Online Advertising through Blogging of Retail and Merchandising Brands

Kho, Kathleen Uy, Sharmaine Ann

Thesis Statement: The newest and most effective way of advertising is blogging as it promotes more cyber exposure, targets the market more efficiently and combines the influences of the bloggers and the company. I. Introduction A. Advertising 1. Then 2. Now B. Thesis Statement II. Cyber Exposure A. Blogging 1. Concepts 2. Types 2.1 Review Blogs 2.2 Gourmet Blogs 2.3 Technology Blogs 2.4 Travel Blogs III. Target Marketing A. Brands B. Sales 1. Direct Effects 2. Indirect Effects IV. Bloggers Influence A. Evaluating Influence B. Measuring Popularity V. Conclusion

Coca-Cola, McDonalds, and Selecta Cornetto Surely, these brands have imprinted their names in the minds of the many. As we all know, these companies have established quite a huge name in the industry for a long time now. Advertisements have been around us ever since the 1920s; they started as free but as the economic world evolves, fees were charged. Back to the days, ads were only in the form of prints that were posted to various places where companies think they would be targeting the customers effectively. It did not take long before what the public commonly knew has evolved into something no one would have ever known back then. Ads are now transformed into ways that can reach the audience more efficiently. These can be in the form of print, media and of course, online. Online advertising would probably be the widely used medium of advertising today, as it is considered an effective way of targeting the market. This is because every possible and potential customer is already technologically inclined. They encounter popups, banners, direct ads and a number of blogs as they surf the web. The newest and most effective way of advertising is blogging as it promotes more cyber exposure, targets the market more efficiently and combines the influences of the bloggers and the company.

Advertising then and now is probably one of the most interesting arguments of all time. Not only does it arouse interest to the public; but also, it will always be relevant today up until tomorrow. If one looks back, he/she will know how different advertising was back then and how much it has evolved and improved now. Advertising as it is known today finds its roots in the industrial expansion of the 1880s (Advertising in the 1920s, 2000). The article also discusses that advertising a product changed from simply announcing the existence of a product in a dull, dry fashion to purchasing the public what they needed and deserved to own the product. Also, for most of us, it is no secrets how the Internet has changed the way consumers obtain information about products and the firms that provide them. In Sheltons (2008) opinion, Because so much intelligence source about a potential transactions is so readily available from independent source, the message provided by conventional advertising has declined in value to consumers, who even question trustworthiness (p.2). There are really a lot of views regarding how people see advertising as a means of communication. Some may be positive some may be negative. Some may see the Internet as a source, while some see it through the use of television. But to George (2009), he explains that, It is a certainty that when there is any discussion about media advertising, particularly television, the word fragmentation will feature so much so that it can be called the latest addiction to media clich (p.1). There is one effective way in making ones self or their brand known to the public one that is already tried and tested. How does a company really make themselves or their brand known to the public? Through cyber exposure, it paves way to more opportunities and greener pastures for the company. Blogs, as Maghirang (2009)

stresses, have now evolved into something more than simply just a persons personal or individuals space in the internet. It has now turned into something with a marketable value. Not only do these blogs promote events, celebrities, and establishments they also market new ideas, products and services. To look back at the origin of blogs, its believed to be born in the 1990s. It is actually a shorter term for the word weblog. According to Doctor (2012), a blog or web log is very much like an online journal where entries arranged in sequential order are provided by individuals (p.3). What is good about this is that bloggers could write about anything under the sun their interests, encounters or passion. However, some bloggers would just stick into one theme, which means almost everything they would write about would fall on that category. Lets say fashion and cosmetics for instance. In addition, its not only about sharing ones passion. The possibilities that a blog can offer are endless and have now been branched out to advertising. It is recently been discovered to be a very potent means of online advertising. Web developers began investing in online-based software that specifically caters to blogs, which allowed industries to be accessed faster and easier through the affiliates (Doctor, 2012). The concepts of blogging are mainly addressed to three major points evident when people plan to start or already have an existing blog. As Silva (2012) discusses, The most popular independent platform is Wordpress. using Wordpress allows the blogger to host the blog on their own domain name and hosting provider of their choice. Hosting a blog on a domain name that you own and having administrative permissions to the hosting account allows for massive flexibility with the very few restrictions (p. 2).

