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Rethinking Website Content Content That Entertains
n case you've missed it, complex: simple, because these
the Web has changed; it websites fail to communicate the
seems like just yesterday company's message in a meaningful
it was good enough to take all manner to their visitors, which
your brochures and advertising means no dialog is opened, and
collaterals and convert them to without a dialog, no business can
digital format, add a little be done; and complex, because the
search engine optimization, implementation of the solution
throw-in a little PHP programming requires a new way of thinking
and bingo, you've got a website. about communicating with your
And if you wanted to show how audience using sophisticated
cutting edge your company was, presentation techniques that put
maybe you'd add a little dash of a higher premium on creativity
Flash animation, or some royalty than they do on facts, figures
free music. Well here's a and old-school direct marketing
bulletin from the frontlines, tactics.
that isn't going to cut-it in the
new multimedia Web-business If you are looking for a mantra
environment. to begin any new website
initiative or to correct an
Almost daily I receive emails existing website disaster: Think
from people asking me to review Audience Not Customers.
their websites and tell them why
they can't convert visitors to New Words For A New Web-Business
customers even when they are Environment
attracting significant numbers of
visitors on a regular basis to In the past while I've run across
their sites. three newly coined words or
phrases (Communitainment, Branded
The answer is both simple and Entertainment, and
Snack-o-tainment) that attempt to content.
capture the fundamental change
that has taken place among The report points out that "Video
Web-user expectations. ads will be the driver of the
next major growth in brand
All of the new terms have two advertising …" with the Web being
things in common: one, they "the leading medium at work and
require the marketer to think of the second leading medium at home
website visitors as an audience behind television."
and not as customers; and two,
they all require the marketer to For any business that thought
use entertainment techniques as they could conduct business as
the basis for delivering content. usual, this should be a wake-up
call. The Web has changed: the
Communication + Entertainment + market is no longer content to be
Community informed, they must be seduced,
and you are not going to seduce
The Piper Jaffray Internet Media them with key-word density and
and Marketing research team biz-speak.
recently released a report
entitled 'The User Revolution' in Contrary to popular belief you
which Safa Rashtchy coined the can deliver a marketing message
concept of 'Communitainment,' a faster, more powerfully, and with
blending of the words better recall using creative
communication and entertainment. video presentations than you can
Rashtchy uses the term to denote with a page of text. Now no one
the "melding of communication, is saying you shouldn't have text
community, and entertainment," as on your site, but your copy
a new formula for implementing better be damn interesting and
the delivery of marketing well written if you expect anyone
to actually read it. video presentations as a means of
effectively creating brand
Meaning + Sharing + Experience awareness.
The idea of 'Communitainment' What Baker is talking about is
provides a conceptual framework video that doesn't hit you over
for creating Web-video the head with a hard-sell sales
presentations that work: your pitch or bore you to death with
business communication must meaningless platitudes, but
convey meaning through a focused rather presents entertaining
presentation that uses all the short programs that companies can
various techniques available to attach their brand to so viewers
the savvy Web-producer; your gain a memorable positive
audience must see enough value in impression of your company. This
the presentation that they are is a long-term strategy that
willing to contact others in takes into account the reality
their colleague-community and that not every genuine prospect
share it; and lastly, the that comes to your website is
delivery of the message must ready to buy your product at that
create a memorable entertaining moment but might, when and if
experience associated with the they remember who you are, when
product or service provided. they are ready to buy.
Branded Entertainment There are many ways to implement
this 'branded entertainment'
Leta Baker writes in her 'Adobe concept and they all don't have
Magazine' article 'Creative to be completely devoid of
Persuasion: The Rise of Branded salesmanship. The Apple iPod
Entertainment' about her concept commercials are an example of
of using entertaining online what I would call 'branded
entertainment,' even if Leta next installment of the campaign.
