A new report from Samsung Ads, Change The Way You CTV, highlights how audiences’ receptiveness to advertising varies significantly depending on the kind of ‘TV Moment’ they’re experiencing. [Partnered post]
When advertisers try to measure and optimise the effectiveness of their campaigns, they typically focus on the creative they’re running, and the media channels they’re running it on.
New research from Samsung Ads – Change The Way You CTV – highlights another key vector that advertisers need to consider when running TV ads, called a ‘TV Moment’. A TV Moment is essentially the status of the viewer when they sit down to watch TV – their emotional state, environmental context, and motivation are all key factors, alongside the content they’re sitting down to watch.
By nature, TV Moments are nuanced. Samsung Ads’ research highlights the importance of going beyond planning for reach and frequency – tuning into TV Moments in the future will give advertisers a competitive advantage.
Viewers’ receptiveness to advertising, and likelihood to take action in response to an ad, varies across different TV Moments. So targeting the right TV Moment could have a genuine impact on campaign effectiveness.
And as mass cultural moments become less significant to TV viewers, understanding the impact of microculture actions across households becomes increasingly valuable, too.
Some key insights highlighted by the research include:
- The importance of the ad acceptance hierarchy
The research identifies a new ‘ad acceptance hierarchy’, highlighting which factors are most likely to influence how accepting a viewer is of advertising.
Motivation and need sit at the top of the hierarchy, as the best predictors of ad acceptance. For example, if a viewer is turning to TV for distraction or to unwind, they’re more likely to be accepting of ads than if they are looking for comfort or experience.
Mood and emotion are the next most important factors, followed by sociodemographic and time. Environmental and content factors sit at the bottom of the hierarchy.
Given that content and daypart are so key to TV planning, this new consumer survey demonstrates a gap between how TV is planned, and which factors really drive ad acceptance for consumers.
- Shared viewing helps drive ad acceptance
The data also shows that shared viewing can drive ad acceptance, engagement, and action. For example, the average ad acceptance rate for someone watching TV with their family is 57 percent, compared to 48 percent for someone watching solo. Meanwhile engagement rates for someone watching with their partner sit at 72 percent, compared to 70 percent for solo viewers.
The report also shows how the prevalence of shared viewing varies across different types of TV. Interestingly free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) sees the most shared viewing. Across the board non-linear TV is at least as likely, if not more likely, to be a shared viewing experience compared with linear TV.
- Significant age and gender variation
Age and gender are also significant factors in determining ad acceptance, engagement, and likelihood of taking action.
Older generations are typically more accepting of ads, though Gen Z shows fairly high levels of acceptance, and were found to be more tolerant than millennials and Gen X audiences. At the same time, younger audiences are more likely to take action, compared with older generations.
There’s also a gender gap, as male audiences tend to be more tolerant of ads. For men, acceptance of advertising generally correlates with engagement, up until a tipping point, where acceptance drops sharply. For women however, there is an inverse relationship between engagement and ad acceptance.
A new way to plan
The data contained within the report challenges some widely held preconceptions about what makes for effective TV advertising – highlighting the need to go beyond simple reach and frequency. For advertisers who are able to target the right TV Moments, where audiences are most receptive to advertising, there are serious competitive advantages to be gained.
Alex Hole, SVP and general manager of Samsung EMEA, said that by using data creatively and understanding the consumer mindset, advertisers can build strategies which really resonate with consumers. “We hope this work will stimulate valuable conversations across the industry, encouraging stakeholders to shape the future of TV in a way that centres on consumer engagement, relevance, and intelligent data use,” he said.
Sam Taylor, marketing director of Direct Line Group and chair of the ISBA TV Steering Group, agreed. “By moving beyond entrenched practices and embracing innovative measurement approaches, we have an opportunity to better connect with today’s audiences and make TV advertising not only impactful but also integral to the viewing experience,” he said.
Click here to download ‘Change The Way You CTV’ for more insights from Samsung Ads’ Study.
