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Banners Flying High
While it's probably way too soon to report on advertising
performance at the Hima Ari Web we are excited by preliminary indications.
Flying at full staff for just three months, banners on the online version
of Binbo Hima Ari are already generating average click-through
rates [CTRs] of 1.64%. That compares very favourably to an industry average
of just 0.2% a year ago. And while those industry-wide CTRs are considered
good, the big players are achieving those rates through the deployment
of controversial targeting technologies based on keywords, geographic
location and the tracking of individual browsing behaviour online.
Trashy Tactics Out
At Hima Ari Web we follow a decidedly low-tech approach. Because of the structure of content there is no need to utilize subterfuge or other dubious tactics to garner the attention of visitors. Neither do we have to appeal to the egos or insecurities of online readers to sell iPods, ram-tough trucks or other superfluous consumer products.
Nirvana - Even Buddah has seen the light
of online omnipresence. In order to remain relevant in the modern world
many temples and shrines in Japan have established a presence online.
More savvy than seer, the big guy recognizes that e-tourists will browse
first and take pictures later. Religion? Says who? This is big business.
Brian Grover Photo
Give 'em What They Want
Our approach is simple. Against the backdrop of tripe and clutter that characterize Internet in 2005, we provide the kind of high-quality content that is in demand by those in Japan who are considering traveling abroad to study, work and play. We marry that content with the real world needs that those content users will face when they arrive in Canada. The commercial aspect to the site is just one more dimension to the content, providing highly sought-after specifics on basics such as food, shelter, educational opportunities, entertainment and travel options and more dispersed consumer needs such as bookshops, opticians, medical clinics, immigration services, storage, currency exchanges and that kind of thing.
Fill The Gap
In short, we present what educational tourists need in a highly charged context.
Long-Term Impact
This approach is obviously working as indicated by the extraordinarily high click-through rates. Click-throughs are not the whole picture however. CTRs are a good measure of impulse behaviour but there is more to the medium than the massage. As online advertising matures indicators of long-term impact are gaining more adherents. View through rates or VTRs, a measurement of consumer action within 30 days of exposure to online advertising, are chief among those indicators.
The Power of Brand
Kathryn Kagle of Doubleclick, a major purveyor of the
worst incarnations of Internet advertising, puts VTRs into perspective:
"The stagnation of click-throughs and the growth of post-impression
metrics like view-throughs could reflect growing use of online advertising
for branding". Kagle, Editor-in-Chief of Doubleclick's 2003 Advertising
Trend Report says this trend "signals the use of more creative executions
designed to have impact over time rather than solicit immediate response."
She called the trend "more evidence showing that online advertising, like
print and TV, has latent impact of effectiveness over time."
Making Progress
As a consequence, some of the more scurrilous elements of early Internet advertising have been supplanted by brand-consciousness. Indeed, 30% of all internet advertising was undertaken by Fortune 500 companies in 2004.
Enough Fish in the Sea? - Fishermen in the
Land of the Rising Sun rise early to catch the big ones. You should too.
Educational tourists browse first, take lessons later. Powerful content
at Hima-Ari Web gives Canada an edge over other popular study-abroad destinations
like Australia, New Zealand, the US and Great Britain.
Brian Grover Photo
A Break Out Year
In May 2005, Goldman Sachs predicted that online advertising could reach $12.3 billion this year, and that it could account for as much as 7 percent of total ad spending by 2009, up from between 4 and 5 percent in 2004. Goldman Sachs has labelled 2005 "a breakout year" for Internet advertising. "Top 200 advertisers have transitioned from testing online advertising to making it a permanent component of their marketing mix," the third annual study of Internet usage noted.
Market Share Stolen
Industry-wide online advertising is stealing market share from other more traditional forms, hastening the decline of network television, magazines and newspapers as delivery vehicles.
Third Spot Take Over
And the trend is global. According to a report by the Dentsu Communication Institute cited in the Nihon Keizai Shimbun, the Internet will overtake radio and magazines as soon as 2007 to become the third-largest advertising medium in Japan.
I got the guidebook today. Binbo Hima Ari guide has more info
than I expected it would. I'm going to prepare for my study abroad from
now! I got to go. Thanks. --From reader who ordered Binbo Hima Ari
Free & Easy Guide online.
Deep Penetration
This June, the Japanese media giant Impress Group, released
its 10th annual internet survey revealing some surprising trends. Internet
penetration has reached 88% of Japanese households with broadband usage
accounting for 36.2%. By way of comparison, Canadian connectivity remains
stalled at 73% TNS Canadian Facts reported as recently as August 2005.
At 56% of Canadian households, broadband penetration outstrips that of
Japan in part due to the ubiquitousness of wireless in the island nation.
Online Purchasing Behaviour
More enlightening is the remarkable change that online purchasing has gone through with 46.5% of Internet users reportedly decreasing spending in bricks and mortar shops because of online shopping. Considering that online purchasing in Japan was broadly viewed with fear and trepidation not five years ago this is an astounding turnaround.
Trust & Confidence
Consumer trust and confidence in the online experience is now attracting the big consumer brands as indeed brand awareness is a key factor in approaching the Japanese market both off and online. Overall, spending on Internet advertising in Japan is projected to triple between the years 2004 to 2009 according to industry think tank Dentsu Communication Institute.
Large & Sophisticated
"From a size and sophistication standpoint, it is a very attractive marketplace," Jonathan Hsu, CFO of 24/7 Real Media said at the February 2005 launch of 24/7's Japanese wing. "The Japanese market is very advanced technologically and has one of the highest household broadband penetrations in the world. From the sheer size of the overall economy and the market itself, Japan represents the second-largest market opportunity for Internet advertising."
Weblogs Empower Young Women
Further indicators that the Internet has come of age in Japan
relate to the phenomenon of blogging. According to the Impress Group,
fully 72.5% of Internet users have heard of blogs, up from just 39% in
2004. In fact, a surprising 25% of women in their teens and 20's have
their own blogs. That this youthful, media savvy demographic overlaps
quite neatly with Hima Ari Publications' own readership demographic should
come as no surprise as we have seen the future and it is happening now.
The other day I got Binbo Hima Ari guide. Thank you so much
for sending it. I'm so glad to get this book which has everything I wanted
to know about living in Canada. --From reader who ordered Binbo Hima
Ari Free & Easy Guide online.
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