Volume 3 No. 4: The truth about targeting with TV

Targeting. It’s the beauty of digital ads, and as marketers, our favorite way to ensure efficient spending. But targeting is a key part of any strong TV campaign. Just because TV is a mass reach channel doesn’t mean there shouldn’t be a clear audience strategy behind every campaign.

Let’s explore what audience targeting with TV looks like today.

 

   Marketing Myths   

Targeting specific audiences works with streaming only and linear.

Each week, we break down a common misconception around TV advertising.

Nielsen has been measuring TV viewership in the US since the 1950s. Since then, targeting opportunities have evolved dramatically on both linear and streaming. You can target based on demographics like age, household income, and gender. Plus, first-party data from current airings can be used to improve future ones. For example, you might compare transactional data with your media buys and adjust future buys to better target audiences showing interest in your offering.

Streaming TV offers even more targeting options, including psychographic and behavioral indicators—everything you’d use in a standard digital campaign. You can get as specific as targeting people likely to buy a car in the next 6 months.

What's the takeaway? There are many ways to target specific audiences on both linear and streaming TV. Plus, technology is evolving every day, improving targeting options across all forms of TV. The real challenge isn’t being able to target your specific audience, it’s deciding who that ideal audience is.

 

  Advertising Answers  

Question: How do I decide the right audience for my campaign?

We take the web’s most searched questions about TV advertising to a range of marketing experts who can’t help but love TV.

 

Answer: “Getting the target audience right is an important first step in creating and executing a mass reach performance marketing strategy. First, chart a path towards category leadership. To understand the category in total, as well as each brand’s sweet spot, use first-party data, third-party tools, and combinations of qualitative and quantitative research. This combination is needed to get the insights for building a performance marketing strategy. The solution for maximizing the impact of mass reach is in balancing reach and relevance. Do this by first finding bullseye consumers who share category relevant motivations and abilities that are distinctive traits for the brand. Then add to this target the segments of consumers most similar and influential.”

— Dan Cleveland, VP Strategy 

Dan’s known for finding unconventional ways to improve clients’ campaign performance. He’s been dedicated to finding different and better ways to do things since first playing soccer as a kid.

 

  Channel Changers  

Watch: Les Binet and Peter Field on Think with Google

Here we celebrate books, podcasts, videos, and influencers that are actively pushing marketing into the future.

“Think with Google” is a YouTube channel that shares insights on the next global marketing and advertising trends. In one episode, Mark Howe, Managing Director at Google invites well-known marketing experts Peter Field and Les Binet to discuss why advertisers need to focus on brand building in the digital era. 

 

Our favorite insight? Storytelling takes time. Channels (like TV) that allow brands to connect with consumers for a full 30 or 60 seconds are more able to tell an emotional narrative that drives the consumer to act. That’s far more difficult to achieve in just a few seconds. 

 

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