Navigating Cable TV Advertising Rates: Budgeting for Effective Reach
Though 30-second spots aired during the largest and most popular events run millions of dollars, advertising on cable TV is generally more affordable than some might think. Even if you are a small business owner or marketing manager, you can get your message out to the masses through cable TV if you budget accordingly.
This is your guide to maximizing your reach through cable TV without rapidly depleting the money you’ve allocated to advertising.
Budget Effectively, and You’ll Reach Your Audience
It is no secret that airing a commercial on cable TV is expensive. However, the cost of airtime is only one component of the aggregate cost of presenting a TV commercial to a cable audience. What matters most is prudent use of your limited advertising budget. Focus on controlling production costs, and you’ll connect with your target audience through cable ads without digging a deep financial hole.
If you are strapped for cash and desperately want to air your commercial yet lack the financial resources for production, consider reaching out to local universities and colleges to find recent graduates or current film/marketing students willing to produce the ad for a nominal fee. These students have spent time and money learning the latest tech tricks in commercial production.
Mitigate the Cost of Advertising by Buying in Bulk
Take a look at cable TV advertising rates, and you might be tempted to veer toward other advertising avenues such as pay-per-click (PPC) ads on the web, search engine optimization (SEO), and other avenues. However, buying TV commercials in bulk is financially prudent as it almost always results in a significant discount.
Navigating TV cable advertising rates by buying in bulk typically results in better commercial placement, ensuring that more people in your target audience actually see the ad.
To craft a holistic strategy, you’ll want to ramp up your conventional outbound advertising on billboards, local newspapers, and magazines in combination with inbound marketing through SEO while airing ads. All of these pieces together will allow your marketing team to significantly impact your target audience.
Make the Most of Your Advertising Money With Targeting
Choose the right channels for your commercials, and you’ll tap into your target audience without repeatedly airing ads over and over again in hopes that a segment of your target audience will be tuned in at those specific times.
As an example, if you own or manage a sports equipment store, you might be more interested in airing ads on ESPN, Fox Sports 1, NFL Network, TBS, TNT, etc. Alternatively, if your target audience is homemakers and gardeners, you’ll want to air your commercials during programming on HGTV (Home and Garden TV) and similar channels.
Attempt to Negotiate
Cable advertising offices are sometimes open to the idea of package deals or other negotiations that have the potential to be mutually beneficial. Reach out to the cable advertising office to find out if any promotional opportunities are available, including digital ad space on their website or partner sites.
There might also be an opportunity to sponsor a local event to put your name in the spotlight without shelling out large sums of money for commercials to repeatedly air on cable TV channels. Negotiate a package deal for airing your commercial, and you’ll extend the reach of your ads while maintaining your budget.
