DRTV Ads Viewed More Than Others

More sophisticated marketers, TV networks and their media-buying firms will start looking at data from multiple sources, including Nielsen, TNS and TiVo to better assess viewing patterns. The increased competition may be forcing these companies to improve their measurement techniques. TiVo is recruiting viewers who are willing to provide demographic data, so they can report viewing patterns by demographic groups. Nielsen is working on something called "Anywhere Anytime Media Measurement" that measures all forms of video media consumption. And Nielsen is now measuring DVR data, which looks at programming and commercial minutes most watched in real time and up to seven days later. Even CBS recently teamed up with TiVo to develop new ways to deliver better results for advertisers.

DRTV Ads Viewed More Than Others

One surprising finding from TiVo's data was that direct response TV ads were some the most viewed commercials. Who would have guessed that direct response TV ads would be viewed more than more expensively produced ads with celebrities? Todd Juenger from TiVo, "surmises that the celeb-laden commercials may not do well in TiVo because they tend to be purchased for maximum reach across a broad rather than targeted audience, and targeting appears to be a key ingredient for TiVo viewers," according to Jack Myers’ Digital Video Report.

It's encouraging to see several new companies now competing to provide a more comprehensive profile of TV viewing habits. Infomercial media buying firms armed with this type of data should be able to further improve their client's ROI in today’s more fragmented media environment.