I love television as a marketing medium – pure and simple. It has sight, sound and motion. It has terrific reach, great entertainment value and a captive audience.
For years, television was the Great Brand Builder – the foundation of most integrated marketing communications plans. The growth of existing products was hitched to this powerful steed. The success of new products depended on mass distributed introductory TV ads. This was terrific… exciting… and easy! Indeed to marketers, Television was the best friend we could ever have.
But we’re killing the damn thing – and here are the culprits:
• Clutter: How many more commercials are we going to jam into the pod? Aren’t we inviting consumers to run out of the room or hit the remote every time they get a whiff that a commercial is coming? Haven’t we provided enough rationale for the DVR industry?
• Cost: Aren’t network prime CPM’s out of control? We can talk about supply and demand all we want, but the reality is that marketers have had it – and they will continue to shift dollars to friendlier media alternatives. And what about those hidden charges called Network Integration Fees? Why are marketers still paying for them – when the cable guys have nothing of the kind?
• Measurement: C’mon now. In this world of technology, why can’t marketers get their hands on affordable commercial ratings data? Not only are marketers getting slammed with overpriced CPMs, they may be overpaying even more because their buys are based on inflated program ratings rather than realistic commercial ratings.
• Creative: OK – this is purely subjective, but do we really think that the level of television commercial creative is anywhere near what it was – say 10-20 years ago? Where have all the creative cowboys gone – those geniuses that kept us glued to the TV for the eighth, ninth and tenth viewings of that hard-to-resist spot?
Putting my frustrations aside, I actually have great hope. With the advent of enhanced TV technology – including improved consumer targeting tools – I believe television marketing has the opportunity to be reinvented as the communications vehicle-of-choice in 3-5 years. But the television industry business model must change. The reporting and measurement tools must evolve. The pricing must become more competitive. And, most importantly, we must rethink our whole strategic approach to brand building. Can it be done? Absolutely. Will it be done? I’m taking bets!
