Digital Media
Convergence in Relation to Advertising and New Media
Digital media convergence is an ever-expanding phenomenon,
which has allowed many companies to invest in global advertising techniques. Advertising
and new media have both played major roles in determining the success of global
expansion. The increasing creativity in advertising has thrived through popular
visual cultures and the assumed passiveness of media audiences (Spurgeon 2008:
pp 24). Media audiences have, consequently, determined the effectiveness of the
global economy, as a direct result of an augmentation in advertising on
different media platforms. The development of new media, in particular the
internet, has created a technological explosion which allows for closer
interaction and altogether neighbourliness (Appadurai 2000: pp 323). Digital
media convergence itself has been the foreground for a significant amount of
advertising campaigns. Cadbury Chocolates illustrates these ideas of
convergence, advertising and new media through global advertisement across
multiple media platforms.
Defining
digital media convergence is the first step to understanding its importance. Dwyer
defines convergence as “the process whereby new technologies are accommodated
by existing media” (Dwyer 2010: pp 2). This collision of old and new media
(Jenkins 2006: pp 2) illustrates the notion that media convergence is continuously
evolving. As a result, convergence has exponentially shaped the way in which contemporary
audiences receive and react to advertising within the media. Print media, for
example, has expanded to include online mediums. The term “new media”, however,
is problematic as in a globalised world anything labelled “new” becomes “established”
and in a progressively quick decline, is passed over as old (Dewdney 2006: pp
4). Increasingly, convergence allows for audiences around the world to
experience media as an “interconnected repertoire of print, celluloid,
electronic screens and billboards” (Appadurai 2000: pp 326). These differing
mediums, therefore, directly impact how advertising is comprehended and
reconstructed.
With
the growing rate of media convergence, consumers are faced with advertising
throughout every aspect of their daily lives. In a modern world, television and
radio are considered “old media” and are, therefore, not as profitable as
growing media platforms. Online search engines, on the other hand, such as
Google and Yahoo, have become the most important development for informational
advertising in contemporary media (Spurgeon 2008: pp 25). Search-based advertising
provides consumers with the power to create a wider public spectrum.
Advertisers are able to embed messages in media flows which consumers will then
actively seek out (Spurgeon 2008: 27). Additionally, websites such as YouTube and
Facebook exemplify the extent to which media convergence has allowed
advertising to evolve. The use of public forums for advertising has
demonstrated a growing ingenuity in the industry. Furthermore, this process is
more cost-effective and allows for advertising within different mediums. Advertisers
are, however, faced with further complications as consumers care less about
brand loyalty and more about the recommendations of friends and family (Sheehan
& Morrison 2009). Thus, companies are increasingly required to use public
recommendations as a marketing technique.
New
media is not viewed as a novelty; rather it represents significant cultural and
social change. In developing a successful advertising campaign, many industries
are able to utilize the changing aspects of new media. For example, a video
that has over one million views on YouTube is a sufficient opportunity for a
company to post advertisements accordingly. In this sense, advertisers are able
to use public recommendations to their advantage as the amount of views on a
video will, therefore, determine the amount of views on a potential
advertisement. The circulation of media content, therefore, relies solely on
consumer participation (Jenkins 2006: pp 5). The practices of new media are a “direct
consequence of attempting to understand new media as embedded in cultural
concrete developments” (Dewdney 2006: pp 34). New media practices are directly
influenced through digital media convergence. Watching television shows online,
for example, goes hand in hand with viewing a range of advertisements
throughout the website. New media is, therefore, the forefront for digital
media convergence and effective advertising within a changing media industry.
Cadbury
Chocolates has developed several advertising campaigns to appeal across
multiple media platforms. The most notable of these is the Gorilla advert.
Cadbury has become famous for its use of popular music to demonstrate a sense
of want and relatedness. The advert is almost played out like a humorous music video,
with only a subtle mention of the product at the end. In addition, Cadbury’s
website is based around the idea of “chocolate brings joy”. It
involves several interactive features, such as videos, an online tour and what
is referred to as a “Joy-o-Metre”. The site is, therefore, a significant
example of the way in which media convergence can be used for advertising.
Moreover, the interactivity illustrated exemplifies numerous types of new
media. Cadbury’s video advertisements, however, are still used for what is
considered old media, such as television. The major television campaign
involved a reworking of the song “Wouldn’t it be nice”, again including popular
music that is widely recognised.
 |
| Other advertisements involved billboards which looked like large chocolate bars |
Ultimately, Cadbury’s ad
campaigns have demonstrated a clever and unique use of new media, while
appealing to digital media convergence.
Digital
media convergence is an expanding phenomenon which has shaped the way in which
advertising and new media have evolved. Global expansion for companies is
paradoxically becoming easier but more complex. Convergence has allowed for
advertising to grow beyond the simple confines of “old media” mediums, such as
radio and newspapers. Industries are, however, collectively faced with the
challenge of appealing to a wider audience with diminishing interest. New media
has exemplified these increasing challenges but also expanded the availability
of global audiences, for example social networking and search engines. While
advertising has become more creative through a need to do so, it has also
become a more cost-effective enterprise, with one ad able to traverse multiple
media platforms. New media and convergence, particularly through the internet,
have also allowed for a greater connectedness across global barriers, creating a
considerable interactive interface. Thus, digital media convergence has
significantly influenced the way in which advertising and new media operate in
a global environment.
Reference List
Appadurai, A. 2000, "Disjuncture and Difference in the Global Culture Economy" in Frank Lechner and John Boli The Globalisation Reader, Blackwell, Oxford pp 322-330.
Dewdney, A. 2006, New Media Handbook, Routledge, Oxon.
Dwyer, T. 2010 Media Convergence, McGraw Hill, Berksire, pp 1-23.
Jenkins, H. 2006 Convergence Culture, New York, New YorkUniversity Press, pp 1-24.
Sheehan K. & Morrison D. 2009 Beyond convergence: Confluence culture and
the role of the advertising agency in a changing world in "First Monday" vol
14 no 3. <http://firstmonday.org/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/2239/2121>
Spurgeon, C. 2008 "From the 'Long Tail' to 'Madison and Vine'" in Advertising and New Media, Routledge, Oxon pp 24-45.
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