Fitting Group met with the Comcast folks last week and learned all about the cool stuff coming down the pike for advertisers — both online and on cable TV. What we learned was that upcoming innovations clearly point to Comcast’s understanding that in today’s world, TV must learn to play the instant-gratification game in order to keep up and attract young audiences.
Most advertisers are familiar with Comcast’s On Demand service, which was its first attempt at providing subscribers with more in-depth information on a product or service. This was a good start, but it didn’t compare to the “seek-n-find” capability of the Internet. Well, in the very near future, subscribers are going to be able to push a button on their digital cable TV remote when they see an advertisement to instantly (with a double opt-in “yes” feature) request that coupons or additional information be sent to them via snail-mail or email.
This capability will open up endless possibilities for advertisers — if subscribers actually do it. As with anything else, it will take time to catch on. But, when it does, it will become as second nature as setting your DVR to record The Bachelor (by the way, you will also be able to hit a button on your remote when you see a promo for The Bachelor to signal your DVR to record it for you — instantly!). Technology and advertising — I LOVE IT!
Being of the Millennial generation persuasion, when I tune in to watch my favorite TV shows, I usually do so by means of my PC’s DVR capabilities. The primary benefit of this technology is the ability to skip commercials. Maybe I shouldn’t admit to this given the field I’m working in, but how many times can a guy my age sit through a Viva Viagra ad before it becomes unbearable? Answer: once.
Anyway, sometimes I find myself multitasking during a prerecorded episode of Mythbusters or 30 Rock and because my focus is elsewhere, the commercials just don’t get skipped. Ironically, this is where I am most susceptible to television advertising, because it’s the simple messages that I notice peripherally that snap me out of the zone.
Such was the case when a commercial for Big Red came on. You know Big Red, right? Of course you do. It’s the Cinnamon Gum that promises long-lasting fresh breath. You probably know that because if you were alive in the 1980’s, you also remember this:
Fitting Group met with the Comcast folks last week and learned all about the cool stuff coming down the pike for advertisers — both online and on cable TV. What we learned was that upcoming innovations clearly point to Comcast’s understanding that in today’s world, TV must learn to play the instant-gratification game in order to keep up and attract young audiences.