WSJ Asia takes rates online

Hong Kong - The Wall Street Journal Asia has launched an online media guide for advertisers and media buyers in a bid to streamline its ad sales operation both internally and externally.

The site has been designed for advertisers, media buyers and even the Journal's own sales staff to calculate advertising rates and schedules and access regional data like publication dates and category information in real time.

Creative agency Fluid beat out four agencies in a tender to develop the site for Dow Jones. The recently launched site will receive a major marketing push in early 2008.

Scott De Nino, Fluid's new media director, said the technology used to create the site allows advertisers and their agencies to calculate rates and make forecasts on their yearly budgets in real time.

"The ability to create this information in real time is hugely beneficial to customers and [the Wall Street Journal's] sales staff," he said.

Shawn Hiltz, senior marketing manager at Dow Jones, said the ambition project had been one year in the making.

Hiltz added that the online media guide will receive a major marketing push in the first quarter of 2008, with online and print support targeting media buyers and advertisers.

"This is a big win for us both internally and externally," he said.