Netflix and RSS feeds: Long Tail Marketing at work
RSS feeds are increasingly a terrific way for a company to target specific customers and for consumers to select only the content that interests them, turning organizations of all kinds into a true Long Tail marketers.
Netflix markets to the Long Tail by deployments of targeted RSS feeds where video fans sign up for RSS feeds to update them based on their interests. Available feeds include Netflix Top 100, New Releases, Documentary Top 25, Comedy Top 25, Classics Top 25, and many more.
What sets this marketing apart from the standard web model is that it is highly targeted and delivered directly to micro-audiences of interested consumers. How different this approach is to the old world of blasting a TV ad to the masses!
Wow ! giving a customer the exact info he's looking for - what a novel concept !
Seriously, David, can you place a value on this versus a billboard on the side of the road ?
5 X better ? 100 X Better ?
Posted by: Mike Sigers | July 30, 2006 at 06:49 PM
Hi Mike,
There's no doubt that for niche markets and products (that's most everthing out there) online marketing with specific targeting works great. The question of how much better it works than generic ads depends on the product and market. Certainly many Xs.
Billboards do work for certain things. A motel on a secluded road somewhere will probably have a positive ROI on a billboard.
THe problem is that so many marketers only think in terms of generic ads for the masses and end up throwing away buckets of money on TV ads, direct mail and other stuff.
Cheers, David
Posted by: David Meerman Scott | July 31, 2006 at 10:29 AM