Our Thoughts

Digital Marketer Interviews: Eric Rowe of APN

January 10, 2012 by Marian Schembari

Welcome to Digital Interviews – where we talk to people we admire about what’s hot in the world of digital marketing.

Eric Rowe has done everything from sell persimmons at farmer’s markets to running an online retail store. He’s also had jobs taste-testing celery and timing spider-mite copulations. As you do. After a 35-year OE in California, Rowe is now a Media Research Analyst for APN Online where he assists the commercial team at nzherald.co.nz. He also helps with industry education by passing along articles he finds interesting and relevant at eric says.

Check out his chat with us below….

What digital changes this year have you really loved?

Since I work in news media my focus has been on digital developments in this area, and the world hasn’t disappointed this year. Everyone is experimenting, from semi-porous paywalls like The New York Times to splitting your site into paid and unpaid versions like The Boston Globe. There are subscriptions for tablet apps, improved audience and location targeting for advertiser supported news, and Facebook integrated apps from organisations like The Guardian.

I can’t pass digital change without highlighting we’ve finally reached the tipping point for mobile. Now more people buy smartphones than feature phones. Mobile traffic is skyrocketing. This growth isn’t at the expense of traditional web but is a great additional user touchpoint if you do it right. It’s an incredibly exciting roller-coaster to be on.

There is no silver bullet or one solution for monetising digital news. Even in print there have always been multiple revenue streams and each media company has their own secret sauce. What’s fascinating is watching everyone experiment in the kitchen.

What new tools do you think won’t catch on?

Highly-financed digital pure plays. Many of these are being built around social or location, such as Oink (which is like FourSquare for topics and things rather than locations). The problem with these is that as user behaviour consolidates around profile-driven platforms, if you’re not part of a site with audience media time spent on it, you’re going to be ignored. Google is a great example of this as even they recognise they need to be a platform, not just a one-trick pony if they expect to dominate the next decade.

And of course I’m going to go with anything that doesn’t make your life easier. If I have to do something to get a reward or service, it better be the most amazing thing ever. I’m busy and lazy, and so is everyone else.

What’s the biggest challenge for people (both consumers and agencies) to embrace digital marketing?

In any disrupted or fast-moving market the biggest challenge will always be education. Technology such as digital formats and devices are evolving so quickly the infrastructure built into the advertising world can’t keep up. Fear and uncertainty around results mean that opportunities are being wasted in exchange for safe and comfortable old executions that won’t get anyone fired, but won’t produce the results more innovative solutions can.

And on the research and analytics side there are additional challenges like relying on ineffective metrics such as clicks (they might as well be counting hits) and not measuring the conversions, brand metrics and ROIs that matter.

What’s your favourite digital campaign at the moment and why do you think it’s a success?

The Tesco Home Plus supermarket chain in Korea has a brilliant digital campaign. In subway stations they have walls covered with pictures of their store aisles and all the products have QR codes commuters can scan and add to their cart. When they’re done shopping they click to purchase and the groceries are delivered to their door right after they get home.

This does everything right, which is why it’s so effective. The problem in Korea was not enough time to shop, so Tesco jumped on the fact that everyone carries mobile devices. They understood a key time to use mobile is waiting in queues like for trains and buses. By putting need, opportunity and execution together they hit the magic button of making the lives of their customers easier. And that kind of campaign will always be a big winner.

Connect with Eric on Twitter or subscribe to his blog.

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• Digital Marketer Interviews: Guy Gonzalez of Media Source
• Digital Marketer Interview: Amber Naslund of Radian6
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Tags: Additional User, Apn, Boston Globe, Copulations, Digital Developments, Digital Interviews, Digital Kitchen, Digital Marketer, digital marketing, Digital News, Feature Phones, Industry Education, New York Times, Nzgirl, Nzherald, Nzherald Co Nz, Persimmons, Research Analyst, Revenue Streams, Roller Coaster, Silver Bullet, Silver Bullets, Spider Mite, Taste Test, Taste Testing, Time Employee, Touchpoint, Traditional Web

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