I’ve been thinking lately about how businesses hang on to their old ways of communicating and advertising recently. I’m going to tell you what I think first, and then I’ll tell you why.

I think that while we social media enthusiasts think everybody “gets it”, there are incredible numbers of businesses that don’t. They don’t understand social media and new communication tools; they don’t think they’re “serious”; they think they’re not part of a legitimate business. And I don’t think it’s an Ottawa problem; Chicago-based Gini Dietrich talked about hearing the same things in her town on a recent Inside PR episode.

So, two examples, and then a couple of conclusions.

First: The city of Ottawa has been trying to shop around an “integrated street furniture program” for the last several months. The city wanted to bring a private company to the table and do a deal that would see the company provide things like benches, newspaper racks, etc. etc.

The program site says:

The program will be guided by the following six principles:

• Provide a service: There must be an existing service or an identified and demonstrated need for street furniture. Advertising is secondary to the purpose of the structure.
• Offset capital and operating cost: Costs associated with the initial acquisition, ongoing maintenance, and periodic renewal of street furniture is transferred from the City to the service provider.
• Generate revenue: Portions of the advertising proceeds generated from the street furniture are returned to the City as a revenue stream in order to reflect the value to the service provider derived from the use of the City’s right of way.
• Improve the Streetscape and Preserve Identity: The City’s streetscape can be improved if street furniture has a common look and feel. Additionally, there is a high potential for increased visual clutter if services are expanded without a comprehensive policy. Although the program is seeking a common look and feel, it is not intended to provide a “one size fits all” approach, and will therefore need to be flexible enough so that street furniture can be tailored to specific areas where the street has developed a defined cultural identity. In addition, streetscape elements that were designed through public consultation as part of a street renewal project will be recognized and preserved.
• Enhance Service: There is a need for additional services in various parts of the City. The provision of these services will be appropriate for the potential users and for the streetscape context.
• Improve Coordination: Advertising on various types of street furniture may compete for the same audience and changes in individual agreements can significantly undermine revenue potential of other agreements.

Media reports today are saying that the City received just one response to a request for proposals. That proposal was non-compliant.

Second: I’ve been noticing bus shelter ads recently like this, with a number of businesses listed, and a pointer to the Findusfast.com site. This ad features a carpet and flooring store, a jeweler, an online flower service, and a self-storage company. I keep thinking about them each time I walk past. What’s the appeal here?

I suppose the businesses might be thinking they can’t afford shelter advertising on their own, so if they do this, they get that kind of exposure at a cost they can afford. Here in Ottawa, an ad like that would cost a minimum of $430 (for more than 100 shelters) for a four-week placement, and as much as $765 (if you’re doing under 10 shelters).

They may also think it’s useful to get the listing in the Findusfast directory. Their online pitch to advertisers gives eight reasons:

“1.  Priority listing in your category
2. Three rotating banners ads
3. Branding icon – top of page
4. Link to website
5. Link to offer, flyer, menu…
6. Map to your location
7. Mission statement line
+ a cost of $0.67 cents per day.”

So why would you go into a web directory like this, when you already have your own site? What’s the ROI? What’s it gain you compared to, say, doing a Facebook or a Google ad campaign, or buying your own bus shelter advertising from Clear Channel?

I asked a friend in the real estate business why he uses a bus-bench advertisement for himself. He doesn’t have numbers on response. But he has had anecdotal evidence from other realtors that when they change their advertisement or if they change locations, they get calls from clients saying “What happened to your ad?”And, he notes, the bus-bench market in Ottawa is strongly dominated by realtors.

So. Conclusions.

It’s pretty frustrating to think that ad campaigns with only grossly estimated eyeball counts and little ability to prove results are adopted  by businesses while effective and measurable campaigns done using PR or advertising tactics online are ignored.

The street furniture example is making me wonder whether the companies are beginning to realize that the return just isn’t there for outdoor-type advertising anymore in the broad sense. What’s the call to action? What’s the measurability? Is outdoor just a cacophony of sound and image that makes it impossible for you to stand out?

It seems to me that businesses are unwilling to let go of the things they understand, that they’re comfortable with. Even when it doesn’t work. There’s nothing new about the quote “Half the money I spend on advertising is wasted, and the problem is I do not know which half” — Lord Leverhulme said it nearly a century ago. The difference between now and then is the absolute explosion in places and ways to waste that advertising budget.

But we early adopters — and we’re STILL early adopters — have to be patient and let others catch up to us. Or is that lasso them and drag them forward? The good news? That means there are STILL a lot of new clients for folks like you and me.

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