Advertising Isn't All Its Cracked Up to Be

By: Tami Forman
Director of Strategic Services

We came across this story in MediaLife (by way of MarketingVox): Advertisers can now have their messages etched onto egg shells.

Aside from the obvious humor to be found in this story, we are most intrigued by the ROI one might expect from this type of campaign. Those of us who work in interactive marketing -- particularly email -- are used to being beaten over the head with the need to prove out our campaigns with real numbers, preferably the kind that have dollar signs attached them. So, how does one measure the impact of egg etchings?

Funny you should ask, because the MediaLife piece has the answer: "Number of eggs sold and total views per egg are used to calculate impressions." How many views per egg could one expect? Glad you asked, because there is an answer to that question, too. It's 4.4 according to EggFusion, the company that etches the eggs. How did they arrive at that decimally precise number? Feedback from consumers as part of a study conducted by a research company on behalf of the EggFusion.

It doesn't appear that this program has been sold yet, so we'll have to see if it catches on. It's hard to imagine that the same marketers who question every interactive metric that crosses their desk would buy into "views per egg," but in an increasingly fragmented media landscape, perhaps anything is possible.

Of course the more likely scenario is that a few marketers will give it a try and end up with egg on their face. (Sorry, couldn't resist!)