What is TV Advertising? Features, Benefits, and Future of TV Ads

Televisions have been a part of every average home for decades now. Traditionally, people started to expand utilization of television from entertainment to advertising purposes.

Marketers have long used television advertisements to sell their products or services to consumers.

These ads can take many forms, but they all have one goal: to persuade viewers to buy what they sell. This is television advertising, and it’s an important part of the marketing mix for many companies.

What Is Television Advertising

Television advertising is the process of creating and airing commercials on television to promote a product/service.

TV advertising is one of the most common and effective ways to reach consumers. This is because it offers a wide reach, frequency, and impact.

While OTTs and digital content are now competing for attention with the TV industry, TVs are still the dominant medium for advertising.

An average person spends around 4 hours watching TV each day. This gives advertisers many opportunities to get their message in front of potential customers.

How TV Advertising Works

Television advertising takes time from the programs viewers are trying to watch. Most commercials are between 15 to 60 seconds, which means they can be quite intrusive as multiple ads are typically aired during a single TV show.

While this may seem like a negative aspect for television users, it’s one of the things that help TV channels make money.

There are many different ways to create a television commercial. Advertisers can produce their ads or work with an advertising agency and production house to develop the creative.

Once the commercial is created, it must be scheduled on a TV channel. This is typically done through an advertising agency or media buying firm.

The cost of airing a commercial on TV can vary widely depending on the time of day, day of the week, ad length, the show’s rating and the channel it airs on.

Features Of Television Advertising

TV ads typically have some or all of the following characteristics:

Attention-grabbing: Television commercials are designed to be entertaining and memorable to stick in the viewer’s mind.

Multiple Senses Utilized: TV ads rely on multiple senses to reach viewers. This is why they often include music, visuals, and special effects.

Marketing Objectives: Every TV ad is created with a specific marketing objective, whether to increase brand awareness or generate sales.

Time-effective Message: Television commercials take only a few seconds to deliver their message. Hence, they make sure to get their point across quickly and effectively.

Types Of TV Advertising

Television advertising comes in many different forms, including:

Television Commercials (TVC): TVCs are the most common type of television ad. They typically last between 15 and 60 seconds and air during commercial breaks.

Product Placement: Product placement is when a product or service is featured prominently in a TV show or movie. This can be done organically as part of the story (e.g. a character using an iPhone) or through explicit placement like when a product is shown in close up or used in a key scene.

Brand Integration: Brand integration is when a brand becomes part of the fabric of a TV show. That is, when the entire script revolves around a particular brand or has its offering as a special prize (e.g., Fear Factor where contestants win a Ford truck).

Infomercials: Infomercials are lengthy TV ads that usually air late at night or on weekends. They typically last for 30 minutes or more and include a call to action, such as a phone number or website URL.

Overlay: Overlays are short, 10-second ads that appear over the bottom of the screen during a TV show. They are typically used to promote upcoming programs or products during live events

Examples Of Television Advertising

TV advertising takes many forms, from traditional commercials to modern-day product placement. Here are some examples of television advertising:

Old Spice: The Man, Your Man, Could Smell Like

Old Spice is a popular men’s grooming brand known for its humorous commercials. The company has produced several memorable TV ads, including “The Man Your Man Could Smell Like.”

This commercial feature a man who is confident, attractive, and successful. He is shown doing various things to appeal to men, such as riding horses and playing basketball. The commercial ends with the tagline, “Old Spice. The man, your man, could smell like.”

Nike: Just Do It

Nike is a famous athletic wear brand known for its motivational commercials. To promote its tagline, “Just Do It,” the company released a commercial featuring an 80-year-old man talking about how he runs 17 miles every morning.

Transformers Product Placement

The Transformers movies are known for their product placement, and Chevrolet was one of the brands featured in the films.

The company’s cars were prominently featured throughout the movies and even played a role in the plot.

Advantages Of Television Advertising

Television advertising has its advantages over other marketing channels. Here are some of them:

• Mass Medium: TV reaches a large audience quickly and effectively. This makes it ideal for advertisers who want to reach as many people as possible.
• Appeal To Everyone: Television is an advertising medium that doesn’t require the audience to be literate. It can be consumed by people of all age groups and literacy levels.
• Persuasive: TV advertising is very effective at persuasion, thanks to its use of sight, sound, and motion.
• Emotional Connection: TV commercials often rely on emotions to deliver messages. This can be done through music, visuals, and even stories.
• Attention-Grabbing: TV commercials are designed to grab the viewer’s attention and hold it for the duration of the ad.
• Trustworthy: TV advertising is seen as more trustworthy than other marketing channels, such as online ads.

Disadvantages Of Television Advertising

Television advertising also has some disadvantages that marketers should be aware of:

• Expensive: TV advertising is one of the most expensive marketing channels available.
• Not Targeted: TV advertising reaches a large audience but is not very targeted. Advertisers will end up paying to reach people not interested in their product or service.
• Limited Creative Freedom: The limited time available for TV commercials means that there is only so much that can be done creatively
• Not Interactive: TV advertising is a one-way medium, so it’s not very interactive. This can make it difficult to engage with the audience and get them to take action.
• Requires Repetition to Be Effective: TV advertising is only very effective if repeated multiple times. This can be expensive and time-consuming for advertisers.
• Less Flexible: It’s both expensive and time-intensive to make edits to a TV commercial once it has been produced.
• Declined In Recent Years: The popularity of TV has declined in recent years as more and more people are cutting the cord. This means that there are fewer people available to view TV commercials.

Future Of TV Advertising

TVs are getting smarter, and so is TV advertising. Advertisers are now using data to target their ads more effectively and to personalize them for each viewer.

We can expect more relevant, targeted, and interactive TV commercials.

The growth of digital video platforms, such as YouTube and Netflix, has made it easier for people to watch what they want when they want.

However, traditional TVCs are losing their battle against mobile advertising. TV advertising is no longer the only way to reach people through video.

But, on the brighter side, TV advertising is still an important part of the marketing mix, and it’s not going anywhere anytime soon.

Go On, Tell Us What You Think!

TV Advertising, though it is losing its importance in the marketing industry, its vaster reach and credibility keep it relevant. Tell us what you think about TV advertising and if you are willing to spend on TV Ads.