Using Sound in Online Ads
By Stuart Sheridan at August 22, 2008 | 4:14 amPrint
Using Sound in Online Ads
Often in the recent past when I’ve gone to a media website (i.e. SMH or NineMSN) I get confronted with automatically activated advertising, which incorporates sound that is automatically played.
This happens especially when the delivery medium is in the form of video content.
Now, sound adds that extra vital dimension to a message / story / promo / advert, but it is also a top user piss-off factor
Having sound played on your computer whist you are surfing the internet at work kinda “gives the game away”, and actually (in my opinion) damages both the user experience of a media website AND the advertisers brand.
That said, I know lots of sites have implemented user controls to help address this issue with such things as sound toggles and user volume controls, and control over whether the advertising is played automatically with sound or not.
An Innovative Solution Example:
Having said ALL that, I noticed what I think should be the industry standard way of incorporating sound in online advertising which is totally user controlled at the users discretion, with optimal ease.
This execution goes to the Tropic Thunder advertising on GameSpot.com.au, and it is the first “RollOver” for sound execution that I’ve personally seen.
Screenshots:
