TV Ads Drive Me Crazy
Hello savvy readers! It’s a sort of rant from me today. After dinner last night, dear husband and I plunked ourselves in our easy chairs for a night of TV surfing and watching. We have a number of shows we have set up to record – many are PBS mysteries and “light” science shows.
Every now and then, after watching Jeopardy, we flip through the channels (we have DirecTV – that’s another story for another day) to see if we might catch something funny or new or different.
Like Savvy Frances & Trish, we are fans of cooking competitions (not that we are going to try any of the recipes!).
Our favorites are Gordon Ramsey shows but we also like Duff Goldman, “the king of cakes,” who judges many smaller market cooking shows and was just in a cake competition himself. He seems to enjoy himself!
Sorry, I digress.
Sorry, I digress.
What I want to fume about is TV advertising. Too much, too many, just too, too, too! I wondered if it was just my lack of patience or whether the ads are annoying others, too. I Googled the Nielsen Report: 14 minutes and 15 seconds of ads are the norm for one hour of TV programming. So, subtract from 60 minutes….
FOX has the most ads per half-hour show. This surprised me as their demographic of watchers is the lowest age group (the 20-40-year-olds) whereas the old seasoned stations like NBC, CBS, and ABC direct their marketing to those 58 years and older. Wouldn’t you think younger watchers would be more likely NOT to watch the ads?
FOX has the most ads per half-hour show. This surprised me as their demographic of watchers is the lowest age group (the 20-40-year-olds) whereas the old seasoned stations like NBC, CBS, and ABC direct their marketing to those 58 years and older. Wouldn’t you think younger watchers would be more likely NOT to watch the ads?
And from my dear pal Google, these are the top TV advertisers--all with multi-million dollar budgets: GEICO, Mercedes- Benz, Toyota, AT&T Wireless, Progressive, and Taco Bell.
Now I ask don’t I seem to see a plethora of drug ads? Where does “big pharma” rank in all this? From the PharmaDive website, I learned that “187 commercials for about 70 prescription medications have collectively aired almost a half million times in 2018 ... for which they shelled out about $2.8 billion.” That amount per drug company is far less than GEICO who spent $20 million on TV and upwards of $1.2 billion in all marketing and advertising. Hmmm. I suppose I believe this. Maybe we just enjoy “old folks shows” where the medicines are directed.
Nor will I take the time to address the law firms that will help you with your medical problems! Again, a different story for another time. If you can read the fine print, it’s a BIG story. [One of my aside snarky comments: I don’t even know what half the drugs are for unless I see an actor running for a bathroom.]
If you are becoming like dear husband and me, we are taping many shows for binge watching. Also, here is a secret that I am ashamed to admit. Next to Google, I think I love Amazon Next best. I ordered light bulbs, a couple of books, a black tee shirt, and Necco Wafers (that supposedly NO ONE has anymore) all in the same order and it arrived the NEXT DAY. It is the ability to stream the Amazon Prime shows that is so compelling–-this is where you see Mrs. Maisel. I wish I could shop more locally but time, energy, and money have taken precedence. Shame on me! I really enjoy, though, uninterrupted streaming of some really quality TV shows WITH NO ADS!!! Thanks, Amazon Prime!
We would love to hear how you handle TV advertising--or if you do! Or what you think if it?
And to all the Mothers out there – I hope you had a happy and restful Mother’s Day!
No comments:
Post a Comment