An online wobble?

Brand Republic 07-Mar-08, 12:20

After successive years of almost unstoppable growth for the online sector, there have been a few signs of its mortality, writes Caroline Worboys, CEO of Broadsystem.

Google's share price has fallen to $464, more than a third below its all-time high of $747 reached in July 2007. This has been driven by news that the number of clicks on Google ads by US consumers in January was down 0.3% year on year to 532m, and down 7% on December 2007.

In addition, Facebook suffered its first decline in UK user numbers for 18 months, losing 400,000 users month-on-month, suggesting the social networking craze has peaked before advertisers have had the chance to cash in on consumer interest.

So can it really be the end of the line for online growth? Or have these brands become jaded already? In truth, there is little cause for concern. Google's UK revenues rose by 56% in 2007 to $2.48bn (£1.27bn). While Facebook admittedly experienced a 5% fall in unique UK users in January 2008, it still plays host to an impressive 8.5m regulars on a monthly basis.

Clearly the shine hasn't come off the online media industry or the likes of Google and Facebook yet, and it is unlikely to do so for some time. However these developments do serve to act as a timely reminder for marketers not to put all their eggs in one basket.

The headline grabbing escapades of Web 2.0 are certainly exciting and undoubtedly important. However it's vital that investment here isn't at the expense of more tried and tested marketing methods.

Email, SMS, direct mail and telecommunications provide a crucial, personal communications channel between brands and consumers. And there are exciting developments with these mediums too, such as video in email, personalised content in emails, and consumers being able to request personalised direct mail or instant telecommunications via SMS.

While the Google and Facebook juggernauts offer compelling opportunities for brands, multichannel customer communication campaigns need to be use in conjunction as key drivers for generating product sales.