Television

Television advertising broadcasts audio-visual adverts, with pictures, sound and movement, to a mass audience. Adverts appear in breaks during and between programmes on television channels and streaming services.

Why television works well

Television gives mass reach. One campaign can put a product in front of millions of people within days, so television can build brand awareness quickly, as viewers see the logo and hear the jingle again and again.

It can also target its audience to some extent. A business picks a channel, a programme and a time of day to match its target market, such as a toy advert in a Saturday morning children's slot or a savings advert during early evening family viewing.

Television adverts can be powerful and credible. Professional-looking adverts can make even a new business look established and trustworthy, which can persuade customers to buy.

Drawbacks

• Cost: making an advert is very expensive, and buying airtime costs a great deal too. Repeating it adds to the bill.
• Wasted budget: a mass audience contains many people who will never buy the product, so a lot of the spending reaches outside the target market.
• Short-lived: a typical advert lasts about 30 seconds, so it must be repeated often to be remembered.
• Easy to miss: viewers may fast-forward recorded adverts, leave the room or simply ignore them.

When television suits a business

Television suits a larger business with a broad target market and the budget for high-quality production and repeated broadcasts. For example, a company launching a range of family board games could advertise on a popular channel during weekend family viewing to reach parents and children at the same time. It is not usually suitable for a business with a small budget, such as a one-person bicycle repair workshop, or for a campaign that needs precise targeting at low cost, because a small budget cannot buy enough airtime and the audience is far wider than the nearby customers it needs.