Sports Sites Talk a Big Engagement Game
By Matthew G. Nelson, The ClickZ Network, Dec 12, 2007
As the pro football and basketball seasons hit their stride, some sport sites are proudly showing advertisers just how much time consumers are spending with their content in the hope those would-be clients believe engagement translates to greater advertising impact. Their eagerness to crow about such metrics suggests Nielsen//NetRatings’ new time spent metrics may have come at the right time, but are advertisers listening?
CBSSports.com recently released statistics gathered by Nielsen//NetRatings’ home and work panel measuring time spent on Web sites. The data showed the site had an average of 9.03 visits-per-person during the month of November, and that its viewers stayed for an average of one hour and 22 minutes. “They are not just flying through our site to check scoreboards and get in and out, they are spending time there,” said Jason Kint, SVP and GM of CBSSports.com.
Here’s another CNET article that discusses engagement a bit more deeply.
I sit in front of the TV for 2 hours every night, but the only thing I’m tpyically “engaged” in is the channel clicker. Seems to me media will always tell you stuff that doesn’t really matter or isn’t really true. I expect media buyers are smart enough to know this.
I maintain that true sponsorship - where a sponsor adds value to the (in this case) online experience of the fan - is the best hope for sponsors to gain awareness, consideration and purchase.