Its quite essential nowadays for people to have their own domain because it comes out to something more professional and credible to the reader. Something common that most blogs share is that they focus on a particular topic. Some of which are sports, mobile technology, web design and home staging. While some present links to different types of sites, others stick to having their own personal blogs speaking about their daily encounters and thoughts (WordPress.org, 2012). Moreover, as much as there are numerous types of online advertising, the one that sticks out the most would be direct ads. A number of bloggers offer an option for their readers or visitors to avail advertising space on their blogs. According to Gunelius (2012), theyre typically shown in the form of banner ads or similar display ads provided directly to the blogger by the advertiser to be uploaded to the blog (p.7). The concepts of blogging are basically the following, to digitally record thoughts, and to focus on a particular topic to be discussed. Silva (2011) explains, A blog is basically an online journal that is used to digitally record thoughts, ideas, opinions and practically anything else that you want others to read (p.1). It mainly centers on subjects that individuals usually are concerned about (Kumar, 2012). Furthermore, blogging can also be used to generate income. According to Ward (2011), there are 7 ways to do that: First, to use advertising programs and affiliate programs. This is possible because these applications create a connection to potential readers to your blog. Ward also states that company sponsorship or being hired is one way too. Freelance blogging and service blogging are those blogs that posts reviews for the readers but eventually paid by the companies because they have encouraged impulse

buyers. Lastly, he also pointed out that selling of intellectual properties like e-books on blogs can also be profitable (p.3). Blogs vary into different types, it has to have the fundamentals necessary in order to last long in the industry. Before mentioning the things that need to taken into consideration, people should first familiarize themselves into the different types of blogs. According to the WordPress.com (2012), The types of blogging are: Personal, Business, Schools, Non-Profits, Politics, Military, Private, Sports, How-To Tips, and Reviews (p. 2). But for now, we will focus on four kinds: Review blogs, Gourmet blogs, Technology blogs, and Travel blogs, as these were the ones commonly used for promoting. Each one of these targets different segments of the market. In addition, the top two most popular blog host choices are Word Press and Blogger because they are completely free and very user-friendly. ***** Review blogs are the kind of blogs, which allow one to showcase for the readers different insights on products and services. As Bates (2012) explains, A review blog is where you write your first hand experiences. It can be sponsored or not. But it must be relevant to your business (p.6). Moreover, reviews can be about anything, but these must be in line with the writers interests (Lancer, 2012). Review blogs are helpful especially for those readers who are not familiar with the products and services a certain firm offers. These blogs provide them sufficient details and enough understandings regarding the subject. Readers would want the truth about a product. According to Lake (2012), reviews must be uttered straight from a bloggers point of view (p.7). Lake also points out that a number of websites offer reviews. This is so

because blog viewers tend to collect as many opinions as they can to avoid mistakes in consuming a product or accepting a service. Gourmet blogs, also known as food blogs, focus on a certain restaurants menu, location and customer service. According to Lancer (2012), food blogs provide readers about various places to eat and their trademark recipes (p.12). These blogs are not just about taking a picture of the food and writing about how it tastes like, but the pros and cons must be mentioned as well (Sherman, 2012). Gourmet blogs, as compared to review blogs, are the kind of sties where the main subject is limited to the food and the place itself, which are the flavor and the ambience respectively. Lin (2011) also explains that in order to be a food blogger one must have the holy trinity of food blogging which are the following: gorgeous food photography, wonderful writing and rock solid recipes (p.2). Blogs that offer news, tutorials, and recommendations about high-end devices are called technology blogs. As Gemora (2012) states, These are compilations of different tech news and reviews of the benefit of the readers who are technology savy (p.1). Sites like these always aim to disseminate latest news about gadgets all over the world (Macanas, 2008). Technology blogs also provide help when ones device happens to face glitches or errors. These blogs give readers detailed instructions on how to fix technology problems. But most of the time, viewers visit tech blogs for product recommendations. According to Lancer (2012), tech blogs also provide reviews (p.14). This is why readers also check these out in order to gain more information about high-tech products.

