Can Small Businesses Benefit From Marketing On TV?

Most of us grew up watching TV – those days, there was no Facebook and for many, no internet. So once you were home and had nothing to do, TV used to be medium of choice for entertainment. While thinking of those days, you cannot help recollecting some of the most popular advertisements – even though they interrupted your football match or the comedy series you had been waiting to watch for the entire week.

These days also, TV is no less interesting. People still want to catch your favorite show live, even though there is an option to record it and watch later – and advertisers put their best foot forward to get your attention during those few seconds.

In a recent survey, TV was rated as the most effective marketing tool for the small business. Yet, it commands a very small share of small business budgets. The reason for this is the perception by many that marketing on TV is very costly.  TV is a very powerful medium and if utilized properly, it can yield far better results than you would have thought.

So is there a way your small business can grab a piece of the pie and reach out to a wider audience than you have done in the past? Yes, there certainly is. You will have to be bit careful with a few things though. Let’s see.

Local v/s national TV

Since yours is a small business, it may not make sense to advertise on the national TV channels. They have a very large audience, so they will charge extra. And most of those people live far from where you do your business. Instead, you should advertise on local or regional TV channels, where people can recognize you more readily. Besides, the costs will be more manageable.

Leverage fragmented audiences

There are tons of channels nowadays. That means the audience to those channels is divided, which you can drive to your advantage. You can broadcast your advertisement on channels that have an average rating. Don’t be discouraged because it is not a premium channel – as your business grows, you will be able to market on better channels also.

Identify a proper time slot

This is important to ensure your advertisement reaches the people it is intended for. An advert for children will not attract sports fans during baseball match replays.  If you sell sports equipment, it is best to buy a timeslot when a widely popular tournament is being played.

Select the right channel

It is equally critical to select the correct channel for your advertisement. Music channels are a good match for young people while travel channels can be used if you sell footwear and clothes. Ladies apparels will be best advertised if you market them on family shows.

Be precise with the message you convey

You need to make sure you put a lot of effort into preparing the TV commercial. Once it is made, it cannot be undone. Therefore, before actually making the advert, sit down and think about what you want to talk about. Have a look at what similar adverts are like. Think of what you would have seen in your childhood – good things are never out of demand. Your advert should represent exactly what you think of your business.

Get feedback from your friends

Before you finalize the concept, ask your friends what they think of it. Be open to ideas and remember it is people like them who will see the commercial and buy, not you.

Put your message at the beginning

The TV time slot you bought is expensive, so do not wait until the last few seconds to convey your most important message. It should be conveyed right at the start so that the audience get engaged then and are compelled to see the advertisement.

Make several advertisements

You do not need to spend any extra money to achieve this. With clever planning, the one advertisement you got made can be sliced into smaller ones that still convey your core message and leaves the audience wanting more. If they see the complete ad, their chances of buying from you increase. Besides, you will have to shell out lesser money if you have shorter ads.

1 or 2 messages instead of many

When you air your adverts, do so in a manner that a couple of features will be explained in detail, rather than a lot of features that do not get enough time. This increases the value of the short adverts we talked about above. Not only that, the image of your product will get cemented bit by bit, and it will remain fresh in the viewers’ mind for a longer time.

Ask them to purchase

This sounds strange, but prompting viewers to do something increases your chances of selling them something. You can display your phone number or website prominently but non-obtrusively throughout the commercial. That way, they are more likely to remember you and contact you.

Is marketing on TV an option for you?