How To... Stand Out in the Digital Jungle

The warm, tropical forests of Papua New Guinea make the perfect home for an incredibly diverse range of animal and plant life. But, as in any lucrative environment, competition is rife.

It’s fascinating to see how life responds to a crowded and competitive arena - take for example the native six-plumed bird of paradise.

In response to the intense struggle for resources and attention in the jungle, the bird of paradise combines intricate moves with bright colours to wow the object of their affections and stand out from the crowd. The lesson? Standing out makes a difference.

Above: Eric Visser, CEO, JustPremium

Bag a great idea 

The job of standing out in the online jungle is tough too. Estimates say it’s possible consumers are served over 15,000 digital ads monthly. As a brand you want to be amongst the 10 to 15 ads people recall. The only real click is if your brand sticks in their mind, and if the consumer remembers you.   

"For brands keen to make their mark in a digital landscape bursting with content and colour, it’s crucial to not only understand what is catching the consumers eye, but to understand why."

So, how do you stand out online? IKEA recently demonstrated a clever way of attracting attention when they released the below ad in response to famous high-fashion brand Balenciaga releasing a suspiciously similar blue tote bag to its infamous FRAKTA shopping bag.

IKEA capitalised on a topic that had gained people’s attention online and designed an ad that was clever, funny, of the moment and totally on brand for IKEA. It’s everything that online advertising can be and something that would be almost impossible to achieve across traditional media.

Above: IKEA's print ad for its Frakta carrier bag

Too much is too much

The extravagant plumes and feathers of the bird of paradise make for captivating viewing, but they do not flourish them all day (standing out too much in a jungle full of predators is often an ill-advised move).  But in this is another lesson we can take from these creatures: burst into colour when the right eyes are watching.

The bird of paradise is the master of blending in with the jungle canopy when necessary - and exploding into life when it wants to be seen. We took this idea into our work with Dentsu Aegis Network and Microsoft in launching the Xbox One X. We pioneered a UK media-first with our programmatic “Xbox Upgrade Scroller”, which seamlessly slides into the background of a publisher’s webpage, and bursts into life when viewed.

Above: JustPremium's Xbox One campaign.

While life in the online jungle is competitive, it’s also the most lucrative when you embrace the right tools. Unlike the bird of paradise, we are able to accurately measure and report on the success of our endeavours to be viewed - and adapt and optimise based on the results. 

The ability to have viewability as a metric is the distinct advantage that separates digital from all other media types, including print and out of home. It allows brands to accurately measure the reach of their advertising, providing a more accurate ROI when compared to other media types.

"As David Ogilvy once noted, 'never stop testing and your advertising will never stop improving'."

Not just 'what', but 'why'

It took thousands of years of evolution for the bird of paradise to effectively develop the best way to stand out. In digital, metrics and viewability data allow us to evolve instantly. For brands keen to make their mark in a digital landscape bursting with content and colour, it’s crucial to not only understand what is catching the consumers eye, but to understand why.

Combined with premium quality tools, these learnings enable brands to create ads that rise above the competition. A core belief of JustPremium is that creative, quality advertising is what drives results, which is why we’re a part of the Coalition for Better Ads and work to build products like Rich Video, which allow publishers to build multiple, creative ad units in minutes, enabling them to test different options and optimise their message to give the best performance.

As David Ogilvy once noted, “never stop testing and your advertising will never stop improving”. Modern digital advertising has empowered publishers and brands to be able to constantly tweak their feathers, seamlessly recolour their plumes and perfect their dances - all to keep eyes on them in the online jungle.