Travel blogs summarize a bloggers journeys and experiences on different places all over the world. Long (2012) explains, Travel blogs fill the same niche of wanting to hear from real people about the travel experiences (p.8.) These are somehow similar to traditional travelogues where on takes photos and writes about the events that took place, only that travel blogs are posted online with actual readers. Starting a travel blog is a good idea to people who have been to a lot of places, this is so because they have exciting stories to tell, just as a typical travel blog requires (Lancer, 2012). According to Vallieres (2012), establishing blogs like these is all, about writing articles about the place; its good and bad side must be stated too (p.4). The author also points out that photos are as important as the articles are. Target marketing is basically the core of advertising because this is the one that makes or breaks ones product or service. There are actually a number of sources in determining if a firm has effectively targeted its market through good reviews, web traffic, social networking sites and word of mouth. A good review from a blog owned by a previous customer or client, as Maghirang (2009) stresses, can help in boosting and promoting a pticular brand or services name (p.5). It helps build trust and good faith in a brand. Readers who constantly read someones blog will eventually lead to truth and credibility on the bloggers part. It serves as a sturdy foundation for that blogger to gain more followers when people love what they write about or maybe their writing style. Great content gets shared via different platforms to your future customers via email marketing and social media sharing (e.g. re-tweeting your blogs, etc.), which increases company exposure (Impact of Blogging on Sales through E-Commerce Website, 2012, p.1). Lastly, it is very essential to get the hearts of the market a company is aiming for.

As Doctor (2012), discusses, web traffic will be greatly enhanced as you develop your target markets trust, provide value to the product or service youre advertising as well as show recent updates (p.6). Its debatable how advertising really affects the sales of a company or if it really does have an effect on it. When it comes to a companys sales volume, it is really difficult to calculate and give a definite amount on how much it has increased or declined. Some experts though have their own presumptions regarding what really is the determinant factor when it comes to measuring ones sales volume. In Kokumullers (2012) discussion, higher sales volume usually means your company is getting higher product margin or increasing demand and the number of units sold (p.2). He also mentioned that one key benefit of generating higher sales volume is through the effective use of sales promotions and long-term advertising. To further understand this aspect, yahoo conducted this research project about how advertising works. The researchers produced a number of interesting statistical findings over the summer. In a paper co-authored with summer intern and MIT PhD student Randall Lewis, Reiley found that the online display advertising increased total revenues by approximately 5% for those users exposed to the ads, with 93% of the total effect happening in offline sales (Project: Advertising Works, Yahoo! Research, 2012). Basically, they made this to prove that advertising really does increase ones revenues. The following are some of the direct effects that are identified by experts: blogging allows a firm to communicate with their prospects, and it also turns readers to impulse buyers. Stelzner (2012) stressed about River Pools & Spas on how their article paved way to at least $1.2 million sales (p.11). This supports the idea behind a single

blogpost that can drive the sales of ones company. Bloggers write favorable editorial reviews. All of which invites viewers to test the products (Big Banks Pay Bloggers Big Bucks For Sale Referrals, 2011). As Harrison (2012) also claims, blogs can be used to sell products to the customers, which directly contributes to the sales once a customer purchased (p.2). Blogging also has indirect effects on sales, the possible return on investments and the measure of a certain products adaptation to the audience. In an article written by Wirken (2006), While there is no quantitative amount with regards to the exact monetary significance of blogging on sales, there are evidences of some sort of return of investment. When readers leave comments or make inquiries these provides ideas to serve them better and thus improve your business (p.8). Moreover, blogging can actually provide a scale of advertising effecteiveness (Manchanda & Onishi, 2010). This is so because consumer evaluates the product. On the other hand, a certain blogs speed, efficiency and convenience may have an impact on sales as well. According o the article Webiste Speed Directly Impact Sales (2010), 64% of visitors may not purchase because website was too slow. This may reduce the number of potential customers leading to the possible decrease of sales. Nowadays, bloggers have this huge influence on the things people buy or even try imprinting that certain brand in a consumers mind. How important are blogs and up to what extent do they impact decisions made by consumers and companies? According to Maghirang (2009),

Blogs are important in business because as mentioned earlier, they are a great way of connecting to the internet and subsequently connecting with friends, relatives and family (p.5).

Not only does connecting help a lot, but it also affects how others view a certain brand. When a person gets to hear positive feedbacks from people they know, they immediately try the products. But when a person hears just one negative comment, he/she automatically spread the word. And it then unfolds to million negative folds. That is why Impact of Blogging on Sales through E-Commerce Website (2012) emphasizes, imprint you brand in their minds (p.1). Once a firm has done that, they are halfway to the finish line already. One of the renowned food bloggers of today, Anton Diaz, confesses what really is the secret to having a credible blog. To give a brief description, he is the founder of ourawesomeplaney.com and answered this question in one his most recent interviews. In Kapuso Ko, Jessica Soho TV program interview, Anton said, The technique with professional blogging is to write something na you could write forever na hindi ka mapapagod. Kasi the more na marami kang ma-blog, the more na mag-iincrease yong kita mo (Top Famous Bloggers in the Philippines, 2012, p.3). That is why companies also consider a bloggers influence. They evaluate bloggers before hiring them. According to Wang and Lin (2011), Social influence affects bloggers (p.3). In addition to that, Bembridge (2012) explains that influencers have sizeable audiences on the cyberspace (p.4). The author also claims that a bloggers level of influence represents the quantity of potential customers that may benefit the company. It is also important to know what type of blog does a writer owns. Bolen (2012) explains that choosing a blogger must be aligned with ones companys

