The Super Bowl is over. Maybe your team won, maybe it didn’t, but one thing remains eternal – the commercials. Hyundai will get you out front and get you an epic playdate. Toyota will grant you (more than) three wishes. Best Buy will help you get to the cloud. Audi will make you king stud at the prom. And who on earth can resist a spunky baby Clydesdale who leaves home to fulfill her dream of becoming Budweiser’s top spokeshorse? There’s a simple reason advertisers scramble to get their ads on during the Super Bowl and are willing to pay a tidy sum to have their products and services seen through the medium of television: Broadcast television advertising works, no matter the budget. At Newell Ledbetter Advertising, we can show you the power of broadcast television advertising.
Most business owners don’t have the million dollar budgets required to place an ad in the Superbowl. Yet, of all the venues available to advertisers, television remains the single most powerful medium when it comes to impacting specific demographics with top-of-mind messages. Television reaches more potential buyers more frequently than print, and does so through messages that engage viewers on an action-sensory level (sight, sound, movement) as well as an emotional level (hello, baby Clydesdale!) In fact, television is the number one awareness medium – people are more likely to remember slogans and jingles than where they put their keys. Even politicians understand the power of broadcast television. That’s why more than 80% of all political spending is placed in local TV advertising. Political strategists know people spend more time with traditional TV than with any other informational or entertainment medium. No other medium is as effective when it comes to making a product or service memorable in the public consciousness, locally and globally. Using multi-sensory strategies, television advertising is designed to persuade and inform through strong engagement of emotions and cognition, creating a psychological connection between seller and buyer. So when people say TV just isn’t what it used to be, they’re right. It’s better than ever.
Think people are spending more time with their cell phones, iPads, laptops, desktops, and other devices? Think again. Nielsen reports that ninety-eight percent of all video content is viewed in the home on traditional home television sets. TVB.org reports that in the face of growing digital options, broadcast television still reaches more people each day than any other medium, including print, which has seen steady declines in ad revenue over the past ten years (stateofthemedia.org). Television remains the number one way potential consumers learn about products and services, and local broadcast television is the primary source for news and entertainment in the 18+ age demographic (TVB.org). In short, the American people are madly in love with their televisions, and rightfully so.
In recent Nielsen polls, viewers cite convenience and variety of programming as the main reasons they stick with TV. Further research shows that modern technological advancements only serve to enhance the viewing experience, not hinder it. Social media is a prime example of this trend. A majority of social media buzz is television content related (TVB.org). That word of mouth drives potential viewers right back to the television and supports our shared experience, cognitively and emotionally. Television builds brands, reaches consumers quickly and efficiently, and taps into the current zeitgeist. The best part is a business owner doesn’t have to have a million dollars stashed away to accomplish effective television advertising. With a proper marketing plan, smaller budgets are just as effective. At Newell Ledbetter Advertising, we specialize in small business marketing, getting our clients the most bang for their advertising buck.
Whether it’s the shared experience of a football game or learning about a mom-and-pop store down the road, television advertising gives us something to talk about, something to reach for… like that box of Kleenex when the now-grown Clydesdale sees her best human friend across a crowded street and gallops a full city block to say hello after three years apart. That Fleetwood Mac ballad playing in the background… the sound of hooves on pavement… the sight of steam billowing from her nostrils… the ‘hello old friend’ nuzzle at the end…
Nah. That’s not powerful. No way.
So. Who’s up for a Bud?
(Statistics provided by Neilson – www.nielsen.com/us/en.html and TV Basics – www.tvb.org)
Zachary Ledbetter is an Account Executive with Newell Ledbetter Advertising Inc. Zach specializes in media placement as well as creating marketing strategies using network television, cable television, radio and the internet. Call (719) 635-9988 for more information or contact us on www.nlamedia.com