There is something that’s very exciting and getting us pumped here at Standby, something that’s gotten me personally very excited since the first time I heard about it – Addressable TV!
In this digitally targeted world, there is no longer only one avenue that brands have to take to find themselves on the tele-box. Move over linear TV advertising for a second, let’s look at Addressable TV! This form of advertising has been around for quite a while, but it was something that client’s either found difficult to comprehend or understand when I pitched the concept. I was forever saying things like – “You’ll be watching the same TV show as your neighbour, but seeing different adverts”, “You pay for impressions only” and “We can target postcodes that meet your target demographics so you’re not wasting money on the wrong audience”. All of these just sounded either too good to be true or too confusing for the client, or they felt the fact it was ‘TV’ meant it would be too expensive and the cost would sky rocket at some point. It was no ones fault, I wanted to learn more and needed to get the right people collaborating with us on meetings.
So as 2018 motors along, not only has Addressable TV grown, so has Standby’s ability to articulate its meaning and begin pushing this offering much more. We’re now working in partnership with ITV and Sky, being educated further by them and media agencies on the offering. Even though our own knowledge and resource has grown, there’s more benefit to our clients when ITV and Sky are in our meetings too (something we can arrange quickly).
I’ve found that this isn’t a London only bubble, it’s grown to the rest of the UK. Kelly Williams, managing director of commercial at ITV proudly mentions “Our experience is, not many people who are in charge of planning and buying media get outside the M25. We (ITV, Sky, Channel 4) all have offices in Manchester.” This is ideal for Standby, as it feels like we’re all connected in a large network rather than peering in from the outside, hoping to chance talk to someone down south. We have superb relationships within the TV sector now and that is mainly due to the increased effort from broadcasters to engage on a regional basis. The big takeaway here is that it is very affordable and that is always the first reaction from our clients! It is the ideal platform for New to TV businesses and – with very little exaggeration here – it can skyrocket your brand. It is also worth mentioning that TV is still to most effective advertising channel by a country mile.
The stats don’t lie, TV advertising can really improve your sales and then you find yourself in pole position. Jonathan Allan, sales director of Channel 4 is a key advocator of Addressable TV “Just Eat and all those big E-commerce businesses that have gone into telly build an almost unassailable position and it’s very difficult [for a rival] to catch up once you’re top of mind. Then it drives massive benefits in terms of reducing the cost of your Google search and Facebook Cost Per Engagement acquisition.” The potential for acceleration of a brand’s business through TV, especially when they reach a ceiling through Facebook or Google is massive and through Addressable TV it’s even quicker to get you on the telly.
For all these positives, TV doesn’t work without a good creative. This is where Standby Productions can be the perfect partner. We base all our content on our creative minds, thinking not just outside the box but inside the mind of the client, engaging them so they get just as excited as we do! So with the help of some good friends coming to guest speak alongside us, we’ll be hosting a “New To TV” event in September to try and explain everything I’ve just profoundly wrote above but with even more passion and energy, to champion how awesome and creditable this route can be for you!
If want to learn more about Addressable TV, keep your eyes peeled. Now is literally the time to get on TV and as John Litster, managing director of Sky Media said “Whenever you ask people their favourite ad, they always say a TV ad. They don’t say that 48–sheet poster.”
Source: ITV, Channel 4 and Sky unite to champion TV advertising in face of online threat, Feb 2018.