The CreaTECH Conference, held May 23-24 in New York and sponsored
by the American Association of Advertising Agencies (4As) and AT&T
Worldwide, explored how to creatively use the Internet to enhance your
image and your client's image, and to turn a profit. Of particular
interest to us were the speakers who shared their ideas on advertising
and public relations on the Web.
Doing Web Advertising
It comes down to executing the "Four Es," says Michael Donahue,
vice president of the 4As. Creating and successfully maintaining ads
on the Internet means perfecting: evaluation of measurement via
Internet protocol HTML; experimentation with episodic, interesting
content and programming; evangelizing to show people its capabilities;
and empowerment, not enfeeblement, with users.
Fine-tuning the relationship between the Internet and customers,
between brands and people, is key. These were the thoughts of G.M.
O'Connell, chairman of Modem Media, who said advertisers must
understand the capabilities of the Internet as a medium, offer
creative ideas and have the commitment it takes to do it right.
Successful advertising means conveying the right message in the right
environment at the right time and to the right "eyeballs and fingers,"
he said.
Valuable Tool for PR Pros
For effective public relations on the Internet, the most
important part of building or maintaining a site is surfing the Web
beforehand to see what is already out there, advised Lydia Trettis,
director of new media at Connors Communications, New York.
Trettis described an ideal site as uncluttered, easy to navigate,
traditionally structured and properly registered with Link masters,
because the most popular way people hear about sites is through the
Internet itself then through traditional media. You can pitch your
site to publishers (through e-mail), newsgroups, and chats. Evaluate
why you want a site and your goals for it, while keeping your
objectives in perspective.
Julie McHenry, president of Wilson McHenry Public Relations,
views the Internet as an exciting new platform to communicate
visibility, awareness, branding and positioning. Traditional media,
(broadcast, print) and the Internet can be utilized through online PR
opportunities like corporate promotional sites, site reviews, and
coverage in electronic versions of traditional print magazines like
Wired's Hotwired and Infoworld's Infoworld Electronic.
McHenry stresses that there are no limits to attention-getting,
and online events like chats, forums, and press conferences are prime
examples. But the press like to get story "tips," scoops, and angles
pitched to them through e-mail.
John R. Kessling, senior vice president and director of strategic
services at Ketchum Public Relations, said that PR firms have not
become strategic enough in establishing a presence on the Web because
they are skipping important steps just to get there faster than their
competitors. "If 1995 was the year of the Web, then this is the year
of assessment and refinement," he says. (AAAA 212/682-2500; Connors
Communications, 212/807-7500; CreaTECH, 914/723-4464; Ketchum
Communications, 212/878-4600; Modem Media, 203/341-5200; Wilson
McHenry, 212/605-0170)