Continuing its belief in big TV development, ABC has started up another massive slate of new shows for its new season. Seven of the 10 shows will debut this fall. Five are dramas; one is a comedy and one is a reality series. The biggest change is on Tuesday night, replacing its big "Lost" franchise. In that sci-fi vein, "No Ordinary Family," which will run at 8 p.m., is a drama about a family whose plane crashes in the Amazon, with each of them discovering they now possess unique superpowers. After a one-hour "Dancing with the Stars" results show at 10 p.m., ABC will move further into the procedural crime area -- started by "Castle." The net is airing "Detroit 1-8-7," which stars Michael Imperioli of "The Sopranos" as a homicide detective. On Wednesday, ABC is changing some of its mostly comedy lineup. "Better Together" is a sitcom examining three different relationships in one family. It gets the 8:30 p.m. time slot. Then at 10 p.m., "The Whole Truth" is a different kind of legal drama, showing equal sides to both the defense and prosecution, which ABC says should keep viewers guessing about the outcome. On Thursdays, "My Generation" will look at a group of Texas college graduates 10 years after a documentary was made on their lives. It starts off the night at 8 p.m. "Grey's Anatomy" and "Private Practice" continue at 9 p.m. and 10 p.m., respectively. ABC refreshes Friday with the addition of "Secret Millionaire" at 8 p.m. and "Body of Proof" at 9 p.m. "Millionaire" follows some of the wealthiest Americans who give up their lives for a week to volunteer in some of our country's poorest and dangerous cities and towns. "Proof" stars Dana Delany as a top neurosurgeon who has a devastating car accident and ends up as a medical examiner trying to determine what killed her victims. Midseason shows consist of drama "Off The Map" from "Grey's Anatomy" producer Shonda Rhimes, which examines a down-on-its-luck medical clinic in South America and some idealistic U.S. doctors. Comedy "Happy Endings" is about what happens to one's friends when a relationship breaks up. Another comedy, starring "Friends" alum Matthew Perry as a sports arena manager, is called "Mr. Sunshine." Some shows -- "FlashFoward" and "Happy Town" -- didn't make the cut. But another less-struggling drama "V" did, and will return midseason. ABC's Fall Schedule (new shows in bold)MONDAY 8:00 p.m. "Dancing with the Stars" 10:00 p.m. "Castle" TUESDAY 8:00 p.m. "No Ordinary Family" 9:00 p.m. "Dancing with the Stars the Results Show" 10:00 p.m. "Detroit 1-8-7"WEDNESDAY 8:00 p.m. "The Middle" 8:30 p.m. "Better Together" 9:00 p.m. "Modern Family" 9:30 p.m. "Cougar Town" 10:00 p.m. "The Whole Truth"THURSDAY 8:00 p.m. "My Generation" 9:00 p.m. "Grey's Anatomy" 10:00 p.m. "Private Practice" FRIDAY 8:00 p.m. "Secret Millionaire" 9:00 p.m. "Body of Proof" 10:00 p.m. "20/20" SATURDAY 8:00 p.m. "Saturday Night College Football" SUNDAY 7:00 p.m. "America's Funniest Home Videos" 8:00 p.m. "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" 9:00 p.m. "Desperate Housewives" 10:00 p.m. "Brothers & Sisters"
Just as other networks have done, A&E Television Network has also entered the world of neurological examinations of TV viewing -- looking into viewers' subconscious. And it has yielded some interesting results. Starting with a deal it made for "Intervention," A&E now looks to broaden its arrangement with NeuroFocus, which builds and operates stand-alone neurological testing laboratories for a wide range of clients in the U.S. and abroad. "Understanding the effects that program content has on viewers' response to advertising -- and to an extent, vice versa -- is a persistent question that everyone wants answered, definitively," stated Mel Berning, executive vice president of advertising sales for AETN. The results from the A&E show were clear: Advertising in "Intervention" ranked as more effective in generating viewers' emotional engagement in each of six advertising categories, compared to the identical advertising that ran in a drama from another network. "Conventional research methods are hard-pressed to get at the heart of that issue," said Berning. "Neurological testing, on the other hand, delved right to the source -- the subconscious -- and delivered the answers." NeuroFocus measurements are made using sophisticated sensors that capture brainwave activity at 2,000 times a second. According to the companies, neurological testing can evaluate the effectiveness of everything from brands, products, packaging, advertising, the in-store environment and entertainment content.