goals (p.6). When firms do these, they may be able to resonate with the audience to be able to identify and communicate their needs and wants. Moreover, Philippines is definitely not at par in keeping up with the latest trends considering the top fashion bloggers in the metro. And gender is definitely not a hindrance in showing off their ones own style when it comes to the world of fashion. To prove this is our top one fashion blogger, Bryan Boy, who is a pride for the country. Bryan Boy is a renowned Filipino fashion blogger who has garnered a lot of attractions and appreciations through his blog which is about the world of fashion, local and international (The Idea Marketplace, 2012, p. 3). There are also two young ladies that have paved their way into the fashion industry, but were best known for what they do best Camille Co and Laureen Uy. Besides being pt of the top bloggers in the country today, their main focus is still their chosen fields and passion. Camille Co is a fashion designer, model and a stylist (The Idea Marketplace, 2012, p. 4). She has her own clothing line since 2009 named CoExist a high-street RTW line for women, which shes also the designer. On the other hand, Laureen Uy is the younger sister of Liz Uy, which is known to be the style breaker in the local fashion scene who has also ventured to the world of tv (The Idea Marketplace, 2012, p. 5). To support the ideas that were mentioned above, we have conducted interviews from different retail and merchandising firms owners and brand managers. The following participants or interviewees were: McCormick, Embellish, Clothepedia, Sachico Shop, Crave More, and BCB Island Travel Agency. First, we have interviewed Ms. Marisse Kho, brand manager of McCormick, regarding our research topic. McCormick a household name and pioneer when it comes to herbs and spices has also

used online advertising or its firm. Some of the online advertisement techniques that they have used were Facebook promos and applications, banner advertisements, page skinning and blogger launch. They have considered blogging as a means of advertising because its an effective way of tapping/influencing their target consumer a minimal cost. Through this, the firm has effectively targeted the market they were aiming for. The products they used were the McCormick Bread Spreads. According to their brand manager, its difficult to measure the impact on sales because there were a lot of aspects tag needs to be considered. For instance, they wouldnt know if their sales increased because of a print-ad or something else. However, brand awareness did increase. In choosing bloggers, McCormick considers the blog visitors, blog content and size of the following. They chose Spread Some Awesome and Tara Lets Eat as bloggers because they are foodies, which have a large following and well-written content. When we asked her how huge the impact/influence of these bloggers in promoting their products, she answered, Its a good support to out ATL and BTL activities because it helps generate more awareness about the campaign. According to Ms. Anne Mariposa, owner and marketing director of Embellish, we have gotten information regarding our research topic. Embellish, a clothing brand in Greenhills and Podium, has used online advertising a lot of times. They have tried Facebook ads, online promos and contests, and collaborations with bloggers. Collaboration with bloggers allowed the company to have an increase in their brand awareness where potential customers have liked their fan page and made increase in their sales. In doing this, Embellish sent their products to the said bloggers.

In choosing bloggers, Embellish considers a bloggers demographics and psychographics of readers. They have collaborated with Lissa Kahayon, a top fashion blogger, whose style is in line with Embellishs branding and design philosophy. The more involved the blogger is, the better. We have interviewed Ms. Mercade, a young entrepreneur and also a student, regarding our topic on Online Advertising through Retail and Merchandising Brands. Clothepedia, an online brand in Facebook has used online advertising. The techniques the firm has used were online giveaways, blog sponsorships and promotion through networks the owner are using like twitter and lookbook accounts. According to the owner, she has considered blogging as a means of advertising because since shes selling ladies clothes, fashion blogging would be a big help for her to reach her target customers. And so far, it has been good for the company. She was also able to target her market efficiently through online advertising. The products that the company used for this kind of advertisement were ladies clothes. The positive effects for the company were that their sales and followers increased. On a negative note, competitors would most likely copy the style of her brand. In choosing bloggers, Clothepedia considers the number of followers and the blog statistics (number of visits). Some of the bloggers the company chose were Verniece Enciso, Marie Jershel Co and more. The owner would also love to sponsor top bloggers like Camille Co and Laureen Uy, but shes still thinking about it because they already have rates. Lastly, he impact of the bloggers she chose in promoting new products was roughly around 60%.

