The other night I was watching Police Academy 4: Citizens on Patrol one of my favourite films. But something odd struck me during one of the ad breaks. Eight ads in a row, and not one of them seemed to be speaking to the same type of person.
Here’s the line-up:
• HSL Chairs aimed at older adults with mobility needs
• Tractive a GPS tracker for pets
• Moneybox for young adults saving for their first home
• Cunard Cruises a classic retirement dream
• Currys mainstream middle aged consumer tech
• Flash cleaning products often targeted at households and family decision makers
• Budweiser young sports fans and pub goers
• SunLife over 50s life insurance
• Diabetes UK direct response donations
• DFS furniture deals for families and homeowners
That’s a lot of different demographics. In fact, it’s basically all of them.
It got me thinking, not in a critical way, but more in a curious one. Why is it like this? Is it because Saturday night telly is affordable mass reach? Possibly. But so are we. And we offer something those channels can’t: relevance.
Context Still Matters
Most people do not think of Out of Home as a targeted medium. But we’re a bit of an outlier.
We’re more like an old fashioned special interest magazine, but with bigger reach and more feel good. Why? Because our network of grassroots sports clubs actually earns money from the campaigns we run, and that creates trust and connection (if you don’t beleive me check this out).
We are not just posters anymore either. With our new digital screens, the level of targeting and placement is better than ever.
Want to reach cricketers in their thirties? We can do that. Want to speak to bowls players with both time and disposable income? We can do that too, but while not also talking to the cricketers at the same time.
It is still mass reach, but it is precision placed.
Final Thought
There’s nothing wrong with a broad TV buy, but in an era where attention is tight and budgets are watched closely, surely it is time to think more carefully about where your brand shows up and how hard the money is working.