The Boob Tube Still Brings Dollars

With the advent of social media platforms, new technologies including Google glasses that can pretty much do everything except help you see, and a slew of other creative mediums, it’s surprising to see how many dollars are still being spent advertising on television.

Google glasses screen shot

Now don’t get me wrong. I love commercials. The good. The bad. Even the ones with talking animals in them. And when everyone said the Internet was going to ruin advertising on TV, I pooh-poohed them in hopes that commercials would be around forever. But in a recent article on Forbes.com that shows American Idol as the top program, earning $6.64 million in ad revenue per half hour, it made me think…

Are there better ways to get your brand out there, than to spend millions of dollars for 30 seconds that may or may not be watched?

Would utilizing a highly effective guerilla marketing campaign in a well-known city have the same, if not more potential to be seen than the 21 million viewers American Idol captures? Would a social media campaign attract your specific audience? Is there ANYTHING else that could be more effective than an expensive 30 second television spot?

Which is why I think it’s important, especially for these large companies who advertise, to not forget about their past. Chances are they weren’t spending $1 million on a commercial for people with DVR or TiVo to just fast forward through. They managed to effectively communicate their brand and helped grow into what they are now. I encourage these companies to go back to their roots. Don’t just settle for spending millions of dollars on a 30 second spot because you think that’s the easiest way to get your name out there. Get the most from your advertising dollars and put it towards something people will remember.