Competing for Eyeballs : Deep Pockets

In a free web experience for viewers, content providers and content distributors are playing a wait-and-see-the-benefits game. They know the monetization is there, and with new advancements and adaptations in metrics old media thinkers and ad agencies will slowly come around and see the light of WEB 2.0 and the value of targeted relationships. Once and for all the monetization questions will be answered and finished.

Corporations and small content providers waiting to find out how to monetize the web are going to miss the front and middle of the economic wave and its benefits.

People looking into the not so distant future speculating how free communications will impact societies, economics, the environment, and politics are not too hard to find. Take a look at TED tv.

Today most web pages on the internet are Web 1.0. The approach to the customer is old and out moded. Buy Buy Buy! Flashy ads, clutter, nothing personal. Noise = click away.

Web users are offered products to buy that a company wants to sell. Web 2.0 thinking shifts the tables and attracts an audience with free information, and begins to ask people for feedback about the free content they have provided and this begins the conversation between demand creator and consumer, this is the beginning of a trusting relationship.

In the Web 1.0 world...

There is no real communication

In most cases if you do get people to your Web 1.0 site they have no real reason to stay. You are offering content with no substance, you are offering general content when people are looking for specific content and answers, you are offering old style communication, you are not paying attention to the new age of Media Snackers.

This is not about selling product right now, rather

this is about getting the eyeballs

to your site and keeping them, selling products or yourself comes later. Having them come back may mean delivering your content (tv shows, movies, interviews, articles etc) to people automatically via RSS.

Unless you have big understanding sponsers that know the benefits of web exposure without definite metrics your web presence may be a break even or losing proposition for the short run. Broadcasters are not easily willing to reduce costs to advertisers, but advertisers know that internet consumers are consuming because they want the specific media content, the demographic is narrowed greatly therefore reducing costs of getting your message to the right audience. How will broadcasters and cable providers respond to the needs of lower cost, more effective advertising?