6 reasons the recession is good for TV advertising

Posted on May 4, 2009 by Kirk

istock_000003320639xsmallAccording to Digital History, the movies saved us during the Great Depression.

“Even at the Depression’s depths 60 to 80 million Americans attended the movies each week, and, in the face of doubt and despair, films helped sustain national morale.“

Sound familiar?

According to a recent survey conducted by Frank N. Magid Associates for Hearst-Argyle Television, local TV viewership is up. “Respondents to a new survey of local TV viewers around the country said they are more engaged with advertising within local TV newscasts than each of four other ‘traditional’ media evaluated.

“Ninety-nine percent of respondents said they are turning to local TV news at least as much or more frequently than in the past as a result of current economic conditions.”

Here are 6 reasons the recession is good for TV advertising:

  1. Nearly everyone has a TV.
  2. People are staying home more to save money.
  3. People want entertainment to take their minds off of their economic problems.
  4. Ad rates have dropped, encouraging advertisers to spend.
  5. Advertisers who couldn’t afford TV before now may find it within reach.
  6. Video shot for TV can be repurposed across channels — online, mobile, kiosks, VNRs, downloads, etc.

In his blog, Mark McLaughlin, president of McLaughlin Strategy, says, “Let’s hope this recession will see a shift back toward the importance of the TV commercial. TV commercials are scalable and repeatable opportunities to reach mass audiences with effective messages. In fact, TV commercials can be more valuable than ever because they drive online engagement efficiently.”

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2 Responses to 6 reasons the recession is good for TV advertising

  1. Money Market Expert says:
    May 12, 2009 at 8:16 pm

    Tv Advertisement is powerful, I will grant you that. But many people, especially younger people are growing increasingly immune to the effects of advertisment. So many millions of messages bombarding the brain, causes it to begin to put a blanket tune-out on all advertisement. TV advertisements are great at reaching large audiences easily, but they can’t be the end-all. Truly effective advertising campaigns involve pro-activity and multiple mediums. If they compel the audience to take action on their own to find out more, then they have much more of an imprint on the brain. That’s why television advertising paired with web advertising and marketing is such an effective combo. Especially now that many are connected to both simultaneusly.

  2. David Weyls says:
    June 10, 2009 at 2:00 pm

    Of course, in my profession as EP of a video production company I am happy to read the above about the new, economy based relevance of TV advertising. I think more people are staying home and watching TV for their entertainment. Plus, in my recent experience, many of the commercials we now shoot for TV ads are also being used on the internet and on the web. Plus, I also agree with the response above too. I think that the best campaigns today do a good mix of TV, web and other marketing. Just don’t forget the importance of TV and it’s possible multiple uses.

    Hi Rick Carey!