Partnership marks Europe’s first use of interactive video advertising and affiliate marketing 

Platform-A’s buy.at announced today that it is launching an online interactive video application for Shop Direct Group, the UK’s leading online and home shopping retailer.  Developed in conjunction with Coull http://www.coull.com, the application is available for affiliates on the buy.at network and is the first time this video format has been used as part of an affiliate campaign in Europe.  The buy.at affiliate network, http://www.buy.at, is an Advertising.com Network Solution, provided through AOL’s digital advertising business, Platform-A.

The interactive video advertisements feature models wearing the latest big-brand clothing from the Group’s LittlewoodDirect.com site.  Each item of clothing and accessory featured in the video has been assigned its own tag.  Customers can click through to a dedicated page for the product, and a further click will forward the customer to the product page on the LittlewoodsDirect.com site.  The activity is tracked to ensure affiliates are paid the correct commission for the activity they generate.

The Shop Direct Group has worked with buy.at since 2004 to increase sales for Littlewoods Direct.com, as well as their other brands: Additions Direct, Ben Sherman, Great Universal, Littlewoods and Marshall Ward. 

LittlewoodsDirect.com features 16,000 product lines from furniture, white goods and electronics to clothes for men, women and children.  Outfits from major brands such as Diesel, Morgan and French Connection are featured, as well as swimwear, lingerie, sportswear, bridal wear, shoes and new ranges from Trinny and Susannah.

“Shop Direct Group is always looking to innovate and find new ways of reaching our customers.  The development of this video platform with buy.at and Coull places Shop Direct Group at the forefront of affiliate marketing.  The ability to take the customer directly to a product page from a product video opens up new and exciting opportunities for us,” said Neal Preece, Ecommerce Director at Shop Direct Group.   “It’s a great tool for affiliates, which enables them to enhance their campaign promotions and drive even more sales with exciting, high-quality content.”

“buy.at is the first affiliate network in Europe to integrate this technology for the advertisers and affiliates on our network and Littlewoods is the first client to adopt it, “ said Brendan Condon, Managing Director of Platform-A International.  “Shop Direct Group is a forward-thinking retailer that innovates to maintain its market-leading position.  This interactive video tool will maximise the impact of the LittlewoodsDirect.com brand, engaging the customer online and driving more sales for their affiliate campaign.” 

Irfon Watkins, CEO at Coull comments, “Interactive video is a powerful tool for enhancing product placement and driving sales online and buy.at is innovating in the affiliate sector by offering it to its network of 9,000 affiliates.  Major brands are getting excited about the impact interactive video advertising will make to their online campaigns.”

buy.at will track click-throughs, sales and cost-per-acquisition commissions by integrating video tags with its tracking and campaign analytics.  If the LittlewoodsDirect.com video advertisement is copied from an affiliate’s site and pasted into another website or a customer’s social network profile, Coull’s technology ensures the tracking and reporting remain embedded. 

buy.at manages a combination of SEO and PPC affiliates, content site, comparison and loyalty site affiliates to increase sales for the Shop Direct Group.  In January, Shop Direct Group consolidated all of its affiliate marketing accounts onto buy.at.  Research commissioned by buy.at and conducted by E-consultancy into affiliate marketing in the retail sector, revealed that retailers spend 19 per cent of their online marketing budget on affiliate marketing and 71 per cent of them expect to increase investment in affiliate marketing over next two years.

Interactive video platform Coull http://www.coull.com welcomes Hitesh Bhatt from MSN UK as its new commercial director.

Bhatt, who joined MSN UK three years ago as a sales manager was more recently acting head of agency sales.  His latest role involved managing a team of nine sales people, negotiating annual contracts with key agency groups such as Aegis, Omnicom and Publicis and was involved in the strategic direction and running of the MSN UK sales team.

He is an advertising and media industry veteran with more than 15 years of experience and joins to lead the Coull sales team.  Previous roles for Bhatt have seen him work for EMAP, MTV UK and Yahoo!  He will be responsible for expanding agency relationships, optimising business opportunities and growing revenue from the Coull Engage product.

Hitesh brings invaluable experience to Coull.  His appointment demonstrates Coull’s commitment to building closer relationships with agencies, advertisers and publishers looking to embrace interactive video.  “With Hitesh, we will fully understand our clients’ business needs and work in collaboration to develop effective video advertising products and services” says Irfon Watkins, CEO at Coull.

Hitesh Bhatt, commercial director at Coull comments, “It’s an incredibly exciting time for technology providers, agencies and brands as the online video advertising market begins to demonstrate its effectiveness in an extremely competitive arena.  Coull is delivering innovative, brand-driven, measurable campaigns that allow online video to truly engage with audiences in a non-intrusive way. I look forward to the opportunity to demonstrate how far the medium is moving along and how brands can maximise the effectiveness of online video campaigns using the Coull platform.”

