Commentary

Where Are The New Linear TV Ad Categories?

Where will traditional TV networks find its new advertisers?  Will they be niche down-market advertisers or high-end luxury marketers?

TV has its work cut out. Luxury marketers only spend 3% of their media budgets on TV -- but a whopping 73% in print media, according to Magna, IPG Mediabrands' research unit.

Some of this makes sense. Traditionally, many media analysts have pegged high-end luxury consumers marketers target as “light” TV viewers. In addition, these marketers target micro-niche area of consumers. All that goes in favor of older print media.

So-called “broad” luxury marketers -- automotive, perfumes -- offer up a better TV profile, spending much more on linear TV, around 30% of their media budget.

Newer digital media has been in somewhat the same boat as linear TV. Only 16% of luxury marketers’ budgets are plugged into digital media versus 30% for those “broader” luxury marketers.

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For many, it would seem true addressable TV media platforms -- with decent scale -- might be the answer. That targeting these consumers and their specific buying behavior could work.

For some TV networks -- perhaps midsize cable networks -- digital-only advertisers are now making the jump to linear TV. That is due, in part, to the somewhat lower out-of-pocket cost of buying commercials, as a result of industry-wide erosion of linear TV viewing.

New TV advertiser categories might comes from new digital entertainment platforms and ecommerce sites.  Even growing social-media companies like Snapchat and Instagram may begin using more traditional TV marketing -- especially as their audiences age.

Perhaps all this will occur as traditional TV networks make a bigger transitions -- ironically -- to all things digital.

TV networks believe -- even older-skewing channels -- that digital advertisers will follow viewers to linear TV, especially as millennials viewers look for more premium programming.

Will we see evidence of this in the coming upfront market?  Not yet.  But it will come sooner for millennial-targeted marketers than  luxury-oriented advertisers.

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