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‘Triangulation’ and network DVR spin

Posted by Cory Bergman on June 3, 2007

NBC has released new internal research on two topics: “triangulated” TV-web ad campaigns and DVR commercial skipping. The first involves combining 1) a TV ad that points to an advertiser’s site 2) an online ad on the TV site and 3) search engine optimization of the advertiser’s site. According to the research, viewer ad recall of this triangulated ad campaign is 50 percent higher than average, and those customers are also 20 percent more likely to buy what was advertised. NBC also has some new research that claims “that households without DVRs skip more TV commercials than those with DVRs.” The study shows the drop in TV ad effectiveness in homes with DVRs is less than 3 percent, while non-DVR households had a drop of 7 percent.

Now, consider the source of the study. NBC wants advertisers to buy cross-platform campaigns as well as believe that DVRs are making old-fashioned commercials even MORE valuable. I’m all for the former, but I question the latter.

Darrien

Personnally, I watch good commercials over with a DVR, and will rewind if something catches my eye when I fast forward.
http://www.localbroadcast.tv Drew Robertson

I think it’s sample bias. The viewer who invests in a DVR and learns how to use it is probably more interested in TV programming than the average viewer. Think about your own behaviour. How closely do you watch a program that you’ve recorded vs. one you have just flipped to randomly?
Mike

Also, with a DVR, in most cases you can pause live (or pre-recorded) TV. This means that if you’re watching a show that you don’t want to miss a second of, you can pause to use the bathroom. Non-DVR viewers don’t have this option: they have to run to the other room during the commercial break. The same goes for getting snacks: the commerical break is the only opportunity for non-DVR viewers to safely leave the room without missing the show, so they might be more likely to do so.