Thanks To Next Gen TV, Local Broadcasting Stations Can Track You And Sell You Targeted Ads like Google And Facebook

A recent ruling by the FCC has cleared the way for Next Gen TV (technically called ATSC 3.0), a means for providing advertisers with a more precise targeting option on local broadcast TV stations, while allowing broadcasters to tap into a new revenue source that Google and Facebook now enjoy.

Based on Internet Protocol (IP), Next Gen TV can go to devices such as smart phones and tablets over the air without using cellular data services. Much like current subscription cable and satellite TV, local broadcasters will be able to target and deliver specific ads to neighborhoods and individual households. The ads, like Google, can be directed at the viewer’s specific interest, unlike the current situation where broadcasters deliver the same ad to their total viewing area.

While there is always a privacy issue related to Next Gen TV, it isn’t much different from various advertising vehicles currently used on social media and cable. Even billboards are being developed to deliver specific ads based on reading the retinas’ of passing motorists.

In addition to this new protocol being a boon to advertisers, it is also expected to provide benefits to viewers with better picture quality, broadcast signals less resistant to interference, interactive features to viewers and providing localized emergency alerts.

Technology for providing Next Gen TV will have to develop over the next few years, allowing for inclusion in new TV sets and converter boxes, not to mention adjustments to broadcast towers.

With the more precise targeting and collection of viewer data, TV broadcasters will become more competitive with non-traditional advertising.  

The use of Next Gen TV, also known as “addressable TV advertising,” is heralded as the future of TV advertising.

Information for this article was collected from the National Association of Broadcasters, The Washington Post, Variety, Techhive.com and the Wall Street Journal.

Catalogs For Retailers And B2B Are Making A Comeback

With the advances in technology and e-commerce, most business people would think print catalogs would be a dying marketing strategy. But in reality, catalogs for both retailers and B2B are still as relevant as ever.

Research on multi-channel marketing confirms that acquiring customers through the use of printed catalogs statistically increases response rates and average order size and drives repeat purchases. According to a Multichannel Merchant’s Outlook survey, “most catalogers are still relying on their print catalog for 80% to 90% of their incrementally new customers.” More than three-quarters of merchant respondents said catalogs were the top choice for the method of prospecting they will use in the next 12 months. And shoppers who receive a direct mail piece, which then directs them to an online site, spend on average 13% more than those who do not receive a printed piece. Plus websites supported by catalogs yield 163% more revenue than those not supported by catalogs.

As far as the effectiveness of printed catalogs, according to Printing Industries of America, print catalogs carry an average cost per lead of $47.61, whereas the average cost per email lead is $53.85. In addition, print is considered to be the “most trustworthy” of media channels. And while 11% of marketing emails are opened, the opening rate is 91% for prospecting direct mail.

In addition to better customer response rates and lower lead acquisition costs, other benefits include…

1. Print catalogs are an impactful and tangible way to connect consumers with your brand.

Usually prospects will spend hours looking at a screen every day. Print catalogs offer an electronic alternative and a more memorable and lasting way to view products, offering a quick reference capability.

2. Sales Reps still like to walk into customers’ offices handing them a resource catalog.

Sales people like to sell from a printed sales tool and they like to have something to use as a leave-behind.

3. Print catalogs are not deleted or sent into spam folders.

They arrive at homes, offices, and in the hands of potential clients and targeted job positions.

4. They are convenient and easily navigable.

Catalogs are easy to browse and use anywhere, including in the field by on-site technicians. Plus products can be listed in easy to find categories, ranging from use to capacities.

Catalogs are designed to help marketing departments fulfill their objectives.  Marketers are increasingly challenged to produce a specific return on investment for their efforts.  The effect of a social media campaign on sales may be hard to pin down, but catalogs, with their definitive mail dates and customer and source codes, are easier to track.  

At Les Loggins Marketing, we produce a variety of printed catalog designed to help businesses increase the exposure of their product lines and to help enhance the sales process. We produce various publications, (writing, artwork, design and page preparation for printers) particularly manufacturing catalogs, in English as well as in other languages.

The photo shows current industrial catalogs produced by Les Loggins Marketing for J.C. Renfroe industrial lifting products.

LesLogginsMarketing.com

Data for the article was collected from the Harvard Business Review, WorkFront.com and SageWorld.com.