Sachico Shop, an RTW brand, has used blogging as a means of advertising through participating in blog giveaways by bloggers and by sending some bloggers clothes from the shop. It went well mainly because of the thousands of viewers of these top bloggers which also led to an increase in likes on Sachicos Facebook page and it also made the shop known to more people. Through blog advertisments mentioned above, it has effectively reached Sachico Shops target market, which is girls from 13-25 years old because this is also, the same target viewers of bloggers. On the other hand, negative effects of online advertising were not seen. Bloggers today may be considered the new "artistas" since they are easily reachable and the popularity of bloggers is also a big factor as to why Sachico Shop choose to advertise through them. The thousands of views that they receive each day gives online shops to be recognized through outfit posts and blog giveaways. The well-known accessory shop, Crave More, has also used different social media mediums like Facebook, Twitter, Multiply, Flickr and Instagram. Crave More has tapped bloggers to mention their brand. For them Blogging so far has been the best marketing strategy in such a way that they were able to capture the target market which is the online industry. They consider the "blogosphere" as the best way to manipulate the market online. They have not yet touched any industry aside from selling online, thus, they focus more on finding new means of marketing and increasing awareness of their products. One positive effect of blogging would be the fast moving pace of Crave Mores products. They usually sell out items within a week upon a collection's release. On the other hand, having online as a free means of advertising, they cannot set aside

the fact that competition is on the road. They have also given out their products to bloggers as promotional strategy. Crave More also takes note of the traffic the blogs receive on a daily basis. They also conduct surveys during bazaars on who customers want to see wearing their items next. Sometimes, they also have a biased way of choosing bloggers for some of them have grown to be close to their company ever since. Crave Mores number one blogger would be David Guison. He was kind enough to design eight necklaces and even have an official launch of his own collection. Another would be Ms. Camille Co who was kind enough to consider working with Crave More during the early days of her blogging career. Both photographer & blogger Aidx Pedes and Gerd Perez have also decided to have their own collaboration collection with us. To name some of the other bloggers on our list: Vern Enciso, Verniece Enciso, Tin Iglesias, Lissa Kahayon, Patricia Prieto, Sarah Meier-Albano, Ava Te, Dani Barretto, Miko Carreon, and many other on the list. BCB Island Travel Agency, a firm that gives travel services in the Philippines, also has Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus and an official website where customers are being reached everyday. But there is one thing, they have not pticularly used blogging as a tool of advertising. This is because as a travel agency, sponsoring such huge trips can generate large expenses for the company, expense that may be twice as much as the income the company can generate. Although, they have not used blogging directly, BCB Island Travel Agency has already read tons of reviews regarding their services. To them this is already exposure, although not done directly; this kind of promotion has led the company to the limelight.

BCB Island Travel Agency when asked if someday they can consider blogging in promoting their services, immediately uttered yes for an answer. This is because they believe that this world is already moving in a fast phase and that each and every individual living in this planet is a device-toting human, and that dissemination of information is much quicker online, blogging is most likely what this travel agency will consider in the near future.

Online advertising has been by far the most effective way to communicate ones desired audience. It has led the advertising industry into a much bigger perspective in the minds of the consumers. Promotions like these have used different told to disseminate the much-needed information that the customer needs. One of the said tools is blogging. There are a variety of blog types in existent today review blogs, gourmet blogs, technology blogs and travel blogs. All of which targets a specific market segment contributing to the brand awareness of the company. Brand managers and owners prefer blogging as a means of advertising because its an effective way in tapping and influencing their target customers at a minimal cost. It has a direct effect to sales as these companies acknowledged an increase in sales after using this medium. When asked on how huge the impact of these bloggers was in promoting these companies products, all of them arrived to a similar answer. That is a bloggers level of influence is equally important in measuring the number of customer they want to attain. In conclusion, blogging is proved to be the most potent and innovative way in making ones brand known in todays time. Not only does it increase brand awareness, but it also has a positive effect on ones sale. Therefore, if one wants to establish a name in the industry, he/she must definitely consider blogging in reaching to his/her preferred market.