My argument that impressions matter more than clicks just got a shot in the arm.

Most of my clients are trying to build a brand presence online as well as generate conversions and this new technique is just the ticket to measure how well that brand development effort is going.

So without getting too deep in the nuts and bolts, MOAT measures how long a user hovers over an ad and determines if it is simply recognition, did you grab their attention say from color or a particular image, or if it is engagement, and you held their attention from compelling content. Check out the demo.

It’s a fantastic process and it’s going to change the way we look at online marketing. More to come.

Well, now there is a search engine just for online ads that not only will return the in-market ads for a particular search term, but will also display the heat maps of ads illustrating how long people hover over those web ads with their mouse. It’s not a click, but it is exposure, recognition, identification and a cognitive process being triggered by the message. That tends to stick with people.

Behold, MOAT.

The first set of ads features a woman that distracts from the CTA. The second image doesn't. While it gets less attention, it generates more heat on the CTA, thus making the second a more effective ad.

I’ll figure out how I can use this to my small business clients’ benefits ASAP. I just sent the good people at MOAT an email asking about whether this technology is within the budgetary reach of small businesses. Stay tuned!