12 February 2008
Using printed advertising to drive traffic to online properties is a great example of integrated marketing, except when the consumers can't access the site.
Recently Swatch has been promoting using a competition to win a romantic weekend in Paris and, with Valentines Day fast approaching. The advert being largely published in newspapers and enticing the viewers to view the website to enter (swatchlovesquad.com).
However, Swatch has neglected several obvious marketing points with this advert, largely due to the Swatch love-squad website being created entirely in Flash.
Firstly, Swatches Valentines site missed the obvious fact that most people discovering the newspaper advert on their way to work would attempt to access the site using a mobile phone. From Blackberry’s, to the most advanced Nokia’s, this site proves almost impossible to display.
The second glaring factor that Swatch missed is that most people do not take the newspaper home with them, meaning to access the site again, they will most likely use a search engine. Again, the Flash presents a difficulty, preventing search engines from finding the site, even when using the most accurate keywords.
When you consider what the site is trying to do (capture competition entries; allow users to view a video, send messages and buy products) there is no real need for it to be in Flash.
Flash can offer brilliant visual displays, but few manage to create an accessible Flash site. Often it is worth considering your target market and opting for a simpler and more easily accessible approach, especially in this incidence where you are targeting mainly commuters using mobile phones.
Why not allow Nomensa to demonstate our expertise and provide you with fully accessible Flash that does not only creates a visually engaging user experience but does not exclude anybody. Feel free to try our "Revenge of the elves" game as an example.
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