REDMOND, Wash. — Sept. 22, 2008 — Microsoft Corp. today announced that it has extended the beta availability of Engagement ROI, its digital advertising campaign performance reporting and optimization product based on the Engagement Mapping method, to all Atlas clients. Engagement Mapping conversion reporting is updated daily in the Atlas Media Console, giving Atlas customers a more complete view of where and how users interact with online ads across the various online touch points before a conversion or eventual sale than is offered by the “last ad” model.
“All Atlas clients now have the ability to use Engagement ROI, which provides a realistic and holistic view of how each ad exposure throughout a media campaign influenced eventual conversions or sales,” said Young-Bean Song, senior director, Atlas Institute, Microsoft Advertising. “As digital marketing campaigns grow more complex, marketers need tools such as Engagement Mapping that validate and maximize online spending beyond the ‘last ad.’”
The Atlas Institute, a think tank of senior marketing analysts, also released the latest in a series of studies on Engagement Mapping titled “Measuring ROI Beyond the Last Ad.” The research was based on campaigns across 1,000 sites and sales or registrations from 500 advertisers, which compared conversions based on the Engagement Mapping model with the results from a standard “last ad” model.
The results indicated that when advertisers or agencies use Engagement Mapping, vertical niche sites and ad networks that are typically underrepresented by the “last ad” method gain credit for conversions with a median improvement of 1 percent and 5 percent, respectively. Consequently, affiliate networks and search, the advertising channels that typically appear near the bottom of the sales funnel, lose conversion credit under Engagement Mapping with the median search buy receiving 7 percent less credit.
The research also uncovered specific publisher site categories whose value was masked by media buys lower in the purchase funnel. The top five categories that gained the most conversion or sales credit under Engagement Mapping were leisure- and research-related, including music, city guide, auto, gaming and travel content sites. The five that lost the most conversion credit under Engagement Mapping included affiliate networks, search, financial news, directory and Internet service providers, which typically act as information gatekeepers or are located in close proximity to transactions, thus skewing toward the bottom of the funnel.
In February, Microsoft launched the Engagement Mapping standard, an innovative approach to managing and measuring the effectiveness of online advertising campaigns by evaluating and assigning credit to all of the online advertising touch points prior to a conversion. The beta of Engagement ROI underwent testing by a number of national advertising clients and agencies, including Agência Click + UNICA, Best Western International Inc., BKV, Citi Cards, GSD&M Idea City, Ingenuity Media of The Martin Agency, Initiative, McKinney, MEC Interaction, Mindshare Interaction, Monster Worldwide Inc., Neo@Ogilvy, Sprint and World Vision. More information about Engagement Mapping is available on the Atlas Institute Web site at http://www.atlassolutions.com/institute_engagementmapping.aspx.
About Microsoft Advertising
Microsoft Advertising provides world-class advertising tools and solutions for digital advertisers and publishers to drive brand and consumer engagement. The portfolio includes all of Microsoft’s digital advertising businesses: its global media network that includes MSN, Windows Live, Office Live, Xbox LIVE, Live Search, Facebook and more, and its global technology platforms and tools that include Atlas, AdECN, adCenter, DRIVEpm, Massive and ScreenTonic, which together create engaging digital advertising experiences for their consumers. Microsoft Advertising helps make buying and selling media simple, smart and cost-effective across media and devices in the Microsoft network of properties and beyond, which spans 42 markets globally and 21 languages. Visit http://advertising.microsoft.com for more information.
About Microsoft
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.
Note to editors: If you are interested in viewing additional information on Microsoft, please visit the Microsoft Web page at http://www.microsoft.com/presspass on Microsoft’s corporate information pages. Web links, telephone numbers and titles were correct at time of publication, but may since have changed. For additional assistance, journalists and analysts may contact Microsoft’s Rapid Response Team or other appropriate contacts listed at http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/contactpr.mspx.
