Have you ever stopped and considered just how much the Internet has changed how marketing is done? Until perhaps four or five years ago, the scales tipped in favor of television commercials, as individuals were just as likely to sit down in front of a TV as they were to scroll online. Now, the balance has shifted, with 85% of Americans saying that they are on the Internet each day. That change has, predictably, led marketing to evolve, as TV viewers have typically been exposed to between 6-8 commercials per half hour while online, it is not unusual for multiple ads to be mixed in with one 2-minute news report. It leaves the industry with a potential problem: how do marketers adjust to societal changes and connect with possible customers whose attention spans have grown shorter? Tommy Swanhaus, the owner of Tommy Swanhaus Co., a digital marketing firm, states that the answer lies in his new marketing model for businesses, one that eliminates methods that were designed for TV and that focuses on the potential advantages of the Internet.
The Challenges Businesses Face to Connect With Potential Customers
“We did our own research,” says Swanhaus, “and we found that the average American is exposed to between 4,000-10,000 digital ads every day. We compared this to a person who watches 4 hours of television each night and sees on average around 14 commercials per hour or roughly 56 ads. While it generally takes a person more than four hours to view 4,000-10,000 ads, you can still see what a big difference this is.”
His company also timed the length of TV ads. “Most are about 30 seconds long,” Swanhaus continues. “We compared this to social media ads, which need to be displayed for about 14 seconds or so before a person actually focuses on it for one second.”
The results of his research, Swanhaus says, led him to the conclusion that while it is possible that some marketing methods for TV may work for the Internet, there seems to be room for innovation, so he created a new model for digital marketing.
The Marketing Model That Tommy Swanhaus Has Introduced
“The world is shifting more and more to being online and is encountering more technological innovations, including Web 3 and the metaverse,” Swanhaus explains. “With that in mind, I designed a marketing model for this space that has the potential to improve the ability of businesses to connect online with their clients.”
He states that his model focuses on the creation of original, creative content and then its amplification.
“I knew that both parts would be necessary,” Swanhaus continues. “Without one, there would be no point for the other, so I innovated a way for brands to potentially reach millions of people or a niche depending on their products: through the Tommy Swanhaus Co. platforms. The advantage for businesses is that their campaigns can have the possibility of having a stronger start.”
The other part of the marketing model focuses on the content itself. “In addition to my team’s research, we polled potential customers and learned that what they are most looking for is authenticity,” Swanhaus says. “They want to connect their values to the company’s values, so I chose to build that into our marketing campaigns as well.”
The last step he took was to make his online marketing campaigns more three-dimensional. “What we learned from companies is that many saw the Internet as a one-dimensional experience, but because there are so many platforms out there, the reality is that it is 3D,” Swanhaus explains. “I decided to add to my model the ability to create this 360-degree online world so that all marketing platforms would flow together and be interrelated. I think that my online marketing model has the potential to overcome the hurdles so many businesses have been experiencing.”
The Future of Online Marketing As the World Moves Deeper Into the Online Era
With new technological advancements on the horizon, it is likely that any marketing method created today may be revised tomorrow. However, the adaptable approach that Swanhaus has taken may serve as a model to his peers in the industry, one that they can emulate as businesses continue to seek ways to connect online with potential customers.