Research Confirms Growth In All Forms of Video Use, Including TV
by Lou Pierce
Once again, we not only caution you about buying into the prevailing hysteria regarding the so-called demise of traditional media, but we back it up with research that makes our point. Don’t be a lemming. Lots of people are making money right now at your expense by convincing you that traditional media is dead. It’s not. In fact, it appears to be growing. And, here’s more evidence to prove it.
A.C. Nielsen, best known for its decades-long dominance in measuring local and national television viewing, has issued a new A2/M2 Three Screen Report. The Three Screen report measures video consumption of Americans across TV, the internet and mobile devices such as phones. The recently released report shows that mobile and online video consumption were up significantly, and I mean significantly in the second quarter of 2009 from Q2 08.
So, how can we say that these media are a bad investment? We can’t. And, we don’t. What we continue to say is that all of us should be prudent. The new media options are not wholesale solutions that will replace other strong media options. They are additional options in your media portfolio with different strengths and different weaknesses – for now, that is all that they are.
The recent Nielsen report makes it crystal clear that the increased use of mobile and online video consumption has not come at the expense of traditional television viewing. I repeat: Increased mobile and internet viewing has not come at the expense of traditional television viewing. In fact, the research very clearly shows that time spent viewing traditional television actually increased by 2 hours and 2 minutes in the second quarter of 2009 compared to the second quarter of 2008.
The increase in television viewing is even more interesting when you see that the mobile video audience jumped a whopping 70%, and that time spent watching online video increased 46%, or by 59 minutes during the same time frame (the second quarter).
The use of DVRs (time-shifted viewing) is also on the rise. Americans watched 1 hour and 11 minutes more time-shifted TV in the second quarter of 2009 than they did the year before. What does this mean for placing your ads on traditional media? At least two things: 1) Your ads better be utterly compelling or they will be zapped – “good” creative is not good enough. “Great” show-stopping creative is the only thing that matters. 2) A good media planner knows what the viewing habits of DVR users are. Some shows are simply not DVR’d by DVR users. So the ratings and demographics are now just part of the media planning equation. Later this month, we will have an article that talks more about the time-shifting habits of DVR users and how to address them with a good media plan.
So, what should we all take away from this new report? Simply this: American consumers appear to be adding video consumption platforms rather than replacing them. More people are watching traditional television today than ever before. And, media multitasking is part of the new media consumption pattern.
Again, we caution our clients and friends to always be careful about hype. Time will tell. Meanwhile, don’t be a lemming. Be cautious and optimistic like we are.
You’re about to graduate college and begin the job hunt, but first you need some real world marketing experience. So you seek an internship at a public relations company. Hopefully, you’ve researched the available internships, talked to other interns, gone through an interview process and scored the one you’ve been looking for. But now what? Just go in, do your time, collect your college credits, scribble your new experience on your resume and boast a great reference? Not so fast. Every firm has had their share of good interns… and bad. 
In the old days, if you passed a dead- line, they killed you. There were no excuses, no com- promises, no second chances. They shot you right then and there.