This is the fourth senior appointment to the Coull head count with Claudia Giovannoni, marketing director joining early March 2008 heading up the marketing department.  Other new members of the Coull team include the board of directors appointments including Gillian Kent, former MSN UK managing director and CEO of Propertyfinder.com and Creative Ventures Group founder Spyro Korsanos also joined the board as non-executive director.

Coull received series B financing earlier in the year from Finance South West Growth Fund (managed by YFM Group), Creative Ventures Group and private investors.  The funding has allowed Coull to release the ‘Coull Engage’ product to assist brands maximise the return on investment (ROI) of their online campaigns, which are currently being used by Agent Provocateur, Boots and Renault.

LYCOS Network Europe, the leading European online advertising sales network, is using a new advertising format which allows users to interact with content in online advertisements like never before.  The format, pioneered by LYCOS with video technology company Coull and media agency Carat, is the first of its kind within the industry.

The new formats enable users to interact with video content whilst a film plays. This exciting format, delivered on the Coull Engage platform, means advertisers can now showcase video content online while, by clicking on product features, users can get more information as details are shown within the unit.

Renault is the first automotive brand to trial the format across LYCOS Network Europe and sales network partner site About.com. 

Users will be able to interact with Renault’s latest advert, learning more about the standards set by the Laguna in quality, comfort and driving pleasure.

Renault have also staged a complete takeover of the LYCOS site, using a “push-down homepage takeover” format.  The format enables users to roll-over a banner at the top of a page which scrolls down, pushing the site content down the screen, rather than covering it.  The new Laguna TV advert then plays in the space created by the push-down. 

Sam Kayum, Sales Managing Director for LYCOS UK said: “These new formats point towards the future of online advertising, encouraging users to interact directly with content – key in today’s cluttered media environment.”

David Isherwood, E-Marketing Manager for Renault UK said: “Renault has a long history of incorporating innovation into its product development, so it’s only natural we wanted to be the first car manufacturer to pilot this new technology.

“As a continually forward thinking company, interactive marketing is an area we are increasingly developing an interest in, and its pioneering technology combined with customer experience fit perfectly with New Laguna. We’re delighted to have worked with Lycos in this venture.”

Lycos has recently signed up a similar campaign by Nivea which will use the new format in coming weeks.

Coull, a provider of interactive online video publishing platforms, today announces that it has closed on a series B financing from Finance South West Growth Fund (managed by YFM Group), Creative Ventures Group, and private investors. 

With this investment, Coull today launches two products available to brands and content owners to create and manage interactive online video:

•Coull Engage is an online video advertising format, enabling unprecedented levels of interactivity and consumer engagement. Brand marketers and digital marketing agencies can easily create interactive video adverts, with Coull’s robust reporting tools allowing real-time campaign tracking, measurement and monitoring.

•Coull Activate is a web application that allows content owners to make any video content interactive – activating objects to link to other sites or additional product information. Content owners can use Coull Activate to monetise product placement; increase consumer dwell time; and control and monitor distribution across the web.

“Coull’s technology allows any video to be made interactive – activating objects to link to another site, product or service,” says Irfon Watkins, Coull CEO. “This offers brands and content owners increased creative scope to incorporate advertising into online video content, in a way that directly engages consumer audiences. Maximising the opportunity presented by the continued surge in consumer use of online video.”

“The financial investment will be used to accelerate further development of these products and to augment Coull’s sales and marketing programme.”

Gillian Kent, former MSN UK managing director and CEO of Propertyfinder.com, has been appointed to the Board of Directors at Coull. Gillian will aid establishing Coull as a premium online video advertising format within the digital marketing and publishing sectors. Creative Ventures Group founder Spyro Korsanos also joins the Board at Coull.

“These new appointments bring extensive experience to the Board as we embark upon rapid expansion” states Bernard Holcroft, Coull Chairman and Director of Rupert Hambro & Partners Ltd, Coull’s major share holder.

“2008 is the year for online video,” adds Gillian Kent. “Coull’s easy-to-use products, combined with their long held expertise in online video, positions them extremely well for success.”

Lycos has completed a trial of the Coull Engage interactive video advertising format in a media first for Boots and MediaCom.The Boots ‘Here Come The Girls’ TV ad was delivered on the Coull Engage platform across Lycos and its partner site About.com, with viewers able to interact with products during play.

“The results of the trial have been very impressive, with 29.3% of consumers interacting with the various products within the video and therefore taking user engagement with Brands to another level” says Fiona Smith, Agency Group Head at Lycos. “The Coull Engage format also drove five times the average play rate for a non auto play MPU ad.”

“Interactive video offers brands increased scope to engage directly with consumers,” says Irfon Watkins, Coull CEO. “The Lycos trial highlights the potential this offers to maximise the power of online video – driving deeper brand involvement, customer acquisition and sales.”

Renault and Nivea have now signed up for similar campaigns, following the success of the trial.Coull Engage is an online video advertising format, enabling unprecedented levels of interactivity and consumer engagement. Brand marketers and digital marketing agencies can easily create interactive video adverts, with Coull’s robust reporting tools allowing real-time campaign tracking, measurement and monitoring.