Advertising on the way to the mailbox

"Email is a usage driver that leads to users coming to the portal several times a day. At the same time, more than 95 percent also engage with the content offering," says Nadja Elias, PR Manager at portal marketer United Internet Media. Particularly in campaigns with a short duration, in which a certain dose of contact must be achieved in a short time, the high frequency of visits pays off.

To make Gmx.ch attractive as an advertising platform, United Internet Media invests in technological development and online research. A Responsive Design ensures that the visibility of advertising media is guaranteed across all screen sizes. In addition to key figures such as ad size and ad view time (how long an ad or parts of it are potentially visible on the display), the context in which the ad is embedded is also taken into account - i.e. with which content the ad vies for the user's attention (ad clutter).

Above all, however, United Internet Media is concerned about how advertising affects the user. "Online advertising should not be annoying. If an advertising medium causes a reaction, this has a negative impact on brand sympathy," explains Michael Burst, Head of Market and Media Research at United Internet Media. In the freemail sector, Gmx.ch is therefore holding back on advertising. After all, users want to read or compose e-mails there. Burst, on the other hand, considers the log-out area to be particularly attractive. "After logging out, users are in a transition phase and are relatively open to advertising." On the log-out page, Gmx.ch therefore offers advertisers the opportunity to place a prominent, large-format advertisement exclusively.

Depending on the type, size and placement of the advertising medium, the actual contact dose achieved by a campaign is evaluated. "In our experience, an average of six to seven contacts is most effective for branding campaigns," says Burst. In the case of larger campaigns, Burst and his team use surveys to collect not only purely technical indicators such as ad size, ad visibility and ad clutter, but also qualitative factors of the advertising impact, such as brand awareness, advertising recall, purchase intention and brand sympathy.

Online must prove itself

In Germany, United Internet Media reported record results for the past year. However, the portal marketer has not yet succeeded in making the leap into Switzerland. The opening of a sales office in Zurich, as planned for last summer (Advertising week reported), has been put on hold. The decision was made to wait and see, due to the development of the Swiss online market. With an online share of eight percent in the media mix (Media Focus), Switzerland is one of the worst performers in Europe.

United Internet Media has a lot at stake in convincing Swiss customers of the value of its advertising offering. "Online must and can provide the same proof of performance as TV or print," Elias is convinced. Elias and Burst cite the implementation of cross-marketer studies as a goal, as is common in other media. Industry-wide research would not least benefit the credibility of the medium.