Arranging a TV Show-Ad Marriage

A television viewer’s attention has never been more fragmented.  Competition from multiple screens and niche networks imposes enormous pressure on programmers and advertisers vying for eyeballs.  Finding an alignment between program and advertiser can enhance not only the ads’ effectiveness but maintain a show’s ethos despite the commercial interruptions.

Along with audience size and demographics, advertisers may consider the relationship a viewer has with a show on a qualitative level as an opportunity to tap into audience emotions and attitudes.

E-Score Programs captures audience perceptions based on a number of different characteristics.  We took the defining characteristics of a few popular shows and matched them with brands of similar traits.

Brands and TV Shows Share Similar Values

Fox’s show Fringe scores high for attributes Unique and Intelligent.  Using E-Score Brand, Apple matched well, scoring strongly among all brands in Smart and Unique.

ABC’s Extreme Makeover: Home Edition earns high scores in Family Friendly and Optimistic.  The greeting card maker Hallmark followed a similar set of values, being seen as Family Friendly and Inspirational.  The CW’s The Vampire Diaries is strongly seen as being Sexy and Unique.  The clothing line True Religion is a good match scoring near the top among all brands for both Unique and Sexy.

Brands can also use this information to integrate elements of a show into promotions to increase retention and interaction.  So don’t be too surprised the next time you see a vampire slip on a pair of True Religion jeans.