we block that site for the current and future campaigns. On the flip side, when we see credible, well performing sites we select them for our “white list.” With each campaign, we are improving our understanding of which sites to run on and which sites to block.

While it is experience and knowledge that differentiates CRAFT, technology is necessary to help inform the decision making process. To do this, we enhance the human element of our ad buying operation by utilizing technologies like Integral Ad Science’s TRue Advertising Quality (TRAQ) score to analyze each ad impression we deliver. Using tools like this empowers our ad buyers by providing additional information that safeguards against potential fraud and viewability issues.

While digital ad fraud and viewability are concerning issues, waste is pervasive in all media. How many TV ads ran last night that went unseen? How many print ads in newspapers go unseen? There will always be fraud and viewability issues in all forms of advertising, but the advantage of digital is the ability to measure and make actionable decisions to counter these issues.

Tweet. Congress Listens.

When you tweet, does Congress listen?

As organizations and constituents ponder that question, CRAFT has perfected the answer.

CRAFT has worked with top social networks, members of Congress, trade associations, and candidates.  We understand how social media can be used to complement government affairs efforts by creating awareness around a legislative issue, amplifying a legislators’ position, or bringing attention to a non-supporter. Utilizing social media to advance government affairs initiatives drives results.

When engaging with a member of Congress on social media, it’s most effective to tailor your message to their audience and constituents. Localizing the message in a way that is pertinent to the Member’s constituency is the most effective method to draw engagement. This is why CRAFT’s social media and digital advocacy approach is successful.

On behalf of our clients, we engage with legislators who support our issues, thanking them for their leadership.

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However, we are not afraid to reach out to those that are indecisive or who take harmful policy stances.

Steve Stivers

This begins a conversation that creates tangible results.

Baldwin engagement

In a recent survey, congressional staffers noted that their members found social communication to be authentic and organic,

“In a poll of House and Senate offices by the Congressional Management Foundation, three quarters of senior staff said that between one and 30 comments on social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter were enough to grab their attention on an issue. Thirty-five percent said that fewer than 10 comments were enough.” (Source: Connectivity by Roll Call)

At CRAFT, we adhere to this approach.  By leveraging creative to engage with congressional leaders, their staff, and their constituents. Social media has become an essential component of any government affairs initiative.

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So start the conversation, because when you tweet, Congress listens.

 

CRAFT Takes Political Campaign Tactics, Tools and Technology to Organizations, Associations and Brands.

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CRAFT Announces Break Away From Candidate Campaigns, Advancing Further in Public Affairs, PR and Corporate Branding.

Dear friends, I wanted to share important news.

The culmination of this election cycle marks the beginning of CRAFT’s fifth year – a short while for a five-person start-up. We have grown into our third office with over 30 team members, won 55 agency awards, served 367 clients and booked over $65 million in advertising.

But, the reason for my note is to share with you that today CRAFT | Media / Digital’s mission is changing and expanding. CRAFT will no longer serve political candidate campaigns, instead shifting our primary focus – and creative, strategic and technological – resources into the public affairs, PR and corporate branding sectors.

SEE OUR PURSUIT

Our quest is to delve deeper. The world of media, digital, messaging, ideas and culture is exploding. At no other time in history has the way people consume information changed more significantly than in the last ten years. There is no more appropriate time than now to sharpen our focus and create outcomes for clients from this dynamic information consumption environment.

We’re an agency born of revolutionary impulse, hell-bent on marketing ideas, and communicating on behalf of people, brands and entities that impact our culture for the better.

The move to break away from candidate work is a logical step in a direction to grow our passionate desire for greater aesthetic expression and technological innovation – delivering results for brands, organizations, industries, coalitions and people. However, only through this departure from candidate campaigns will we achieve our greatest expression of personal freedom.

Our mission is clear. Our team of industry, issue and advocacy experts is expanding. Our tactics, tools and technologies will remain cutting edge. We are eager to bring more success to our partners and clients.

SEE WHAT’S NEW

We Hold These “Truths” To Be False

In politics, there are “truths” that exist — until they are refuted by actual facts. These “truths” are a result of promises from candidates or previous experiences. Examples of these include: “If you like your doctor, you can keep your doctor,” and “Republicans trail Democrats when it comes to digital campaigning.”

The first has already been debunked. This election year, expect the second to be disproved.

While Republicans had ceded digital supremacy in previous elections, the gap has closed, and Republicans no longer trail Democrats on the technology front. In Darren Samuelsohn’s recent POLITICO article, “The Battle for Digital Supremacy,” CRAFT Partner, Matthew Dybwad, highlighted this by pointing out: “There are no tools absent in the toolbox on our side…At this point, it’s really about smart use and it’s not about clamoring for the shiny object that we don’t have.”

His analysis is spot on. The parties are no longer separated with regard to access to technology. As we move into 2014 and beyond, it will be savvy use of digital technology that will influence elections and help smart campaigns win before they even get to November.

CRAFT has been at the forefront of closing the technology gap. Last year, we launched our own Agency Trading Desk, CRAFT Levers, that provides clients direct access to premium display, social, and video inventory across the internet. This direct access means our advertising experts are in total control of each campaign, making optimization decisions based on real-time data, and ensuring our clients’ campaigns are reaching the right people, with the right message, at the right time.

