Why TV campaigns are key ingredient of marketing mix
The sweeping claims made in the first fast.MAP/Marketing Week Effectiveness Tracker (MW 21 July) are terrifying. The definition of ad effectiveness seems to be someone online claiming they went into a store and bought a product after being exposed to communication of some sort.
It also seems to confuse recall with effectiveness. Claimed research has its place, but it should not be the foundation for such grand statements and conclusions surrounding any medium’s contribution to business success.
The research claims that TV is the icing on the cake, only works if it has got DM support and doesn’t lead to money in the bank. This flies in the face of far more robust econometric studies let alone the wisdom of major TV investors, their detailed payback analyses and the legion of business success stories built with TV at their heart.
TV is proven by the IPA, PwC and others to be the single most effective form of advertising over the mid/long-term, generating by far the most profit and highest ROI efficiency. These studies also show that TV is getting more effective over time.
TV is even more effective when used with other media, but to see this turned on its head, to question whether TV contributes anything positive and is hence dispensable, is frankly risible. Far from being icing, TV is a fundamental ingredient in the baking of any successful marketing.
Neil Mortensen
Research director, Thinkbox
