2009 Projections from Random Online Media Smart People

 

So I asked a few of my smart colleagues for their opinion on 2009 - what is on the horizon from your perspective? I actually used my Linked In account to gain these replies and highly recommend this as a method for gathering opinion. I got more responses then I could use. 

 I got some great responses to share with you. Today begins a series of these type posts where I will introduce a smart person working in online media, in one industry or another, and you will hear from them on 2009 predictions and a couple other online media topics. Our first player is Andres Giraldo who runs two successful financial web sites - you know those pay day loan places, he runs 2 of those type businesses securely and efficiently online. 

Here is his take on 2009:

1.       How do you see the landscape of online media changing in your industry in 2009?

Actually, I believe it to stay very stable, but see online media converting over to more cost-effective strategies that yield a greater R.O.I.  Email, low-cost partnerships, and more effective search strategies will lead us into the new fiscal year.  Media campaigns will be targeted to smaller groups and smaller budgets will continue to correlate with the downswing in the economy.  Online media has integrated itself as an important medium with corporations and it will definitely be used even more often to attract new and former customers in the financial field.

2.       What will improve? Decline? Why?

To specify a certain decline will be quite difficult, but the trend towards spending less on “big-budget” productions has certainly been felt in some industries.  From outsourcing, full campaigns to interactive media, corporations have now internalized parts of the process to try and save money.  There will be plenty of opportunities to find certain niches in the economy, but hard work and determination in this space is crucial to success. 

3.       Why do you think online media is growing in your industry, if it is?

Online media is the backbone for lots of financial service companies.  From banks to private lenders, the Internet provides a fast, secure, and private way to do all types of transactions.  Online media is an important role in this generation and it continues to infiltrate across all households as technology becomes cheaper to acquire.  “B&M” chains will be around for a long time to go, but the effectiveness and simplicity of standing behind a computer while balancing a checkbook is very lucrative.

4.       What role will email marketing play in balancing out the online media score card?

Email marketing has several great components.  One of these mechanisms is the ability to drive a specific message to new customer or former customers and provide a substantial

Return across all fields.  Secondly, email marketing is a test and it will always be in a “development phase”.  What that specific statement means is that we must always test our targets, subject lines, and creative to develop a greater a relationship with all customers in the financial space.

5.       Do you think search marketing will take a second seat to another type of media? If so what and why?

SEO/SEM  will definitely be a driving force behind several of the financial institutions online, but there will also be a shift to integrate SEM messaging across mediums such as email marketing and offline tactics.  There will be a constant focus on driving the most possible volume at the lowest possible price point, and with that in mind, all mediums will be closely synergized within financial institutions.

Thanks Andre for sharing your thoughts with us.  Check out Andre's sites (and maybe pick up a loan online) here www.thinkcash.com and www.paydayone.com.