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A multichannel approach provides a clearer picture of DRTV's potential
Direct response television (DRTV) may seem downright old-fashioned as mobile and social marketing surge. But this traditional channel is not only highly adaptable, it's also still highly effective- even in this increasingly digital world.
DRTV is television content that's designed to drive viewers to another channel (e.g., the telephone or a website) to take an action, such as purchasing a product or filling out a survey. This alone is no easy feat. Yet, the ubiquity of handheld computing devices and the deluge of online content make the DRTV marketer's job even more difficult, as consumers' attention is increasingly drawn away from TV. Not only is it more challenging than ever to engage consumers, channel fragmentation can make it more difficult to track the impact of individual television spots.
Additionally, the shiftin the way people consume media affects one- and two-minute, short-form DRTV spots, as well as long-form, 28.5-minute infomercials. Short DRTV spots have traditionally showcased products also available at retail, or that sell for lower dollar value than those sold in the longer infomercials, which have been more likely to promote health equipment, beauty programs, or business and self-improvement courses not available at retail. This has been the case in DRTV for decades and continues to separate the two types of promotions, though both short- and long-form face nearly identical challenges in driving customers online.
"The audience is now savvier. They can go to a website, which converts at a much lower rate than phone calls, and get additional information there or on their mobile. There is audience fragmentation and the metrics have gotten more difficult," says Ron Perlstein, president of InfoWorx Direct, a marketing agency that specializes in DRTV.
But Perlstein insists that DRTV provides marketing options unavailable anywhere else; long-form informercials are beneficial to products with higher price points, for example, because the format provides an opportunity to go into detail about the products. The key, according to Perlstein and other industry watchers, is for marketers to leverage newer digital channels to enhance their DRTV campaigns, making their calls-to-action more effective than they were in the days when consumers were glued to a single screen.
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