Programmatic TV:           The future of TV buying

Programmatic TV is taking TV advertising to the next step with data driven automation that allows advertisers to more effectively reach their audience. Similar to buying online advertising, the ability to buy television targeting the viewer and not the actual program or network is now starting to happen in select markets. Programmatic TV is about the potential of addressability and targeting your particular demographic. However, the advertising world does not have universal understanding of what addressability actually means, which has caused confusion in the industry prohibiting effective application of this new technology.  

Does your family still gather around the TV set?

Thanks to sites like Youtube and Netflix, studies shows that young millennials and the younger portion of Gen Z are watching more content online that ever before. According to the third annual Acumen Report, surveying 1,350 people between the ages of 13 and 24, 6.4 hours of the 8.3 hours people spent watching scheduled linear TV content each week was online. While a little more than half of respondents reportedly watch TV, nearly all those surveyed said they watch content online, further affirming the gradual decline of traditional media's ability to reach its intended audience.

Based on the results of online surveys, analyses of social media behavior and in-person conversations and interviews, 62% of the group preferred to watch content online, rather than on TV.  In addition, more respondents said they relax by watching video content online, than those who do so by watching traditional television.

Print Deserves More Credit

A CEO of a major Advertising Agency said that despite the debate concerning the effectiveness of newspapers and magazines, print media might actually be more effective than people give it credit for. He referred to research showing that traditional media tends to be more engaging than digital.

Despite this research, many agencies - including Marketing Keys - have moved away from print and towards digital over the last few years. Digital buying can comprise up to 1/3 of the total revenue of a typical media buying firm's revenue. 

According to Kantar Media, from 2013 to 2014, ad spending on magazines in the US fell by 5.1%, and by 10% for newspapers. 

"Cool! Look at the sleek styling of this one on my phone."

An Edmunds.com Millennial Mobile Car Shopping Report shows that 80% of millennials used their mobile devices during at least one of the steps of shopping for a car, compared to the 46% of adults ages 35 and over who do so. Contrary to popular belief that millennials only rely on their mobile and tech devices, another report by Edmunds.com shows 64% of millennials actually prefer talking to dealers face to face, and 96% value the opportunity to test drive a car before buying.

Based on the results of the study, from locating cars for sale to comparing prices, millennials seem to use their phones to conduct research when making the decision to buy a car more than any other demographic. In addition, roughly 70% of millennials who have recently purchased a car said that they communicated with a dealer via text, while only 43% of adults did so.

More and more of Edmunds.com shoppers have started to access the site through their mobile devices over the last couple years. Recognizing an opportunity, Edmunds launched CarCode, a free mobile texting platform for car dealerships that gives each dealership a local number and sends a notification to an assigned sales representative when a customer sends a text.