Wait, what just happened?
I, like many young adults, am often guilty of trying to multitask when watching TV. Aka, I get on social media and miss what’s happening right in front of me. An AdWeek article reported that previously high viewership events on TV are now grossing lower ratings than ever, and a lot of viewership is shifting from traditional television to go further online.
“According to Tubular Insights, 87 percent of millennials are never without their smartphone and 92 percent of them browse on other devices while watching TV programs. When doing so, they often use second-screen devices to spend time on social networks, chatting about content they are watching or engaging with different content.”
Being one of those said millennials, I’ve definitely noticed this shift. I can’t tune into ABC’s The Bachelorette without checking what my peers are saying on Twitter. Most of the time, I end up paying more attention to my social channels than the program itself, especially during commercials.
From a marketing perspective, brands need to make the shift as well. While the “TV is dead” rumor is a bit exaggerated, audiences no longer sit through an entire commercial and absorb the information presented.
Cue social media marketing. Think about all the data available to brands on consumers’ social channels. People are constantly updating their social profiles with information about their daily lives and interests. This real-time feed can allow brands to target consumers with relevant messaging and personalize their own social channels to strengthen customer relationships. Plus, brands can send personalized messages to consumers whenever and wherever instead of having to deal with television schedules and audience demographics.
Yet, just because consumers are paying less attention to TV and more attention to social, marketers shouldn’t abandon visual messaging. Even when browsing my social media channels, I’m more likely to stop on a promoted post with an interesting visual aspect. I want to be able to see what a brand is doing, not just read about it.
So, for brands looking to up their marketing game, ignore most parent’s advice to put down that dang phone. Go social; it’s the key to marketing success in this social-driven world.