CRAFT stays ahead of the curve by powering our campaigns with the best data available. This includes a new agreement with Data Trust that provides CRAFT with access to key Republican Party voter segments in competitive districts across the country. CRAFT Levers identifies and targets key audience segments with persuasion and GOTV messaging, positioning our clients for efficient and effective voter engagement needed to win in November.

The truth is: the digital gap is closed. The new battlefront centers on how campaigns will deploy data to effectively leverage digital technology to reach the right audiences, with the most persuasive message. It is imperative that Republicans make the most of these powerful tools at our disposable. As we’ve seen in the past, failing to effectively identify, target, and engage key audiences online leads to campaign losses on Election Day.

To learn more about CRAFT’s efforts and Levers, please visit: www.CRAFTdc.com/Levers.

CRAFTing the Brand

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According to Forbes, the three most valuable brands in the world are Apple, Microsoft and Coca-Cola. There aren’t many names on the Forbes list of top one-hundred brands that don’t evoke a mental image: logo, advertisement or experiential memory of one of their products.

It is not a coincidence that the names in this list are immediately discernible in today’s sea of competition. It is the cumulative result of how their brands are communicated: audience research and heedful positioning guided by thoughtful design.

The definition of branding has evolved over past centuries from literal livestock branding, to nomenclature as a means of differentiation among competitors, to the broad sense of how the audience perceives it.  Michael Eisner, former CEO of The Walt Disney Company from 1984-2005 likened branding to the idea of the individual. “A brand is a living entity – and it is enriched or undermined cumulatively over time, the product of a thousand small gestures.”

The elements of a brand have evolved to encompass messaging, various visual media, and sensory components that explain the brand as well as differentiate for consumers. Yankelovich, a market research firm, estimates that a person living in a city sees more than twice as many ad messages a day than they did 30 years ago; brand differentiation has become a vital task.

Design, like audience research and messaging, is essential to brand development, visibility, recognition, and positioning.

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Establishing the look of the logo is only step one. Developing an identity system and adhering to it religiously through a visual standards guide are equally as important in maintaining the brand’s messaging perception through advertising and social media. Brand consistency and attention to detail help build recognition and reinforce trust in the brand.

CRAFT is cognizant of the value of the brand and how it engages with its audience. CRAFT observes from every angle and anticipates audience perception through research driven data and design contoured to evoke distinctive emotive responses and psychological traits. Our expertise relies on a holistic strategy to branding, considering all aspects of messaging and mediums in communicating to audiences. This is how CRAFT helps clients find success, time and again.

Determining optimal solutions at inception are necessary investments in establishing consistency. As trust is built, it is crucial to monitor and maintain the brand’s entity at it grows and evolves. BRANDING: If you CRAFT and cultivate it, they will come.

 

Brian Donahue on C-SPAN “Washington Journal”

Emotional Ads

CRAFT| Media/Digital Partner Brian Donahue discussing the impact of culture and emotion in two classic political ads on C-SPAN’s “Washington Journal.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WYD4yTNg_44&feature=youtu.be

Watch the ads discussed here:

1952 Eisenhower Political Ad – “I Like Ike”

1964 LBJ Political Attack Ad – “Daisy”

Testimonial Ads

Brian Donahue discusses the validating effect of real people telling real stories about candidates in testimonial ads — an important development this cycle.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNydnF8WtLY

Understanding Visual Terminology

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American designer Charles Eames defined design as “A plan for arranging elements in such a way as best to accomplish a particular purpose.”

The basic components of visual compositions are broken down into “elements” and “principles.” These have a range of applications, from classical paintings and photography to more contemporary utilizations of advertising and UI/UX design. One must consider the arrangement of elements and application of design principles to determine the success of a piece objectively, rather than subjectively. The elements of design are the key parts whereas the principles are the manner in which they are implemented.

The elements of design:                                 

Key design principles are:

1. Line

1. Balance

2. Shape

2. Rhythm/Repetition

3. Texture

3. Movement

4. Color

4. Contrast/Dominance

5. Value

5. Harmony/Unity

6. Space

6. Proportion/Scale

7. Form

Ultimately, the fundamental goal of visual communication is to convey a message to a particular audience. When judging a design’s effectiveness, we must consider three things:

  1. Accessible information: Is the text legible? Can someone with poor eyesight read the data?
  2. Visual hierarchy: Control how the eye travels. Is the most important information being observed first and quickly?
  3. Aesthetic stamina: Trendy appears dated quickly and will commonly be overlooked by audiences. To quote the late graphic designer Massimo Vignelli, “If you do it right, it will last forever.”

Too often, agencies rush to get creative out the door that is visually engaging, but fail in communicating the basic message to the audience.

…not at CRAFT. Our design team is keenly aware of the necessity and effectiveness of using these elements and principles, giving proper consideration to how the viewer will absorb the content.

Take this eblast for example:

Danielle crafting creative

At first glance, it’s simple. It’s clean. It’s light on copy. But take a closer look, and see if you can discern how the elements and principles were applied to create an aesthetic and successful solution.

And now, consider yourself well-versed in the dialogue of design. It’s one thing to observe. It’s quite another to understand.

Design: It’s more than meets the eye.