A client sent me this funny video, which was a nice way to start the day. But more than that, it made me think about the current state of TV advertising.
Clients have asked me many times recently, “Is traditional media dying? Will social media and the internet cause a steady decline in traditional advertising mediums until they are obsolete?”
I seriously doubt it. At least not in the near future.
Yes, the internet and social media have changed the way we, as consumers, behave. And I do believe that traditional newsprint media is hurting because consumers are looking more and more to the internet for their news.
BUT, I do still strongly believe that today’s consumers are continuing to enjoy traditional media for their entertainment. At the end of the day, once the kids are in bed, there is nothing like turning on the TV to catch the latest prime time drama or unwind as you find out which Desperate Housewife had her child switched at birth without her knowledge. And when I get a pedicure, I have yet to see a person there with their laptop or iPad surfing the net. No, we are all enjoying the pleasure of flipping through trashy magazines.
That said, although I admit to being a DVR junkie (yes, even though I AM in advertising, I do still race through the commercials. Although I do stop and rewind more frequently than most to watch commercials that look interesting!), I do watch live TV occasionally and know that there is still plenty of live TV being consumed. And although there are clients out there who don’t have the funding to afford TV advertising, when you do have it in your budget, there is not much that is as compelling as a good old fashioned television commercial.
Watch this video and see if you agree!
by Tracy Marlowe
I noticed you said you “believe” that the consumer is watching television still. Unfortunately, believing in something doesn’t translate into a good economic move for your clients.
If you look at the raw data it clearly shows that television and radio are DOWN….WAY DOWN. Commercials are rarely watched anymore.
Data shows that personalized and mobile marketing is now the way to market. If you have the funds in your budget to do a commercial….DO NOT DO A COMMERCIAL but rather spend those funds on something that has a trackable and proven return on your investment.
Okay Fred, here are some stats.
Your comment says that TV is down. But recent Nielsen studies show that actually TV usage is UP and continuing to grow. Yes mobile and internet usage is up too, but Americans are also watching more TV than every before. The average American watches two hours more TV per month just comparing 2010 to 2009.
While yes, DVR usage is up. But still, only a third of viewers are currently watching timeshifted television. That leaves the remaining viewership to be watching live TV.
And a study conducted in October 2010 shows that television is still the most influential form of advertising. I was able to find numerous other studies supporting that.
Mobile advertising is currently a growing trend, and studies do show that it is more impactful than online banner advertisement, which has not shown to be as inspiring as mobile, print or television. I do believe mobile has merit but it is still an emerging form of advertising which requires some creative planning, and works better for some clients than others. As it is working out the kinks and developing into a legitimate, trackable form of advertising, there are hot ideas like Geo-based target marketing (location based marketing) that aren’t working as well in practice as they do in theory. Not to say that they can’t and won’t. But it is still a developing medium with few statistics to back it up as far as the impact it makes on the consumer and driving brand preference.
Fred, the point of my comment was not to say that my clients should do TV advertising before all other mediums. We have plenty of clients and television is right for very few of them. But merely to say that the television commercial is long from dead and that television is still a very persuasive medium not to be ignored.
Thank you for your response.
Does this study show that its being recorded vs watched live? My son said to me the other day when a commercial was playing as I walked away…..”Daddy, fast forward this.”
Commercials are quickly becoming a thing of the past. Attention is at an all time low and if you don’t tell me now then I’m not listening. My point to my statement is putting any money into television advertising is pointing someone in the wrong direction. Neilsen just reported that over 50% of wireless subscribers own a smart phone which is up 14% from 2 years ago.
My point is that instead of pointing someone into making a commercial with that money. I think you should point them into the digital, mobile, and interactive route. This would be best for your clients long term growth and would catapult them above their competition.
Yes, Fred, as I mentioned, the study does state that 1/3 of television viewing is prerecorded (timeshifted). But 2/3 of people are still watching live TV.
You’re right in that mobile and digital usage is way up. But that doesn’t translate into effective advertising. People are using the Internet at an incredible rate. Almost 80% of Americans regularly use the Internet. Yet studies show that online advertising is still one of the lowest regarded forms of advertising. Viewers actually rank brands that advertise via mobile and online lower than their print and television counterparts. Why? Because they find advertising on these mediums to be the most intrusive. And the low cost of entry and tendency towards low production values also diminishes the brand perception of advertisers in these mediums.
Basically, to reiterate my point, yes, usage of digital mediums is up. But usage does not translate into influence when it comes to advertising. Studies show that television is still an incredibly effective medium with the HIGHEST influence on consumers over all other medium.
Also, please realize that we don’t have a single client whom we recommend place all of their eggs in one basket. No one medium will do everything that a client needs. They must diversify their media in order to make the strongest impact. We don’t have a single client for whom an online presence is not a part of our overall marketing plan. That includes websites, mobile marketing, search engine marketing and optimization, social media, and even online advertising for a select number of clients. And for a select few, for whom it makes sense, it includes television and radio. Because, again, no other medium is as powerful at driving strong responses from consumers.
We don’t disagree, that digital is definitely a wave of the future and that clients should definitely consider it in their marketing mix.
But to say hands down that all clients should disregard TV and that everyone should jump on the digital bandwagon and forget all other media is short sighted and not a very calculated move.