The problems afflicting Yahoo and AOL are not unsolvable. Nor do they require that the companies merge together or become part of other companies. As far as marketers and advertisers are concerned (or at least this marketer), what both companies need to do is simple; whether they choose to do them together, individually, or as part of other companies doesn't really matter.
1. Stop worrying about Google. Google is search and the company has found a great way at turning on the money vacuum and leaving it on. While being able to take even just a small percentage away from Google would be a huge boon for any business, the resources necessary just to make the attempt don't justify the gains those resources otherwise applied might yield. If the future of advertising is only about search, than there are a lot more of us than just those at AOL or Yahoo who have something to worry about.
2. Get better at representing themselves. Both of these companies have made a lot of enemies within the marketing and advertising community over the years through the application of inflexible business practices and marketplace arrogance. Structural changes have shaken a lot of experience in both organizations loose while at the same time rendering the vision of both companies difficult to discern and therefore an uncertain place to either work for or with.
3. Look hard at what they do well, and then do more of it for a while… and do it for less. Yahoo has a huge audience scattered across a vast array of online content and utilities. It also has one of the best -- and likely underutilized -- targeting capabilities of anyone out there. Its Consumer Direct product is still one of the best things around. But it is typically priced out of most new-comers' comfort zones. While one-day Home Page Takeovers continue to be a big-ticket item that sells well, it isn't enough to support and grow Yahoo. Nobody likes to write smaller business, but it's worth every company's effort to figure out how to do it as efficiently as it can be done. Remember Google? I wonder how much of its revenue is from do-it yourselfers who are spending less than $10 thousand a month.
By virtue of its ownership by Time Warner, AOL should be able to capitalize on the content to which it should have access. There's an awful lot of it out there. Maybe audiences don't actually want it? Or maybe audiences don't know it is there. Or maybe there is just a little bit of audience spread far and wide, in which case, Platform A and the behavioral targeting that come with it could be a godsend. But then, is AOL good at selling behavioral targeting to the marketplace? AOL would also do well to get modesty with its expectations for advertiser spends on a per-buy basis. Again, finding a way to efficiently write smaller business would be a big win.
4. Stand and be heard. Neither of these companies has advertised in ages. It wouldn't be a bad idea to remind people that you're out there, and tell them what it is you have to offer. I'm certainly glad to no longer be receiving AOL disks in the mail any more, but at least I knew the company was there. And as for the buyer community, get thee to a meeting. Yahoo's bizarre practice of having business coming from a client that spends under a certain amount with it, and dealing only with an inside sales person over the phone, never to be seen, leaves the buyer/seller relationship wanting for… a relationship.
Media Strategies Editor Jim Meskauskas is vice president and director of online media for ICON International, Inc., an Omnicom Company.