For years, ESPN has produced the well-received "This is SportsCenter" campaign -- albeit with the help of Wieden + Kennedy -- and now it's forming a sort of in-house agency: ESPN CreativeWorks. ESPN said Tuesday it will assist clients with developing creative using a tone that dovetails with ESPN's accent. Among its goals: crafting co-branded vignettes with marketers, as well as spawning promotions that stretch across multiple screens. CreativeWorks falls under ESPN's sales organization, although it may call on outside agencies ESPN works with for production help, including Triple Double, Maggie Vision Productions and Phoenix Productions. No word on any Wieden involvement. ESPN has worked with clients before on such co-development. Other cable networks provide a similar service; branded vignettes hope to capture more viewer attention during breaks than traditional spots. The CreativeWorks announcement came as ESPN held its annual upfront event, in which the network touted its coming coverage of the World Cup starting June 11. Twenty-five games will be carried on its new ESPN 3D channel, with network sponsor Sony set to air a spot in 3D. ESPN sales chief Ed Erhardt said discussions about 3D spots continue with several other companies; film studios would be a natural fit. The sports net will not produce the 3D games, but rely on a generic feed provided by soccer's international governing body. Separately, ESPN has said that use of its mobile offerings is up 30% year-over-year. Eric Johnson, an executive vice president in multimedia sales, said advertising on handheld devices wants immediate results. "The ad in the pocket to get cash out of the pocket," he said. ESPN has been interested in launching a non-"SportsCenter" original show in late night -- something it tried on ESPN2 with "Quite Frankly with Stephen A. Smith," which ended in 2007. Next spring, the company will give it a go on its ESPNU outlet. "U:Nite" is scheduled to debut on the channel, which has increased distribution to 70 million homes as ESPN has cut deals asking for increased reach for "U" in exchange for marginalizing ESPN Classic. Targeting young males, "U:Nite" has sports interspersed with segments on gaming and music. There will be some remote coverage from college campuses. ESPN will migrate shows to its Spanish-language ESPN Deportes by debuting a version of its year-old "SportsNation" ("Nación ESPN") early next year. In social media, the company said it has a deal with Playdom to develop ESPN-branded sports games that can be housed on Facebook and MySpace. Also, ESPN's ScoreCenter, which provides score updates to iPhone users, will be available as an Android app this month.
The radio business got some more good news Tuesday with a memo from Katz Media Group CEO Stu Olds: National advertising sales are growing again in the second quarter of 2010 -- making it the second quarter to see year-over-year growth after one of the longest and steepest slumps in U.S. history. If current trends hold steady, Olds says total revenues are pacing to grow 17% in the second quarter, compared to the same period last year -- thanks to consecutive year-over-year increases of 10%, 17% and 27% in April, May and June. Growth was led by telecom, professional services, consumer products and retail -- which all saw even bigger percentage increases than in the first quarter, according to Olds, who also noted sustained growth in automobile advertising. Retail is up 31.2% compared to the second quarter of 2009, telecoms 52.5%, consumer products 33.6%, professional services 38.7% and autos 29.9%. That compares to first-quarter increases of 0.6%, 21.9%, 31.2%, 14.6%, and 33.2% in the same categories, respectively. Not every category was up: entertainment and financial services both saw ad spending decrease in the second quarter (dropping 11.9% and 16.6%, respectively). The decrease in financial-services advertising may partly reflect the end of the Federal stimulus program to bolster the mortgage market, which expired in April. The second-quarter growth is spread across virtually every major market, with 20 out of 25 top DMAs experiencing double-digit percentage increases, according to Katz. Boston is up 50%, Houston 38%, Miami 34%, Washington, D.C. 31%, Pittsburgh 30%, Philadelphia 27%, Tampa 26%, Baltimore 23%, Seattle 28%, St. Louis 23%, Dallas 21%, Denver 20% and New York 20%. These are heartening figures for the radio business, which experienced unprecedented declines over the two years -- but they only cover national advertising revenues, which usually represent about 15% of total radio ad revenues. Beginning in the second quarter of 2007, the radio business as a whole experienced 11 straight quarters of declines through the end of 2009, and most of these losses were in local advertising -- the traditional mainstay of the medium. A real recovery will depend at least as much on local as national advertising.
