 |
 |
|
"Koeppel Direct's media buying expertise has played an integral role in making my company successful. Koeppel generated so much business for our company, occasionally we have to limit their media buys, in order to handle all of the new business." | |
| - R. Gregg Marketer of Senior Products |
|
MEDIA BUYING DIRECT RESPONSE TELEVISION (DRTV) ARTICLE ...... |
The Decline of the :30 Commercial and What it Means for DR Marketers
By: Peter Koeppel
Published: 04/06 |
| |
At the ERA Mid-Winter conference in late January, I heard from a range of people in the
industry, who indicated that results were off versus a year ago. Some speculated that it was due to the
milder weather this winter, but it seems that it's not just the weather alone that's impacting our
industry, as well as the broader universe of brand marketers.
The CMO of Verizon Wireless, John Stratton, in a recent speech warned marketing and entertainment
executives that the traditional advertising model is broken. His company spends more than $1 billion
a year for advertising on overvalued, inefficient, rapidly eroding mass-market advertising platforms
that continue to underdeliver. He noted that What you've been selling for the last 50 years,
(:30 TV spot), no longer works. (Source: Adage.com). A recent Yankelovich study seems to support
Stratton's concerns. The survey found:
- 54% of consumers resist being exposed to or pay attention to marketing.
- 56% avoid buying products that overwhelm them with marketing
- 69% are interested in products that permit blocking, skipping or opting out of marketing
Source: 2005 Yankelovich Marketing Receptivity Study New York Times (2/12/2006).
A 2004 Yankelovich study published in the New York Times reported that clutter, competition and fragmentation
have steadily chipped away at the productivity of marketing and 70% of the study's respondents noted that
they tune out advertising more than they did just a few years ago.
Follow the Media Moguls
How does one stay ahead of the curve and adapt to the changing media environment? In my opinion, Steve
Jobs, CEO of Apple Computers and Rupert Murdoch, chairman of News Corp., are two of the leading media
figures in business today. They understand the changing media landscape better than others and are
positioning their companies to capture revenue from Interactive and emerging digital media.
Keeping on top of the latest moves of Murdoch and Jobs may provide you with insights into the
latest changes in the media landscape.
Shift to Interactive and Digital Media
Murdoch has spent $1.6 billion recently buying up Internet businesses. He also plans to spend an
additional $1 billion for adding broadband to DirecTV, according to a NEWSWEEK interview (2/13/2006).
Murdoch also noted in NEWSWEEK that, In the whole world today, only 190 million homes can receive
broadband. That's going to go up in the next 10 to 20 years to at least 3 billion homes. We're just
now at the very beginning of the shift to digital media. He understands that the convergence of
TV and the Web is coming and that can translate into a major revenue source. He also understands
that to reach consumers today they need to be targeted through a myriad of devices and media
outlets. Murdoch notes in the NEWSWEEK interview that in other parts of the world, where
mobile-phone service is more developed, people are downloading segments of the Fox hit
24 on their cell phones.
Apple has sold 42 million iPods according to the Wall Street Journal. Jobs has worked out
deals with NBC and ABC, so that consumers can download shows like Desperate Housewives and Lost
onto their iPods for $1.99. Jobs is also capitalizing on selling video clips on the web. Apple
sold 12 million video clips at $1.99 each from its popular iTunes Music Store in just a few
months, according to the Wall Street Journal (3/1/06).
Adapting to Change
The direct response industry may be experiencing some of the effects of the changing media
environment outlined in this article. However, the direct response industry is in a better
position to adapt to the changing marketing landscape than brand marketers, since the successful
direct response marketers and agencies are experts at constantly seeking out new and innovative
ways to increase ROI.
The direct response industry is all about measuring results, so we've known for years that a :30
TV ad generally doesn't generate the same results as a :60, :120 or infomercial, whereas brand
advertisers are just coming to the conclusion that the :30 ad format is less effective than in
the past. Most direct marketers have been ahead of the curve in terms of utilizing a URL in
their DRTV advertising, in order to take advantage of the growing power of the Internet.
It's important for direct response marketers to understand the changing consumer mind set regarding
marketing and advertising, when developing products and planning future campaigns. Products, ads and
offers need to be more compelling than ever, in order to grab the consumer's attention. Media buys
need to be more innovative and direct response marketers need to be open to testing new media
outlets and technologies that might improve sales. This adaptability should prove useful as more
Interactive and emerging digital media opportunities are introduced into the marketplace.
|
| |
|
|
|
