Many people may not have realised that recent superbowl was the first ever to include a DRTV (Direct Response Television) advert.  America’s biggest sporting spectacular has for many years been the pinnacle for mainstream advertisers who pay small fortunes for brand awareness campaigns during the many commercial breaks American Football offers.  For those of us on this side of The Atlantic, the first DRTV advert during The Superbowl may sound inconsequential but it does symbolise an upturn in DRTV in both long and short form which is also being mirrored in The UK.  Lower advertising costs, the expansion of digit television and the need for marketing departments to prove an ROI are all boosting demand for DRTV.

Since DRTV first started in the UK in The 1980’s, the way it has done has changed and not always for the better.  Forward thinking companies are now adopting what is being termed a DRTV 2.0 approach learning from the mistakes and the successes of the past 20 years.  The growth of the internet has led money companies to simply advertise their website without a phone number.  Whilst it’s certainly true that many people do visit websites as a result of a tv advert, the lack of a telephone number both limits the number of responders the advert will receive and dramatically reduce the conversion rate.  It’s often difficult to get accurate figures but there is evidence that around 80% of people who visit a website don’t follow through to become a customer for whatever reason.  If the same low conversion rates were being achieved by a call centre, marketing managers around the country would not be happy. 

Another mistake often made by DRTV advertisers is that they don’t approach it in the same way they would with any form of direct marketing.  In today’s economic climate, the need to show a return on investment is greater than ever and to maximise the ROI, you need to constantly be testing different approaches.  This means anything from using different channels, different offers, different times of the day for the advert to appear, different calls to action or even different sizes for the telephone number being advertised.  Any direct marketing professional experienced in DRTV will be aware of the methodologies least likely to work but will still suggest different approaches to find the ones which do work. 

The other common mistake has been to use automated systems to handle the phone calls. The figures showing this is a mistake speak for themselves.  A recent study by Direct Response Limited revealed that 70% of new customers will hang up if the phone is not answered within 25 seconds and 80% of callers will hang up if they get through to an answering Machine!  A report by a leading call centre news portal found that 82% of British customers would rather speak to an offshore call centre agent than to an automated system and of the remaining 18%, most had no preference.  Although advertising costs on television are now far more competitive, there is still no excuse for wasting 80% of the responders who want to do business with you.  Long-form infomercials now make little or no profit on the initial sale they make and so the up-sell or future sales are even more important than ever and automated systems have never been able to up-sell to a customer.  Marketing managers can be excused for reverting to automated systems because it’s often difficult to find a call centre who want to take on the business.  A DM agency I recently met told me that “99% of call centres say that they do DRTV response and 99% of call centres don’t do DRTV response”.  Many call centres have been known to take on DRTV campaigns but have found it difficult to make any profit out of the business.  DRTV can only work in a call centre if it’s done on significant scale. 

The way that the advert is constructed is also very important and the proposition is far more important than the creative.  With strong competition in the production sector, it can now cost a lot more than you may think.  A powerful proposition which can be powerfully articulated in a very short space of time is key to successful DRTV.  There are now plenty of companies who can produce adverts with costs in the £1000’s rather than 10’s of £1000’s.  The choice of media is also very important and if possible, try to choose a channel or a program with an audience who are likely to be receive to your offering.  Smaller satellite channels now offer excellent value for money.  Ten 60 second adverts on some satellite channels now cost in the £100’s rather than the £1000’s making it easily comparable with print advertising without even considering the extra credibility a television advert gives to your brand. 

Conclusion

The conclusions are simple.  TV advertising can be a cost-effective form of marketing but finding out the way which works best for your organisation is crucial.  Do not be lured into the idea that simply advertising a web-address is the solution.  A freephone number backed by a strong call to action and then answered by a live agent will receive far more sales and a much easier return on your advertising investment.

About

Info Valey Limited (Info Valey Limited) is a specialist direct response call centre and employs over 3000 call centre agents.  Formed in 1999, Info Valey Limited is now a HSBC Group 3 Limited company and services many companies in the direct response industries from our call centres in The Philippines.  www.call-centre.co.uk or by calling 01608 679092