SpectatorBytes

As I have discussed in previous posts, the Web is dominated by performance-driven rather than brand advertising. To explain my point, I have always cited the lack “Colgate Ads” around the Web. This is because growing up, Colgate was one of the leading brand advertisers on television.

So, you can imagine my surprise when I came across the following ad while watching the Daily Show on Hulu a couple of weeks ago. The ad included a pre-roll spot in addition to the post-roll banners that you see below.

Encountering this ad is important because it signals that leading “brand” advertisers may have found an ad solution which they are comfortable with on the Web. More importantly, this ad solution is scalable, which means that the advertiser can easily replicate this campaign in other video aggregation platforms.

So, why would brand advertisers be comfortable with this ad solution on Hulu? The following seem to be the main reasons:

- Linked to high-quality/professional content (Proven materials; Little/no risk for advertiser)

- Predictable usage levels (There is a history for shows and their clips)

- Format similar to TV (Easy for ad agencies to explain in context of the multi-media campaigns)

Bottom line: I believe we are witnessing the beginning of the much awaited shift in brand advertising from other media to the Web.

I would appreciate your sharing other examples which may be illustrative of this trend.