Are Television Advertisements Really Worth it? Hundreds of millions of dollars are spent every year on slots to advertise products, stores, websites, and more. For an ad that runs for half a minute, companies are paying more than most people will make in their lifetime. Does this really serve a purpose?
A thirty second ad in the Super Bowl costs $6.5 million. That's more than the cost of an entire M1 Abrams tank used by the United States Armed Forces. Why do they spend this much? The thought is that the sheer amount of people watching the Super Bowl justifies the incredible cost of a commercial. Is this accurate? According to Temple University, it definitely is. The university concludes that running ads during the big game is an excellent way to almost guarantee traffic from consumers. This got me thinking, however, it may be worth it to spend an exorbitant amount for the biggest television event of the year. But what about any regular advertising slot in your favorite sitcom? Is it worth it then? The University of Maryland definitely thinks so. According to them, television ads are an invaluable place to show your product, way more so than radio. It seems as though it would be unintelligent to not put an ad up on television. However, not everyone agrees with this conclusion.
The Kellogg Institute at Northwestern University believes that television ads are a waste of money. Going back to a study done in the mid 1990s, the university states that people simply don't care enough about advertisements to actually watch them, let alone consider buying the product. They say this has been exacerbated by the use of cell phones. People have unlimited entertainment at their disposal. Why watch advertisements? According to the University of Delaware, at least 30% of television viewers leave the room while advertisements are on. This doesn't even include people who record TV shows and fast forward the advertisements while watching them after they air. Personally, I think that television ads can be worth it, depending on who is buying it. To me, it makes sense for a multi-million dollar company such as Coca-Cola to purchase an ad. However, if a businesses in choosing between ordering a shipment of products or purchasing a television ad, I think the choice is clearly purchasing inventory. Do you think that these advertisements are worth millions of dollars?
“Advertising and Marketing.” University of Delaware, University of Delaware, https://www.udel.edu/home/ocm/advertise/.
Anna TuchmanAssociate Professor of Marketing. “TV Advertising Is Usually Not Worth It.” Kellogg Insight, Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, 3 June 2021, https://insight.kellogg.northwestern.edu/article/tv-advertising-is-usually-not-worth-it.
“ARE TV and Radio Effective for Advertising?” Online Business UMD, University of Maryland, 9 Jan. 2020, https://onlinebusiness.umd.edu/blog/are-tv-and-radio-still-effective-for-advertising-and-marketing/.
“Is Super Bowl Advertising Worth It? That's the $6 Million Question.” Temple Now | News.temple.edu, Temple University, 4 Feb. 2022, https://news.temple.edu/2022-02-04/super-bowl-advertising-worth-it-s-6-million-question.
Pike, John. “Military Vehicle Indexes - M1 Abrams.” ABRAMS TANK (M1A2) - FY99 Activity, https://www.globalsecurity.org/military/library/budget/fy1999/dot-e/army/99m1a2.html.
“Super Bowl Commercial Cost in 2022: How Much Money Is an Ad for Super Bowl 56?” Sporting News, https://www.sportingnews.com/us/nfl/news/super-bowl-commercials-cost-2022/v9ytfqzx74pjrcdvxyhevlzd.
I think that advertisements for big events like the Super Bowl are worth it, but I don't think they are worth millions of dollars. A lot of people use commercials during the Super Bowl as a bathroom break; I know I would much rather miss the commercials than the big game. On another hand, though, there are people that only watch the Super Bowl for the commercials, and they also talk about them for the next few days. Your blog post was very interesting to read because I have never heard anyone talk about advertisements that weren't Super Bowl advertisements, so I guess the money is worth it if it gets everyone to talk about it. What I don't understand, though, is why such big companies need these commercials. Everyone already knows what Coca Cola and Doritos are, so why advertise it? I really enjoyed hearing the statistics behind these advertisements and it made me wonder if the commercials I've seen are really worth that much.
ReplyDeleteAs much as I hate advertisements, except for the ones for the super bowl, I think depending on the product, restaurant, etc advertisements can be worth it. I think 6.5 million dollars for one ad is very extensive, however millions of people watch the super bowl and are still interested in the ads which makes it worth it. I think regular ads are less effective but still are worth it and remind viewers to buy these products or use whats in the ad.
ReplyDeleteFor me, I don't think advertisements are worth millions of dollars. I can say from personal experience watching anything on TV, I only pay attention when what I'm watching is on. Every time there is an advertisement I use that moment to do something else. This is why I don't see the purpose in Ads for anything other than the Super Bowl. The Super Bowl is the only time I would say the money is worth it. All other ads are looked over for the most part. For the amount of money being spent on an ad I believe it should be worth the exposure instead of just being looked over.
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