20th June Advertising and Web Sites Kriss Fearon (University of York) Ralph Weedon (University of Strathclyde)

20th June Aim of the session To provide a brief introduction to the key issues relating to online advertising Using case studies, to allow participants to consider how their institution could handle specific problem situations A written summary is provided

20th June What is online advertising? Promotion of a product or service May have nothing do with the institution or page content Includes internal advertising e.g. of a conference, catering services In legal terms may not imply endorsement but it might look that way to a user Compare sponsorship

20th June (Some of) the issues Legal and regulatory – Ralph Ethical - Ralph Managerial - Kriss Technical - Kriss Financial - Kriss

Advertising on web sites Legal & Ethical issues? Ralph Weedon University of Strathclyde/ JISC Legal Information Service

20th June Today’s Situation Ad industry statistics... The Janet AUP The JISC’s view point? Institutional Policies The arbiter of taste?

20th June How Did We Get Here? A JISC Report A study into Advertising on JANET In: Word, RTF & PDF format Authors: Diane McDonald & Caroline Breslin, University of Strathclyde

20th June Legal Issues - - to advertising on the Web? The ASA Code

20th June Legal Issues - - to advertising on the Web? The ASA Code The background legislation...

20th June Legal Issues - - to advertising on the Web? The ASA Code The background legislation … Liability & Disclaimers

20th June Legal Issues - - to advertising on the Web? The ASA Code The background legislation … Liability & Disclaimers Contract Law Professional Legal Advice

20th June Other relevant legislation? Data Protection Act Freedom of Information Act SEN & Disability Act - Accessibility Copyright & Trade Marks

20th June Ethics - Should your institution care? What do I mean by ethics? Problem areas include: Tobacco and Alcohol Weapons Manufacturers Academic Freedom Cola University? Privacy

20th June More ethical issues Possible product endorsement Compromises independence? Takes advantage of a captive audience? Unpopular with many academics Influences the institution’s corporate ID? Student Union campaigns - Nestle? Barclays?

Summary Consultation … is a good thing Why do you want to use Advertising? Will it actually make you a ‘profit’? What are financial & reputation costs? Ads must conform to JANET AUP Note ASA codes & legislation Do you need a lawyer?

20th June Types of advertising Banners Rotating versus static Link to the advertiser’s site or display only Rich media Animation Branding Text-only links Superstitials (‘pop-ups’) Interstitials (‘transitional’ pages) May be paid-for or free – JISC rules apply

20th June Who are the ads for? Clear focus on audience – are advertisers trying to reach: Students Staff External audiences, e.g. alumni Who do you want to give access to? Problem: Unlike traditional media, HEIs are not in the business of selling advertising around content

20th June Managerial How is advertising managed in print? Can you re-use current practice, expertise, standard contracts? Conflict of interest Between centre and departments Between different offices accepting ads Between different media Who will sell/design/put up advertising? Managing expectations on both sides Strategic decision needed

20th June Technical – the easy bit! Create and edit ads Advertisers often need this service, can it be provided in house? More traditional requirement and easier to cost Ad server JISC requires both banner ad and page with link to be hosted by the institution Provides user tracking (no need to rely on advertiser figures)

20th June Technical – the hard bit! Requirement to service the need to: Put up and take down ads Record usage - hits and click-through’s Provide technical spec Load time, preferred format(s) Accessibility Potentially could be claimed to disadvantage Javascript, rotating gifs

20th June Obtrusiveness Single thing which annoys users most! Obtrusive when: takes ages to load, delays page download, flashes, rotates, is very large (or otherwise detracts from content) means the page will not print properly, needs a plugin, is inaccessible Focus of the page for user is content not ads But focus of the page for advertiser is ensuring users see their ad

20th June Financial Is the revenue really worth all the work? Most are commercial in confidence Others are informal arrangements by individuals not institutional policy so hard to scale Who gets what revenue there is? Depts won’t do it if they don’t get (most of) the money or have their budget cut Do departmental staff have the skill, time, experience to deal with advertisers? So who spends their time servicing advertisers and how are they paid?

20th June Charging What revenue model to use? Page views? Click through’s? Flat rate based on staff time? How to build in r and d time?

20th June Revenue models Click-through’s/Page impressions Click through rate: ¼% of page readership 2% of those buy the product Page views should be from target audience Flat rate Based on staff expenses Value for money?

20th June Moving forward Management support essential Decide clear aims Collaborate with colleagues, use existing expertise Test the systems in advance May not be popular now, but could well be in the future Needs investment of resource so not for everyone

20th June Scenarios/Case Studies Work in two groups of six (or more) Choose a Reporter Try to take a look at both scenarios Add your own scenario! Add your own examples! Report back in 40 minutes time

20th June Scenario I Your institution is offered ‘shedloads’ of money by a large, blue chip company for being the prime sponsor on/of your website. They just happen to manufacture: Close combat laser weapons Alco-pops and Fast Food Cheap, trendy fashion garments made in third world ‘sweatshops’.

20th June Scenario I - some questions Do you accept their offer? If not, why? Does it make a difference if the ad is hosted on your website, as opposed to ‘brought in’? What if they just sponsor a ‘chair’? Any legal worries? The ASA get a complaint … does it matter Who is responsible for ‘Take Down’? The company want to use Flash - OK?

20th June Scenario II Your institution is approached by an advertising agency who offer £2K per month for ads on your WELCOME page (& elsewhere). What managerial, technical and financial issues would you need to take into account? What happens if, after 3 months, the agency fails to honour its contract? What if an ad campaign fails?