How Streaming is Becoming a Part of Marketing
I grew up in a time when cable was the best alternative to antenna television. With tens more channels than what was available on antenna TV, it was a level of content that I felt very privileged to have.
Needless to say, times have changed, and so has advertising.
Then and Now
Ads, otherwise known as commercials, on cable television were not optimized for niche markets. They really couldn’t be. Commercials were designed with a general audience in mind because producers needed to reach the broadest audience possible and couldn’t be picky about whom they appealed to. Even today nearly 40% of US consumers still use cable, proving that it is still an effective medium for advertising.
That said, there is this neat little thing called the internet.
With the inception of the internet so too has the opportunity of marketing increased. Ads played on streaming TV platforms maintain a viewer rate of 95%, a total of 33% more effective than on traditional television. In addition, ads streamed on TV can target specific audiences based on what content they are viewing, what keywords they use, the user’s zip code, their Designated Marketing Area (DMA), and interests. Polls often assist in this endeavor. An article by Business 2 Community perfectly sums up the effectiveness of polls if you’d like to learn more.
Tactics
Being able to reach niche markets on a massive scale has never been easier. With the aforementioned ways of connecting with individual viewers, ads can be as specific and unique as necessary to grab a particular audience. Data regarding the user’s ethnicity, age group, gender, and even the type of device that they are using is automatically collected and usable by the advertiser.
Distribution of ads during a program should be tactically considered. You are being paid to display these ads, of course, but you should consider the frequency and duration of the ads in question. You should disperse the ads in such a way that it reminds the consumer of the product and its usefulness without annoying the consumer. They should be incentivized to view it. Generally, a 15 to a 30-second ad is the optimal length of time to dispense information. The number of breaks should be roughly 2 to 3 per program. When the ad is being viewed, the amount of time the consumer viewed it is recorded, as well as the type of device it was used on. So much data!!!
The Players
Now, onward to a subject that is near and dear to our hearts, sarcasm intended. During the initial phase of the COVID crisis, everyone that wasn’t considered essential was asked to stay indoors. This event caused a massive shift in social behavior, as now many were stuck in their homes and dependent on the internet for communication and entertainment. This brought about a massive spike in streaming TV viewership. For example, Netflix saw an incredible amount of new viewers, something to the tune of 183 million subscribers, and this was in 2020 alone! As it stands, Netflix is in a dominant position on the market, maintaining a 33% viewership across the board of all streaming platforms. Next to Netflix is YouTube at 21% viewership, maintaining 2 billion active users per month. Then there is Amazon Prime Video with over 150 million subscribers, with Hulu following them up with 32 million subscribers.
As stated above, not only is obtaining data necessary for focusing on niche marketing but so too is the type of service to market on. Some excellent options include Roku, ESPN, TLC, Sling, Pluto, and Hulu. The average household subscribes to such services and is usually subscribed to 4 of them, which means there is a lot of opportunity to get the word out. The more services you can reach out to, the greater the chance that your product or service will be viewed, but if affordability is an issue then that is okay too, as the more platforms the average populace is subscribed to, the greater the chance you’ll get exposure. It is a fantastic time to go to market!
Okay, we have been harping on and on about how great TV streaming is for marketing purposes, but let’s not forget about our old friend cable television. Remember how I said that 40% of TV viewers use cable and TV streaming? That is still an impressive margin! This shows that cable is still an effective medium to advertise yourself. While it may not have the conveniences and specificity that streaming does, it is still another venue to use to your advantage.
Time For Action
So, we’ve discussed many things. You may be wondering at this point, “What should I do now?” The answer is, “Come up with a plan!” First, you need to decide what your budget is going to be. In our glorious fiat system, nothing gets off the ground without cash, so figuring out what your affordability will be is a must. The next step is to create ad elements. These elements include, but aren’t limited to script, audio, video, and all the digital assets that will accompany them. Now, you shouldn’t feel like you need to do this all on your own. Here at Zellus Marketing, we have the experts and the tools to bring your ad to life!
