AOL Revamps Ad Section and Launches Project Devil
Along with AOL’s content redesign triggered by the merger with Huffington Post, CPG/Health, Travel, Automotive, Finance and Entertainment become central in AOL’s latest effort of refining its ad sales approach under John Burke’s guide. With this revamp of the ad section, the ads will be centralized and not displayed on several domains.
AOL is very dedicated to the restructuring of the ad section and proof of this is Project Devil, a large canvas format with three interactive panels, which can host interactive media and applications such as video, slideshows, maps and polls. The platforms can host interactive media and applications such as video, slideshows, maps, 3D, SMS and polls, increasing interaction and engagement for viewers. With Project Devil, AOL is focusing on premium brands, the first clients being Marks & Spencer for its summer campaign, and Research in Motion for its new BlackBerry TorchTM handset device.
According to Macquarie Capital’s Ad Tracker report for 1Q 2011, AOL turns out to be the most improved player, based on an analysis of AOL Yahoo, YouTube and MSN. With the launch of Project Devil, the company is expected to score higher in the next quarter.
The company had the highest proportion of Oversized/Custom ad units (ex YouTube) at 26%, and it also had the highest percentage of purely brand-focused advertisers (which we view as a positive indicator of ad quality).
AOL is undergoing a tough transition to a media company and their ad network and reach must reflect that, while also converting activity it into profits. One solution for boosting AOL’s extended network might as well be the acquisition of Sugar Inc. With its own ad network and expansive reach targeting some of the most influential consumers on the market, Sugar is indeed a tasty acquisition consideration.
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