> there ought to be a place for people to go specifically for viewing advertising; no such place exists.
There are plenty. It's about a captive audience. Take a movie theater for example -- you don't have a choice but to sit there and if not look at it, you hear the ads. Same if you're trying to watch at TV show, you have no choice.
Things like DVR have changed that partially and reduced the effectiveness of TV adverts; a major reason why broadcasting companies have fought hard against being able to fast-forward through commercials, etc. You can always show up late to the movie theater too, but most don't and it's not as convenient.
Other examples would be the newspaper classified's sections (or craigslist being the online version). People go and look there specifically to be sold to.
The point being, if your audience isn't captive, or if they aren't already interested in your product, then your adverts are wasted effort (and money).
When's the last time you were on FB and saw a sidebar ad for Coors Light and decided to run out and buy some? What about a car advert? Vacuum cleaner? Probably never. Maybe you liked their FB page, but it likely didn't result in a conversion (meaning you ran out and bought something from that company).
Now if you were on a forum or doing a search for the best Vacuum or best beer or what car you should buy -- you're already interested in the product and far more receptive to being pitched too at that moment.
If you can't have a captive audience, then the next best thing (or maybe better thing) is to have an audience who is looking to buy already. FB and other social sites don't provide that...
There are plenty. It's about a captive audience. Take a movie theater for example -- you don't have a choice but to sit there and if not look at it, you hear the ads. Same if you're trying to watch at TV show, you have no choice.
Things like DVR have changed that partially and reduced the effectiveness of TV adverts; a major reason why broadcasting companies have fought hard against being able to fast-forward through commercials, etc. You can always show up late to the movie theater too, but most don't and it's not as convenient.
Other examples would be the newspaper classified's sections (or craigslist being the online version). People go and look there specifically to be sold to.
The point being, if your audience isn't captive, or if they aren't already interested in your product, then your adverts are wasted effort (and money).
When's the last time you were on FB and saw a sidebar ad for Coors Light and decided to run out and buy some? What about a car advert? Vacuum cleaner? Probably never. Maybe you liked their FB page, but it likely didn't result in a conversion (meaning you ran out and bought something from that company).
Now if you were on a forum or doing a search for the best Vacuum or best beer or what car you should buy -- you're already interested in the product and far more receptive to being pitched too at that moment.
If you can't have a captive audience, then the next best thing (or maybe better thing) is to have an audience who is looking to buy already. FB and other social sites don't provide that...