Learn more about what it takes to advertise on one of the the most popular networks on television. The answers might surprise you and help you become the leader in your market.
Who can advertise on TV?
Television has proven over many years that ANY business can benefit from using our medium to reach potential customers. Whether your enterprise is retail, service, manufacturing, business to business, or distribution-based, NBC can help you research, refine, reach, persuade, and GROW your sphere of influence.
How much does it cost?
That's probably our most frequently asked question! Most business owners have a perception that television is "WAY too expensive" for their operation. That's simply not true. Generally, advertising on ANY medium is priced by the same factors: 1) audience size* 2) demand, and (sometimes) 3) seasonality.
*Audience size is the most likely predictor of an advertising rate.
Can I use TV to reach a VERY specific audience?
Absolutely! While many advertisers use the VAST power of television's REACH among the general public, there are just as many who have VERY specific target audiences that they need to reach to succeed. Some stations, and programs will do better at reaching your target audience than others, but 98% of the people in a given market watch TV every day.
Various audience research tools exist that can assist you in pinpointing your audience on TV. At NBC, we're pleased to employ full-time professionals and the best tools in the industry to help you refine your audience and your message.
Can I buy news coverage?
Coverage -- No, and that's a good thing! The credibility of our News operation is paramount to our success, and to our relationship with the viewer. It's likely that no television station would compromise this relationship for the sake of its business mission.
Most TV stations sell sponsorships of segments in their news, that is: "This news/weather/sports is brought to you by...", and some will incorporate cause-marketing efforts or co-branded promotions featuring news personnel into their overall strategy, but stories about your business are not for sale.
What's involved in producing a commercial?
Another question that we get a lot! There are as many approaches to producing commercials as there are commercials, so the sky is the limit! Production of a typical :30 commercial involves: planning, copywriting, shooting time, editing time, design and production of graphics, an announcer, and more. And Internet ads are even more flexible. The production varies greatly depending on your concept, so the sky is the limit! Be sure to ask your Account Manager for more details.
I've never advertised before, how much should I budget for an initial advertising project?
The answer to this question is closely tied to your goals for advertising, and your business plan. According to the Kiplinger's Small Business Start-Up Kit, on average, businesses devote 4-8% of their gross sales to advertising. Those looking to grow their market share dedicate even more!
What are some of the advertising terms I should know?
Click Rate or Click-Through-Rate:
The percentage of impressions that result in clicks. It is sometimes referred to as the response rate.
CPM (Cost per thousand):
Cost per mille (mille is French for thousand). CPM refers to the total cost of 1,000 visitor requests to view an ad--in other words, the cost for 1,000 impressions.
Fixed or "Hardwired" Ads:
Ads that are set up in a fixed position on a particular Web page and delivered each time the page is delivered (the opposite of dynamic rotation).
GIF:
Graphic Interchange Format. A common file format used for Web graphics (and banners). Not always the best choice for photo-realistic images.
Hit:
Every element of a requested page (including text, graphics, and interactive items) is counted as a hit to a server (ie. server hit). Hits are not the preferred unit of site-traffic measurement because the number of hits per page can vary widely. On average, a Web page contains six hits.
Home Page:
The initial, front Web page by which a user enters a Web Site.
HTML:
HyperText Markup Language - the text-based language used to construct Web pages.
Impressions:
The number of times an ad unit is displayed on Web pages--and presumably seen by the user. Guaranteed impressions are the minimum times an ad banner has opportunity to be seen by visitors.
JPG (or JPEG): Joint Photographic Experts Group:
A common file format for photo-realistic images. Not as common as GIF for banners because JPEG compression has a tendency to blur small text (which all banners usually have).
Number of Hits:
Number of hits refers to the total number of items downloaded by each user for a web site, I.e. one hit equals accessing one item. This includes every file, whether it is an HTML page, graphic, etc.
Number of Page Views or Page Impressions:
This refers to the number of times a Web page is presented. Page views, not hits, are the preferred counting method for site-traffic estimates and measurement. (However, you will often hear the terms "Page Views" and "Page Hits" used interchangeably)
Number of Visits:
This measures the number of times a specific web site or domain is visited, and includes duplicate visits by the same person. This measurement does not take into account the duration or number of pages visited.
Number of Unique Users / Visitors:
This is a good measure of the population a web site reaches. "Unique Users" is a refinement of the "number of visits" measurement because it eliminates duplicate visitors over a specified period of time.
Sponsorship Ad:
An ad that is in a fixed, non-rotating position on a particular Web page and delivered each time the page is delivered. (Occasionally set up to rotate on a very limited basis.)
Rotation (ie. Rotating Banner Ads):
Delivery of ads on a rotating basis (the opposite of fixed, hardwired ads). Dynamic rotation lets different users see a different ad on a given page, and allows ads to be seen in more than one place on a site. Ads can be dynamically rotated throughout an entire site or within a given targeted section. This is also called dynamic delivery.
