Microsoft is continuously gunning for Google on the online advertising market. And in this context, the Redmond company is by no means standing still and waiting for Yahoo to say "I do" to its $44.6 billion marriage proposal. In its race to become the runner-up power house in the online ad industry behind the Mountain View search giant, Microsoft has been tending to its own advertising back yard and has announced the introduction of Engagement Mapping.

According to the Redmond company, Engagement Mapping is designed to overhaul the process of managing and measuring the effectiveness of online campaigns. In terms of characterizing the success of online advertising campaigns when it comes down to connecting with customers, the generalized implemented system is based on the "last ad clicked" standard. Engagement Mapping is different in the sense that it does not reduce ad effectiveness measuring solely to the last item clicked, but takes into account additional variables, such as the online touchpoints and interactions associated with a specific user that ultimately lead to an eventual sale.

"The 'last ad clicked' is an outdated and flawed approach because it essentially ignores all prior interactions the consumer has with a marketer's message," said Brian McAndrews, senior vice president of the Advertiser & Publisher Solutions (APS) Division at Microsoft. "Our Engagement Mapping approach conveys how each ad exposure - whether display, rich media or search, seen multiple times on multiple sites and across many channels - influenced an eventual purchase. We believe it represents a quantum leap for advertisers and publishers who are seeking to maximize their online spends."

In this manner, the Redmond company is aiming to change the established and, by now, traditional methodology of advertising campaign reporting. Engagement Mapping means that sales, leads and traffic will no longer be connected exclusively with the last click or ad exposure. The introduction of the Engagement Mapping concept coincided with the unveiling of the Engagement ROI beta. Engagement ROI is set up as a reporting and optimization solution that delivers a complete perspective over the users' online behavior, taking into account the complex metrics of ad interaction.