MTV joins other cable channels with the addition of original Made-for-TV movies

It can be helpful to a campaign to be aware of upcoming changes of venues that have been used in the past.

According to MediaPost, MTV is looking to expand its programming with original Made-for-TV movies.

This new avenue is intended to aide in MTV boosting its ratings performances. With hopes to premiere one movie each quarter, the channel currently has two in production. One film is titled “My Super Psycho Sweet 16” and the other being “Turn the Beat Around.” Dance, horror, and comedy are the main themes of the first few films.

While MTV was down on viewership with the 18-49 demographic since last year, it still claims to be the “No.1-rated full-day ad-supported cable network for viewers 12-24.”

Made-for-TV movies have made a niche market for other cable channels like Lifetime, Hallmark, and even The Disney Channel which have been fairly successful. MTV’s films could be a great tool in targeting an audience that are too old for Disney but too young for a Lifetime or Hallmark type channel.

Virtual coupons are becoming established as a viable advertising option

If coupons fit within your campaign strategy, be aware of what kind can generate the best results.

Scarborough Research has recently conducted a study on coupon usage. MediaPost reports that print coupons still are the dominant source; however, virtual coupons like text messages and emails are beginning to have a following.

Of the households surveyed, 51% use Sunday newspapers as the number one source for coupon retrieval, in-store coupons are second at 35%, mailed coupons are third at 31% and loyalty card programs are fourth at 21%. Other non-digital sources like in-store circulars at 20%, weekday newspapers at 17%, coupons included in product packaging at 16%, and magazines at 15% are still significant.

At the moment, the research company states that “8.6 million households get coupons via text messages or email, equaling about 8% of U.S. households; 7% get their coupons from Web sites.” It is noted that consumers who receive virtual coupons tend to be 51% more likely than the general population to be college graduates and skew slightly younger. The top markets for virtual coupons tend to be college towns like Providence, Rhode Island due to the fact that is where large numbers of tech-savvy young adults reside.
Coupons can be a helpful tool to any campaign. It is useful to know which form can be the most successful in reaching the target audience.

Research shows that consumers go to newspapers to check advertising

It can be beneficial to your campaign in knowing what medium your consumer finds trustworthy.

According to an article by the Center of Media Research, the Newspaper Association of America has enlisted MORI Research’s help in consumer observation. The research company has released early data from its study entitled “American Consumer Insights.”

In it, the study finds that newspaper is the primary medium for which adults use for planning, shopping and purchase decisions. It shows that “73% of adults regularly or occasionally read newspaper inserts,” and “82% have been spurred to action by a newspaper insert in the past month.” Taking action is broken down by clipping coupons (61%), buying something (50%), visiting websites to learn more (33%) and trying something for the first time (27%). It is also found that the closest competitor of newspaper, as the primary medium for checking advertising, is the Internet. However, the Internet is behind newspapers by about 20% in the poll.

It can appear that some forms of media are no longer valid in a digitally savvy society; however, it is important to remember what sources the target audience considers trustworthy. Print still has the validity with the consumer which can be advantageous to a campaign.

TV and Movie streaming grows in popularity in America

It’s helpful for your advertising campaign to know what the new and popular medium is and which demographic is thoroughly immersed in it.

Reported by MediaPost, the amount of Americans watching TV and movies on the internet have steadily increased.

According to the article, in the last six months, the percentage of Americans streaming both has more than doubled. MediaCT’s biannual MOTION Study was the basis of the article. It was found that “in the past 30 days, 26% of online Americans streamed a full-length TV episode and 14% streamed a full-length movie, more than twice the levels recorded in September (11% and 6%, respectively).” Not surprising is that the 18 to 24 demographic are the most expected to utilize streaming. Despite the growing popularity of streaming, it is still found that the average American with access to the Internet consumes less than two hours of online content per week. That same group watches an average of 15 hours of traditional television per week.

It is advisable to be aware of new technology, and the advertising possibilities it makes available. However, be cautious to put the majority of advertising funds into that medium. In looking at the big picture, that new medium may only account for a small percentage of viable media.

Facebook to update its guidelines which may affect advertisers

It’s good to keep yourself informed of changes within a media platform that your campaign uses. These changes may affect your campaign’s message.

