The best is yet to come for TV advertising
The future of television advertising looks bright indeed.
We recently sat down with Gregor Chalmers, Head of Broadcast at The Kite Factory, to discuss the current state of play regarding TV advertising and what trends to look out for in the months and years ahead. As Gregor suggests, there is good cause for optimism.
The state of TV in 2024
‘I started my media career in 2010 as a TV buyer,’ Gregor says, ‘and back then, the “death of TV” was very much in vogue.’
The era in which Gregor began his career was a time of major transition. The advent of streaming platforms like Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime offered an on-demand, ad-free format that challenged the industry status quo. An exponential increase in TV content, together with platform personalisation tactics gleaned from Silicon Valley giants, led to a splintering of traditional TV audiences.
‘Despite rumours of TV’s demise being exaggerated, you can still find people claiming that TV is on the way out,’ says Gregor. ‘The truth couldn’t be more different, especially if you accept one simple premise: TV as it was in 2010 doesn’t exist anymore. “TV”, if we define it as viewing on the main (aka the biggest) screen in the home, couldn’t be in better health.’
That health stems partly from the medium's ability and the industry surrounding it to adapt to a rapidly changing environment. ‘As viewers, we’ve never had so much choice at our fingertips,’ says Gregor. ‘Overall consumption has remained remarkably stable over the years.’
That stability shows in the numbers, with Ofcom reporting that broadcast TV maintains a weekly adult reach of 75%. The average time spent watching TV and video content at home in 2023 was up 2% on the previous year. ‘And what’s most interesting is what we saw for YouTube, where the main TV screen accounted for 34% of the platform’s viewing in UK homes, up from 29% in 2022.’ As the success of streaming platforms contributes to fragmentation and proliferation in the video market, the battleground for attention is still taking place on the biggest screen in the home.
The focus on the main screen, combined with the increase in consumer choice of ad-supported streaming services, are good signs for marketers. ‘There’s an unrivalled opportunity for brands to speak to consumers in new and engaging ways.’
Understanding the effectiveness of TV
Gregor points to several sources that support TV’s ability to generate real results for brands and marketers. ‘TV continues to be such an effective channel for brands at every stage of their journey, from launch through to market domination. Profit Ability 2, a Thinkbox study from earlier this year, found that for every £1 spent on linear TV, the full payback was £5.94. That’s compared to an all-media payback of £4.11.’
What’s going on behind the numbers? For Gregor, the fundamental power of TV is ‘its ability to demand higher levels of attention and thus brand recall. In a recent Context Effects study, TV screens were found to drive 60% higher ad recall than tablets or smartphones.’
Research by Ebiquity supports Gregor’s line of thinking. Part of the story involves dual screening, where up to 40% of TV viewers scroll on their phones while watching their favourite shows. This leads to a ‘halo effect’, where TV boosts the effects of other channels by up to 54%. Properly segmented TV advertising leads to more efficient and effective online journeys, prompting people to search for a brand specifically rather than by category.
Keep an eye out for…
Despite what naysayers may claim, Gregor suggests that TV ‘couldn’t be in better health and will actually thrive in the coming years.’ In the short term, there are plenty of opportunities for brands to prepare campaigns that align with the viewership of upcoming TV content.
‘At the time of writing, the Olympics are in full swing, which is another amazing spectacle to enjoy on our TV screens. The rest of the year is packed with great content to enjoy. Channel 4 will bring us the Paralympics as well as reality TV favourites like “The Great British Bake Off” and “Gogglebox”, and we’ll soon be back in the jungle with “I’m A Celebrity” on ITV. If high-production drama is more your thing, watch out for “The Day of the Jackal” on Sky Atlantic.’
“The exciting developments on the screen are being matched by those off it. There is such a wealth of data in both the targeting and the measurement capabilities that there has never been a better time for brands, regardless of budget size, to grow their business through TV.”
Gregor has some advice for marketers in the months and cycles ahead. ‘The best TV plans in H2 2025 and beyond will be the ones that have looked across the entire video ecosystem and made data-driven, audience-first choices. It’s increasingly important to avoid binary choices, to think more about “linear and…” rather than “linear or…”’
In days gone by, brands didn’t enjoy as much control over where and when their ads were slotted into linear programming. Thanks to the new TV landscape, brands can gather more insights about their target audience and craft engaging campaigns with greater precision than ever before.
Better times ahead
As with all things in the marketing world, evolution is the name of the game for the future of TV advertising. New technologies will continue to disrupt the media industry in new and unexpected ways. But for Gregor and the team at The Kite Factory, there is still good reason to be optimistic. ‘TV is in an unprecedented period of success and has the scope for even more in the years to come.’
Want to take a deeper dive into the possibilities of TV advertising? Read Accord’s factbook, The Power of TV Advertising, to uncover more trends and insights.
Ryan McCarvill
Ryan is our Content Creator at Accord, working on a wide variety of brand communications and briefs.