Baker would object. Unlike most Audiences are getting the message
commercials that people race to and that is all any good
avoid, the iPod commercials are marketing campaign can achieve.
actually anticipated: people want
to know what Apple is going to And here is the big hurdle for
come up with next, and the many small businesses: good
result: iPod has the lion's share marketing requires patience and
of the MP3 player market. should be aimed at opening a
dialog, not just making a quick
The Apple Macintosh commercials sale.
are another form of 'branded
entertainment' that involves a Most website sales pitches are
sales pitch. Here we have an like bad 'pick-up' lines: crude
ongoing campaign with and ineffective; an audience
well-developed characters that needs to be wooed with tender
the audience has gotten to know loving care before you can expect
over the length of the campaign. to see any results. If you're not
The audience looks forward to willing to invest the time and
what these characters are going creativity in opening a dialog
to do next. This does not mean with your audience, you can
that every PC owner is going to forget about using the Internet
run out and buy a Mac, but over as a marketing tool.
time Apple is getting people to
recognize their product as an Snack-o-tainment: Fast Food
alternative. Entertainment
Because the commercials are The term 'Snack-o-tainment' was
entertaining, people are used by Nancy Miller in her
listening and waiting for the 'Wired' magazine article
'Manifesto for a New Age" in television, there is no costly
which she equates consumption of premium associated with time on
new media to societies addiction the Internet, so content can be
to fast food. If the audience is as long or short as the message
addicted to entertaining media, requires.
we as marketers must feed that
addiction. A campaign based on this formula
can come complete with
It wasn't that long ago that the plot-lines, character
biggest objection to online video development, and signature music
was it took too long to load; now all designed to deliver your
we see it compared to fast food. marketing message in an
The fact is video can deliver a entertaining way that will not
meaningful message in the only get stuck in your audience's
quickest possible way because it memory, but will be anticipated
conveys content using the full by that same audience. The famous
arsenal of communication tools. 'Taster's Choice' soap opera
style campaign of years ago was
We can look to television for a one of the best examples of
blueprint of how to deliver these combining entertainment with a
bite-sized morsels of corporately commercial message.
nutritious, entertaining,
marketing manna. Even the lowly jingle can be
resurrected to provide some
The thirty-second commercial is 'sit-up and take notice' to an
an example of just how much otherwise mundane presentation.
memorable content can be crammed You would be hard pressed to find
into a short period of time if a anyone who doesn't know the
little entertaining creativity is recipe for MacDonald's Big Mac,
added to the mix. And unlike based on their fabulously
successful commercials, even If your business is expanding as
though they haven't been aired in fast as it can with an
years. In fact MacDonald's ever-growing list of customers
current roster of commercials are and continuously increasing
so forgettable that you wonder profits, then perhaps you can
why they haven't brought the old afford to ignore the changes
standby back to life. taking place, and the
expectations of your audience.
Another bit of delicious But if things could be better,
marketing entertainment was the and if you yearn to improve your
series of Chili's Restaurant Web-marketing, then you have to
commercials featuring various adjust to new ways of delivering
singers interpreting their 'Baby content.
Back Ribs' jingle, which provided
far more entertainment in thirty You can't let out-dated thinking
seconds than a full CD of Britney get in your way. There is a
Spears. More importantly that difference between twenty year's
infectious 'baby back ribs' song experience, and one year's
has become deeply rooted in the experience repeated twenty times.
public's subconscious, and when There is no point in continuing
the inevitable questions comes to repeat old methods that no
up, 'where are we going to eat?' longer work.
that jingle starts playing in our
heads. If you want to be You know things have changed so
successful, learn from what get ready to deliver your content
works. in a way that will allow your
company to become the next great
Can You Afford To Wait Web success story.
About the Author:
Jerry Bader is Senior Partner at MRPwebmedia, a website design firm that specializes in Web-audio and Web-video. Visit http://www.mrpwebmedia.com/ads, http://www.136words.com, and http://www.sonicpersonality.com. Contact at info@mrpwebmedia.com or telephone (905) 764-1246
Read more articles by: Jerry Bader
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