Why is this important to know? Because there is so much hype out there about forsaking what is referred to as "traditional" or "old" or even "dead" media resources in favor of "new media". New, or digital, media is primarily internet advertising. There are droves of very vocal new media preachers out there whose sole sermon seems to be that businesses only have to advertise on the internet to be successful.
The main reason I think this happens is because most of these new media evangelists are only familiar with their digital market, so they ignore the rest. They can't offer print or outdoor ads or radio, etc. so they choose to write it off and/or discourage clients from investing in those media. And, yes, they can show you stats to seemingly support their contention.
Well, the survey results from the Pew Research Center's Internet Project indicate something different. There is no industry bias in their results. The results were not just of senior citizens or baby boomers either. Survey participants included ages 18 and up. I recently had a friend ask me to buy something online for them because they had a bad experience trying to order things themselves. I order things all the time, but some people are skittish about doing so. This is just one of the reasons people avoid the internet.
Don't get me wrong. I am not at all discounting the importance or the place of internet advertising. I sell it, along with traditional media.
One of my clients whom I have given a multimedia advertising package recently shared that she knows most of her customers come from the tried-and-true, still effective yellow pages. Print yellow pages! This occurs even though the rest of her program includes local search and major search engine coverage. So all her bases are covered, and as the the advertising scene shifts to internet usage, she is already positioned to maximize her lead generation.
I recently saw a discussion online about beer mat sales. The guy who brought it into the discussion was trying his best to impress the readers with the all-encompassing stand-alone power of beer mats as the be-all, end-all for advertising. The same problem of myopic vision applies in that type of discussion. It is just as ill-advised to only advertise on beer mats as it is to throw your entire advertising budget into the internet. (Possible exceptions: businesses who are e-commerce sites only or who wish to do business online only.)
So again, why is it important to be reminded that not everyone is on the internet, and that on the internet, not everyone is on, say, Facebook (about half the population isn't)? Because if you are wanting to hit the widest potential target for your advertising, you need to find ways to advertise without limiting your audience. 15% of your audience should not be written off or ignored.
Targeting is fine. You don't want to place your message indiscriminately in the creative (branding) forms of media. If you sell a product that will appeal to only certain types of people, target them the best way you can. But remember that your directional media are meant to place your message in front of anyone who goes searching for your product, at the time of their need and whether they have seen your branding advertising or not.
For the best advertising campaign, maintain a balance of traditional and internet, creative and directional, media. And avoid any advertising sales person who tries to steer you away from forms of advertising that he or she doesn't happen to handle. They may be sincere in their belief that they have the mythical magic bullet, but they are sincerely wrong and they will not be working for your best interest. Go after 100% of your potential market, not just 85%.
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