Reported by AdvertisingAge, Facebook has updated and instated new guidelines effective the week of August 3, 2009.

According to the article, the social networking site will block advertisers that do not observe the new guidelines. It still allows apps to integrate “virtual goods, subscriptions, advertising, or whatever you choose.” However, there are two kinds of advertisements that are no longer permitted. They are “anything that sends ‘user data received from Facebook to ad networks,’ which limits the potential for behavioral targeting… and… any ads that display user data in applications, ‘unless specifically approved by Facebook.’” This last portion could present a problem to users who like to incorporate personal photos into the ads as they are not approved by Facebook.

These changes in guidelines may directly affect a campaign’s creative message. Therefore, it is important to be aware of how an advertising message is being perceived in the particular media platform in which it is running. A few modifications to the advertisement may make the campaign stronger and stay within the parameter of Facebook rules.

Spotlight: Ask Linda Norfleet

Question: Arbitron Inc, which is the measurement company for radio listenership across the country, is making a switch from consumers filling out a daily diary to a Portable People Meter. What is this and how will it impact the radio industry?

Answer: The PPM (portable people meter) is a small devise about the size of a pager that will be clipped to the panelist’s clothing. It will read encoded audio signals from radio stations based on what station is playing in the vicinity of the panelist. At night it will be “docked” in a charger that sends information to a central data collection site. According to Arbitron Inc, the new PPM system will be more reliable, credible and timely with information provided to radio stations, ad agencies and direct advertisers. Results will be more consistent from month to month. Credibility will be formed as listeners will not need to remember what stations they are listening to, since the information is automatically recorded through their PPM devise. PPM data will be refreshed each month so audience listenership will be continuously be updated. While overall radio listenership will not change, audience levels will be lower as diary keepers tended to over-report routine listening.

Reality shows can be more engaging than scripted TV

When debating about which television shows you want your commercial to run in or adjacent to, be aware of who is watching and who is engaged by the program.

Reported by MediaPost, the company ExperianSimmons researched which TV show viewers and ranked his/her engagement levels.

According to the results, “when it comes to engagement dimensions – ‘inspirational,’ ‘trustworthy,’ ‘life enhancing’ and ‘personal connection’ for last season, broadcast reality shows outranked broadcast drama.” For example, reality TV received a 289 mark (out of a possible 500) to scripted TV’s 236 in the trustworthy dimension. However, it was found that scripted TV shows did better with people of higher incomes, are full-time workers, and/or are students. In contrast, the reality TV index is higher with retired workers and those who are unemployed.

In order to insure a successful campaign, it is important to understand and utilize the venues where the target audience resides.

Digital boards allow client freedom to experiment with creative rotation

If you want the outdoor exposure of a billboard but are concerned with the cost of producing multiple vinyls to rotate, then digital boards may be the best answer.

Digital billboards have been around for a few years. However, as technology improves, outdoor companies are stressing the many creative opportunities that digital boards can offer.

On a typical digital billboard, eight advertisers rotate every eight seconds to display a static image. In a 24 hour period, one advertiser has the image displayed 10,800 a day. Because it only takes a 24 hour turnaround to input a new display image, advertisers can change the creative multiple times a day. Creative rotation can be as specific as times of the day or certain days of the week. There is no additional cost for the creative changes.

By being able to change up creative in a quick and inexpensive manner, advertisers can track the effectiveness of the campaign by seeing which creative drives the most response from consumers.

Marketers can forget to focus on male Baby Boomers for purchasing decisions

When looking for a target demographic for your campaign, do not forget that men also make purchasing decisions.

Reported by MediaPost, the Natural Marketing Institute (NMI) completed a survey of 3,000 adults regarding the economy.

According to the results, “40% of men over the age of 50 said they are not feeling increased stress because of the economy, compared with 30% of women in the same age group.” Also, one-third of Baby Boomer men are the primary household grocery shopper, which is up from 20% ten years ago. Research says men are more willing and tend to purchase more brand name products. From the study it was found that Baby Boomer men are more likely to make impulse purchases and spend more money than Baby Boomer women.

To create a successful campaign, it is very important to make sure that the target demographic is being reached by the right creative and the right media. It is also imperative to know who will be making the purchasing decisions in regards to the product or service being advertised.