Looking for a way to launch a Web series for TV One, Ashley Grayson and her colleagues didn't look far for material or talent. The hilarity of day-to-day life at the office yielded ample material. Some staffers thought they'd do just fine in front of the camera. So, Grayson, a writer for TVOneOnline.com, began developing a concept that she eventually pitched as "The Office" meets "Girlfriends," referring to a cross between the NBC hit and the comedy about four African-American women that aired on UPN and CW. "We thought why not base it on the 20something crowd who happen to be coworkers -- that's where some of the funniest stuff happens," Grayson said. Payne Brown, then head of digital media at TV One, gave the initial green light to what is now "The Cube Life." And Johnathan Rodgers, CEO of the African-American-targeted network, gave the final OK. Why not? It wouldn't cost him much. Grayson and 11 colleagues worked for free, writing and producing "Cube Life," a title that refers to office workspaces, a perfect place for eavesdropping. "Strangers go from co-workers to friends and ultimately become family," according to a show brief. Now on TV One's site, "Cube Life's" 12-minute pilot stars eight network staffers from departments as diverse as operations, affiliate sales and human resources. Others based in the Silver Spring, Md. office labored behind the scenes. The initial "Cube Life" episode has roots in Grayson, the creator and executive producer, coming to work one day and a concerned colleague commenting she didn't look well. "We just stretched the story out to something else," Grayson said. In the Webisode, Grayson plays the central role; her young female colleagues believe her character is pregnant when they find out she was in the emergency room with nausea. Without confirming, they decide to throw her a baby shower. Turns out -- to their embarrassment -- there's no bun in the oven. The production -- set in an entertainment company -- employs a faux documentary style, à la "The Office," where characters turn to the camera and offer some side comments or knowing looks. The boss is even shot at her desk, much like "Office" boss Michael Scott extolling her benevolent management style. What's next for "Cube Life"? Grayson and her colleagues will be discussing conceits for follow-up episodes next week. She's convinced, however, that she won't ever run out of inspiration. There's always tomorrow morning. Beyond that, Rodgers might consider a comment left on TV One's site: "When does it come on TV?"
May is my favorite month of the year. The days are longer, sunnier, and the beginning of baseball season leads to the anticipation of summer enjoyment. Professionally, it was a time when the hard work from the first quarter led to decisions related to the final strategy and plans that would impact the success of my brands. My work on packaged-goods brands led me to an understanding that targets were much deeper than adults 18-49 or women 25-54. I was nearly convinced that the only ads I'd see when I turned 50 were those for denture paste and Arizona condominiums. Fortunately for my career (and my growing family), I learned that age descriptors alone are really used as a standard for negotiations, and that marketers have more elaborate ways of defining who they hope to attract and convert. Despite holistic and qualitative targeting methods, age still plays an important role in determining the opportunity for a brand. Given buying patterns, the focus on younger demos is understandable. It is easy to appreciate that the opening weekend attendance for most movies is driven by young adults. For mobile marketers, nearly two-thirds of SMS usage is driven by young adults, and for quick-service restaurants, young adults have high incidence and consume higher margin products, such as fast-food and soft drinks. For other brands, marketers recognize that changes in "life stage" trigger entry into new product categories. The median age of the "first marriage" in the United States is 28 for men and 26 for women, and this couple is now making purchases to establish their household. With the addition of their first child, this couple is now concerned with purchasing brands they never even thought about before. They are making decisions that will shape their consumption patterns for the next 20 years. As these consumers gain more experience, they go through patterns of trial, brand switching and eventually, brand loyalty. One of my favorite targets was "non-brand loyal consumers of ground coffee." This target was created by the recognition that half of coffee volume was brand-loyal exclusive users who would not be swayed by advertising. The other half of the volume came from these brand switchers who had a much younger profile than the loyalists. Naturally, communications to this group required a different solution. The enhanced need to target younger consumers can be driven by the age skews of the TV networks themselves. The median age of ABC, CBS and NBC is in the mid-50s, and this median age has increased one year each calendar year for the last five. New programs that attract higher household ratings cannot be considered "hits" if their median age remains in the "over 50s." Sitcoms are the youngest programming genre that the networks run, and their median age increased from 43 to 46 over the past five years. We regularly meet with clients that have both the need and the objective to impact younger consumers, yet 60% of their current network impressions are being delivered to adults 50+. Prime network delivers over 60% of its entertainment impressions to women, causing marketers to turn to sports to balance their adult delivery. March Madness is just a memory, and it's finally baseball season. Unfortunately for marketers, sports programming also skews older with a median age of 50. Ratings fragmentation has led many marketers to look at additional factors in assessing the impact of their TV options. Studies have shown that extended pod length negatively impacts message recall, while placement in the first minute of the break yields higher recall and higher program audience retention. In our current recessionary environment, programming that yields higher "trust" and "influence" has greater value, evidenced by E-Score data available on the snta.com Web site. The increased penetration of DVRs will also impact a marketer's ability to reach younger viewers. Currently, DVR penetration is over 40% for young adults, 15% higher than the national average. In DVR homes, half of network prime programs are recorded and half of the commercials are skipped in playback. In fact, we're seeing that commercials placed in the first minute of the break represent more than 70% of total "playback." Marketers and their agencies are in midst of finalizing and executing their 2010/2011 upfront plans. Decisions related to brand needs, usage dynamics and the age skew of recommended media all require attention. While many recent studies show that television is the most effective medium in driving brand sales, adjustments in execution and careful selection of national TV elements can yield better options that provide real ratings, high reach, cost efficiency and increased recall, while mitigating the impact of DVRs. Your decisions will impact your brands' success today, while positioning the brand for the near future.