Should I Use My Commercial on Television or the Internet?

 Now a days isn’t like the good old days, there are many more options available to us! Whether in our personal lives (What to watch? Where to eat?) or at work (What email provider to use? What video conferencing software to try?), we’re overwhelmed by choice. So, you may be asking yourself, what’s the best place to show my commercial? Should I stick to Television or try this new online advertising? Even if you’re familiar with CPC or Search ads, video advertising alone seems to have too many options to digest. In this blog, we’ll look at the TV vs. Digital options and explain the pros and cons of each.

Why Have A Commercial at All?

There’s no doubt that video advertising is effective, as visual communication is, perhaps, the most compelling senses to for understanding and motivation. With the thousands of ads people see each week, video is a multi-sensory advertising mechanism that can grab and hold the attention of its audience. Video advertising also has a broad reach. With both traditional Television and digital options, you can get your video in front of the majority of Americans since 96% of the population have TVs and/or Smart Devices. Both options also offer the ability to target people based on their location, demographics and even interests. However, the targeting is where we see contrast between the TV and Digital advertising options—as digital has the ability to fine-tune targeting.

TV: Cable & Broadcast

In the TV advertising world, there are two products - Broadcast & Cable. The primary difference is on what channels your commercial will show, the reach and targeting potential. In both cases, spots are sold in geographic areas called zones.  Broadcast advertising is on local channels (ABC, NBC, FOX, etc.). Since these channels are free, you have the ability to reach more people. However, you cannot target these viewers by demographics, interest or even geographics. All of this makes Broadcast advertising a good fit for general awareness messages, but it is more expensive than cable. Cable advertising on the other hand targets by channel (interests) but reaches less people since the channels are paid for (E!, TBS, MTV, etc). If your brand or product needs to get in front of middle-aged women or young adults, for example, cable would be a better fit since each channel reaches a specific demographic. Additionally, you can target geographically to specific zones. Although someone from Los Angeles and San Diego are both watching MTV, you can ensure that only those within Los Angeles, or even specific neighborhoods within a zone, are shown your commercial.

What does it cost?

The cost depends primarily on which product (Broadcast vs Cable), the # of spots and the size of the geographic zone. Other things that impact cost are demographics of viewers, time of day/year (=# of viewers) and supply of spots (demand). Local Broadcast ranges from approximately $20 - $1,000 per spot while Cable is $5 - $100/Spot depending on the channels chosen. You’ll immediately see that cable is typically cheaper, this is because less people have access to cable and therefore less people will see your commercial.

Internet/Digital Video Products

Like with TV, there are multiple products to choose from, but the primary differences are unique to digital realm. In this case, the products available differ by device type, placement and targeting. In the case of all, targeting based on demographics, interests, purchase history, recently visited websites or searches is always available. All of this makes digital advertising a better advertising mechanism for businesses that need to reach specific audiences. I think we need to point out that with digital advertising your commercial won’t hit the entire audience based on the vast amount of inventory. In addition, digital advertising is more easily tracked and provided more meaningly reach data to analyze.  In addition to the baseline digital targeting mentioned above, some products have even better, more technologically advanced options that we’ll review below.

Pre-Roll

• Device Type: Mobile, Desktop, Tablet

• Placement: Before chosen video content

OTT (Over the Top)

• Device Type: Televisions (3rd party Connected TVs, digital channels, etc.)

• Placement: As commercials on film and TV apps

Addressable Geofencing

• Device Type: Television, Mobile, Desktop, Tablet

• Placement: Before chosen video content

• Special Targeting: Locations/addresses recently/frequently visited

Native

• Device Type: Mobile, Desktop, Tablet

• Placement: In-feed on social networks 

• Special Targeting: Those who follow you

What does it cost?

Like with TV, the cost of advertising depends on the product. In all cases, the advertiser pays for impressions calculated as CPM (Cost per thousand). Generally, the narrower the targeting, the higher the CPM. In our experience, CPM ranges from $5 - $30.

In Closing

We’ve identified some major takeaways including:

1.     Commercials/video are highly engaging and worth investing in

2.     Both TV & Internet advertising have several products to choose from

3.     Both TV & Internet advertising offer some type of targeting (geographics at a minimum)

4.     Internet Advertising has more advanced, precise targeting

5.     What product is right for you depends on who you’re trying to reach, on what type of device and your overall budget.

Whether you want to get your commercial out on broadcast, cable or digital platforms, Trifecta Marketing Service is the perfect partner. We can help you answer these important questions and develop an advertising plan that maximized your budget and reach. We can even assist with commercial production! To learn more about our custom marketing services, visit www.trifectamarketingservices.com.