Editorial Articles

Ever since digital marketing spend began challenging traditional budgets, it has been pitted against more traditional forms of advertising as an adversary. However, research is showing that the old and the new make better allies than foes and should perhaps therefore not be looked at unilaterally.

A report by the Internet Advertising Bureau tells us that 81 percent of Internet users watch TV whilst surfing the web. More to the point, 57 percent of users have been prompted to conduct a web search after seeing a TV advertisement and 66 percent believe that exposure to a TV ad makes online advertising more visible.

Working on the theory that TV advertising leads to brand activation online, we set about monitoring and documenting the impact by looking at clients’ PPC clicks for key brand and generic terms and online sales before, during and after related TV campaigns.

We found a dramatic increase in both clicks and sales in direct correlation to the television advertising slots. Similarly, both clicks and sales dropped off sharply as TV ad campaigns ended, although they did maintain a higher position than reported prior to TV activity. The durability of this uplift remains to be seen and latency is the next stage we are working to understand.

More interestingly, we discovered that television can have a marked effect on online conversions. One client reported a corresponding lift in conversions from approximately two percent to nine percent for everyday sales and a staggering 13 percent during peak seasonal campaigns.

During these peak seasonal TV campaigns uplift in both clicks and sales was immediately apparent, whereas during more general trading periods uplift required a more prolonged TV approach.

Whilst PPC traffic from generic keywords increased, it was brand-related keywords that saw the most significant increase in activity following TV advertising slots.

From this insight we compiled the following best practice guide for maximising online returns from TV advertising.

Online
1. Schedule PPC campaigns around TV slots
Take advantage of the 57 percent of Internet users who are influenced to conduct web searches following TV ads by ensuring your PPC schedules are built around your expected TV slots.

2. Use creative messaging to map the journey between TV and your site
Ensure your PPC and on-site creatives are linked directly to your TV messaging. If you are using TV to promote a seasonal sale, include this seasonal sales message in your text and any relevant landing pages.

3. More aggressive bidding strategy
Anticipate uplift and increase your PPC spend around expected TV slots. As television mainly influenced a significant uptick in brand-related searches, you should be more concerned about increasing available budget than specifically bidding-up on generic keywords.

4. Support with YouTube
YouTube is an incredibly useful tool for increasing the reach of TV ads. Make it easier for viewers to engage with your website by running overlay ads on your YouTube uploads.

5. Optimise to forecast, test and learn
When breaking new ground you will need to make some assumptions on how to best optimise your PPC campaigns and spend against TV. These assumptions should be based against forecast as opposed to historical data. Always test, monitor, learn and be prepared to be agile.

Offline
1. Digital Call to Action in ad
With so many Internet users multi-tasking in-front of the TV, it makes perfect sense to give them an immediate call to action to hit your website or a search engine whilst the message is at its freshest.

2. Supporting content
Extend the duration and depth of your messaging by taking value-added content online. Highlight the availability of extended video, customer reviews, testimonials, how-to guides, etc. throughout your TV slots.

3. Consider purchase cycle for ad slots: week, day & duration

Select appropriate slots to catch your demographic and best take advantage of peak buying periods on your website. Your website’s reporting tools should inform you about the best time of day or week to schedule TV advertising and understanding your customers purchase cycle.

Tony Patterson
Head of Online Marketing, Summit Media