This is the question that publishers must answer to media companies. The longer people spend, the better it is for the brand message, right?

Search Engine account reps get asked the "time spent" question all the time, and as one could expect, results are often pitiful. People are spending no amount of time on their site. So…they’re sunk.

But the Internet is not a traditional channel. 

In fact, Google has such a strong search engine algorithm, users find the right results faster, and the reward for this is getting people in and out as quickly as possible. Google's search is all about speed and accuracy.

Check out this infographic: The Power of Facebook Advertising.

The first section of this infographic tells the tale. The average person spends 6:35 hours per month on Facebook, but they spend 3:20 hours on Google. This makes Facebook look like a much more superior advertising opportunity, right? But it doesn't tell the tale.

Are you the same person on Facebook as you are on Google? Do you have the same intent?

On Google, you're doing fast searches and looking for answers. On Facebook, you're connecting to friends and socializing. Yes, that's a generalization but I'm sure if someone had the hardcore data, it would tell a similar tale.

Sometimes, the more time you spend, the worse the user experience is. Sometimes, the more time you spend in a channel, the less open you are to advertising.

We have to be extremely vigilant when making our media planning and purchasing decisions. This is a new world, where marketing is not generic (if you're not up-to-speed on the "native ads" concept, read this).

Trying to pump up your metrics by saying that consumers spend more time on your property when compared to a property that is driven by results and speed may look good to a traditional adman, but it's not a universal truism.

But don't cry for Facebook, they're doing just fine. Revenues for Facebook will reach $4.23 billion this year, which is a 34.1% increase over 2011.

Yes, these brands ARE fighting for the same ad dollars, but each channel offers a very different kind of advertising to a very different type of user. This is another reason why we're going to start seeing demographics and psychographics take their place next to media intent: what the consumer's needs are when they're engrossed in a specific media platform.

For my dollar, I would argue that the Joey Barker on Twitter is nothing like the Joey Barker on Facebook who is nothing like the Joey Barker on LinkedIn.

So, put on your thinking cap...

What are a few better metrics we can use to make better comparisons?

Check out next week’s post for how you can tie each of these together to build a seamless Content Strategy for your brand. Sign up for email alerts and make sure you don't miss it!