“Not Ready For Prime Time” Ad Strategies

“I can’t advertise on TV. It’s too expensive. I can’t afford it.” A lot of small business owners have the view that TV advertising is just for big businesses with big budgets. The fact is, television may be the least expensive way to reach prospective customers, no matter what size your business is. Any medium can be termed “too expensive,” but considering the people reached by TV on a daily basis and the targeting opportunities, television advertising can be the most cost effective.

First, let’s take a closer look at television Since its debut on the American scene in the early 40’s, television has continued to grow year by year, and has effected our lives permanently. It is more than an entertainment and information medium; television is an integral part of American society. Television has become an important part of our culture. And, so has television advertising. Millions of people remember commercials far more readily than they remember programs. Often, the big news out of Super Bowl Sunday isn’t which team won or lost...it’s the TV commercials. The American people have a relationship with television that they don’t have with other media. Stars of television shows are international icons and often their weekly scenarios are discussed in great detail over the office water cooler...”Are Niles and Daphne really going to get together?” “Who shot J.R.?” “Is that your final answer?” are phrases that have become part of our culture. People actually feel as if they “know” TV personalities like national and local newscasters, Oprah, and sit-com and soap opera actors. TV commercials are part of our life too. “Where’s the Beef?” “Got Milk?” The point is, almost everybody is watching television. Roper Starch Worldwide reports that over 90% of Americans watched TV last week. And on average, American households spend more than 7 hours a day with television. That’s nearly 300 commercials each day.

Roper Starch Worldwide also says that television is our leading source for news and information. Despite an ever-growing array of options, more people find out what’s happening in the world and here at home from television than from all other sources combined. When asked where they usually get most of their national news, 69% of adults cited TV, compared to 37% for newspapers, 14% for radio, 7% from other people and 5% from magazines. Nearly half of all Americans cite TV news as their primary source. It stands to reason that TV is also dominant as an advertising medium for consumers. Over 60% say that TV is where they are most likely to learn about new products. and a great proportion of the public (70%) believe that TV is also the most persuasive of the major advertising media. That is likely because TV enlists multiple senses to get its messages across...sight as well as sound. It can also build strong emotional responses like the ones you get with certain sentimental commercials. Kids, dogs and America are three major themes advertisers use to elicit emotions from TV viewers in commercials.

The Spokane market is geographically one of the largest in the country when it comes to television. Our television ADI, or area of dominant influence, extends throughout eastern Washington, into western Montana and northeastern Oregon. Spokane TV advertisers also get a bonus audience with a huge Canadian market that is not counted in local ratings surveys. Our local TV signals boom into Calgary, Edmonton and throughout southern British Columbia and Alberta, making our newscasters and KSPS hosts “celebrities” in a large part of Canada.

So how can your small business take advantage of this huge advertising medium? Here are some ideas that can make TV work for your business:

First, budget realistically. You should plan on investing a minimum of $2,500 a month, consistently for at least 90 days to start making an impression on television. Remember you’re competing with as many as 40 ads per hour, including a big share from the biggest TV advertisers of all, themselves. The more you can spend, the more awareness you build, just like with any other medium.

Target your market. Who is your customer and who are you trying to reach? Television demographics are well defined. You can reach just about any segment of the population with TV programming. Reach women with daytime and evening shows; men with sports; working couples with early morning shows; seniors with daytime programming; adults with news; teens with music; and children with cartoons. Cable TV can deliver additional specialized programming. Television stations have expanded research to help you further target your market with lifestyle, income, propensity to buy, and other information.

“Flight” for frequency. Obviously with a minimum TV budget you can’t be on prime time. But, you can reach a significant audience at other times of the day. Flight your advertising to build frequency on certain days by clustering your spots in shorter time frames. If you’re trying to build business for the weekend, advertise on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. When you are not promoting sales events, you can flight different days of the week. If your budget is small, you may even have to flight every other week, but do it consistently.

Look to vendors for ad dollars. Most television stations can help you contact your vendors to apply for co-op or manufacturer funded promotions. Qualified retailers can receive “key market” advertising dollars to add to their own budgets.

Create an image. Locally produced television spots can be created for as low as $750. TV stations and the local cable company can help you create a commercial or with a larger budget you can choose from several talented, local production companies like Hamilton, North by Northwest, ILF and Mortimore. You don’t have to create an award-winning commercial; create one that appeals to your best potential customers.

What works best? According to ad guru David Ogilvy these television advertising techniques are “above average” in their ability to change people’s brand preference: humor, slice of life, testimonials, demonstrations, problem solution, talking heads (pitch men), characters, reason why, news and emotion.

Television offers affordable advertising opportunities for many small businesses. Carefully target your market. Flight your commercials for optimum frequency. And create a brand image for your company using television. Consistency is the key to greater awareness. If your business keeps showing up and looking good on television, you’re going to feel it at the cash register.

12/7/00