October 30, 2015
Gil Klein
By Gil Klein
Television advertising is losing some of its appeal.
This year alone it was reported that in the United Kingdom, ad spending on mobile and online devices will attract more than double the ad spend that goes to TV.
As far as the United States goes, research and analyst firm Strategy Analytics reported that TV ad spend slightly decreased this year and that by 2018, the medium’s share of ad revenue will fall by 18 percent. Not to mention, only half of U.S. marketers say TV will rank among their top five channels for advertising spending in three years’ time, according to a survey by professional services firm Bain & Company.
I see a trend.
This holiday season, it is more important than ever that you reevaluate your ad spend plan based on your business priorities and target audiences’ habits, especially if your ideal consumer is relying on mediums other than television.
Below I have outlined three rationales as to why committing more funds to digital advertising – mobile and Web – will not leave you with coal in your bank account following the biggest quarter of the year.
1. Mo’ money. The cost of purchasing TV ads is greater than that of online. If consumers are increasingly on their mobile phones and tablets more during the later months of the year, it makes sense to transition that spend from television to online where you can get more bang for your buck.
Your budget will go much further buying ad formats such as online or mobile video ads.
In addition, digital advertising allows you more ability to personalize and customize messaging aimed at specific end users based on the device from which they are browsing. These, of course, can come in the form of interactive ads that engage users to ensure they have a fun user experience with your brand.
2. No one is sitting still. Consumers are less stationary during the holiday season. Why? They are travelling to see loved ones, gift shopping for friends and family and staying late at work to wrap up projects before their vacation days kick in. Less sitting at home results in more users on mobile devices throughout the season.
With fewer cozying up on the couch, prioritizing online over TV gives you a wide set of varieties and ad sizes to connect with users.
For instance, you can create a campaign that meets them wherever they might be, bringing me to location-based hyper-targeting.
3. Location, location, location. Location-based hyper-targeting in real-time can only be accomplished on mobile devices. Your busy consumers who are running through malls, airports and commuting to work each day want to know where to get the best deal in the closest proximity to them.
In fact, 75 percent of shoppers are checking their mobile devices in-store. Location targeting tools can assist you in finding your potential customers by interest, age, gender and income.
For example, if you are promoting a financial banking campaign and wish to engage businessmen, you have the ability to target male individuals staying at premium hotel chains within the geographical location relevant to the campaign.
4. And when it comes to results, rest assured that online enables you to measure engagement more accurately than that of TV. It does not take a rocket scientist to understand the difficulty in knowing just how many viewers watched a commercial.
However, it is simple to track actions such as view-through rates, viewability, click-through rates and completion rates.
WITHIN THE NEXT decade, TV advertising will become increasingly outdated. And with digital competition, specifically on mobile, that offers measurable results and real-time tracking, it is no wonder.
Keep your holiday cheer this season by moving away from old-school advertising habits and towards the future of ad spend.
Gil Klein is senior vice president of media at Matomy Media Group, Tel Aviv, Israel. Reach him at gil@matomy.com.
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