Advertising has long been a cornerstone of businesses’ strategies, acting as a conduit for communicating with consumers and driving sales. However, the advertising landscape has undergone significant transformations over the years, particularly with the emergence of digital advertising.
As consumer behavior shifts toward online platforms and mobile devices, traditional advertising methods have given way to more dynamic and data-driven approaches.
Amidst this transition, companies like OneAD have emerged as pioneers, adept at understanding and adapting to the changing face of advertising. Recognizing the critical importance of harnessing advanced technology and data analytics, OneAD has developed products and strategies tailored to navigate the complexities of the digital advertising landscape. With a keen perception of the evolving attention economy, OneAD aims to redefine how advertisers gauge the effectiveness of their campaigns, prioritizing genuine consumer attention over mere exposure.
In a recent interview with KrASIA, Joyce Lee, co-founder and CEO of OneAD, provides insight into the company’s perspective on the advertising industry. Lee highlights OneAD’s commitment to crafting engaging, personalized advertising experiences and addresses challenges posed by the fragmented nature of consumer attention, offering strategies for effective navigation of digital clutter to captivate audiences.
The following interview has been edited and consolidated for brevity and clarity.
KrASIA (KR): Could you describe what OneAD does?
Joyce Lee (JL): OneAD is an adtech company in Taiwan, dedicated to leveraging advanced technology for the development of impactful advertising products across diverse platforms and internet-enabled devices.
OneData, a brand of OneAD, harnesses data analytics and technology to discern the optimal digital touchpoints and target audience for our clients.
KR: OneAD designed the “attention impact index” as a method of quantifying advertising impact. How was it conceptualized?
JL: Initially, measuring and purchasing digital advertising were akin to traditional advertising, primarily based on “buying exposure.” Whenever an ad was displayed on a consumer’s mobile screen, it was deemed effective and the advertiser would pay accordingly.
Even though the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) and the Media Rating Council (MRC) has introduced “viewability” as a standard for “being seen” in advertising, “buying exposure” is insufficient in ensuring advertisers that they are deriving the true value of ads.
As consumer attention becomes increasingly fragmented and competitive, the trend is shifting toward “buying consumer attention,” measuring genuine consumer awareness based on real interaction behaviors. This also represents the latest trend in assessing and pricing digital advertising.
While ad viewability verifies whether an ad is currently on the screen, thereby indicating the opportunity for the ad to be seen, it doesn’t necessarily mean it has been noticed. Brands require additional metrics to gauge consumer attention to ads.
To win consumer attention, measurements like OneAD’s “Attention Impact Index (AII)” can be utilized. We employ artificial intelligence and server-side data analytics to analyze over 50 million consumer behavior responses daily, quantifying the attention impact of different advertising formats from three aspects: screen share, gaze-time ratio, and interaction ratio. These measurements provide advertisers with ideal consumer interaction strategies to achieve their goals.
KR: The attention economy is constantly changing. How does that impact today’s digital advertising landscape?
JL: With an abundance of content available online, consumer attention is scarcer than ever. Advertisers face a tough challenge in capturing and retaining user attention, influencing key business indicators such as revenue opportunity, media performance, online traffic, interaction, and branding. This competition for attention drives innovation in advertising technology, emphasizing more engaging, interactive, and personalized content.
Leveraging data analytics and AI, advertisers are increasingly able to tailor their messages to specific audience segments, enhancing engagement and effectiveness. Intrusive or irrelevant ads can lead to negative user experiences—advertisers are thus focusing more on integrating ads seamlessly into content, ensuring they are as non-disruptive as possible. Rather than just aiming for the highest number of views or clicks, there’s a growing focus on the quality of engagement. Metrics like watch time, interaction rates, and emotional responses are becoming more valued as indicators of ad effectiveness.
Advancements in technology, such as AI and machine learning, have increased the efficiency and sophistication with which attention can be captured and monetized, further fueling the dynamics of the attention economy. With the cost-per-engagement (CPE) pricing model, advertisers only pay when users actively engage with ads. This ensures that the marketing budget is spent precisely, gaining maximum attention, and thereby achieving effective communication.
KR: What strategies can companies adopt to captivate audiences amidst digital advertising clutter?
JL: In the noisy digital advertising environment, consumers have grown accustomed to ads across various platforms and tend to subconsciously ignore conventional advertising. Standing out amidst the multitude of digital ads to capture consumer attention is an urgent task for brand management.
To help advertisers stand out, we suggest a few key strategies.
First, choose advertising spaces that are safe, appropriate, and relevant. By placing ads on trustworthy sites, you reduce the chances of fraud and ensure they make the biggest impact.
Second, captivate your audience with dynamic and engaging ad formats. Rich media ads, for example, are more interactive and can keep consumers interested longer.
Third, incorporate interactive elements into your ads. This engagement can capture attention effectively and make a memorable impact.
Fourth, respect consumer autonomy. Allowing users to feel in control can make them more open to advertisements.
Lastly, harness the power of data science to tailor ad content to the interests of the consumers, whether those interests are longstanding or newly developed.
Consider Scottish Leader, one of our clients, which utilized “Mobile-in-bottom Star,” a OneAD product, for a campaign promoting gift boxes during the Lunar New Year period. This product is designed to enhance user engagement and extend average time on pages. The ads featured three dynamic elements—when scrolled past, users could access detailed information about various products without needing to leave the page. The campaign’s engagement and clickthrough rates surpassed the average by 58% and 61%, respectively, notably during a time typically saturated with advertisements.
KR: Are there any initiatives that OneAD is planning to undertake in the new year?
JL: We recently released a whitepaper on attention impact, highlighting our commitment to improve how attention impact is measured by employing advanced data science techniques.
Alongside this, we are expanding our in-stream video ads network, adapting to a marketplace that’s shifting away from traditional cookie-based tracking.
Through these efforts, we hope to demonstrate OneAD’s dedication to setting the bar for all things advertising. By continuously innovating, staying agile, and utilizing data-driven approaches, we aim to remain at the forefront of the advertising industry.