Pros And Cons Of Television Advertising

Ever since the popularity of television during the 1950s, television has become one of the most sought-after sources of advertising. Reason being, no other advertising medium has been able to connect with the audience instantly and reach a huge group as television advertising does. By combining audio and video advertising messages and delivering them with unlimited varieties, television advertising is definitely one of the most powerful forms of advertising, unlike other means, such as newspapers, magazines, radio stations and websites. Nonetheless, the expense incurred in this advertising form is one of the major weaknesses, especially in a congested market where one can find many advertisers vying for the same spot. However, even with the various disadvantages, television, undoubtedly, remains one of the most effective ways of communicating your product to your audience. Read on further to know the various pros and cons of television advertising.

Advantages Of Television Advertising

The biggest advantage of employing television advertising is its capacity of communicating the product to a large number of people (both regional and national level) in a short span of time.
By using visuals, sound and actions, television advertising allows the target market to see and hear the messages being conveyed through advertisements. Thus, this improves the credibility of the message which grabs the attention of a large audience.
Television advertising is highly effective in influencing customers and slowly persuading the target market although it may not induce instant sale, like that of search engine advertising.
This advertising form has the advantage of utilizing different channels (say, cartoon) at different timings (say, time at which people usually watch TV) to hit the required target market. Organizations plan their advertisements to be telecasted targeting different segments of people, such as children, house wives, youth and so on.
Since a single product is broadcasted by numerous companies, customers have a wide variety of options to select from.
Small businesses can make the most out of television advertising by developing creative advertisements to easily attract people and induce them to purchase the products.

Disadvantages Of Television Advertising

The main disadvantage of television advertising is the high cost involvement. Since the advertisement has to be repeated several times to catch the attention of the customers, it includes a high cost to air the advertisement on television channels.
Producing a television advertisement requires hiring of script writers, actors, video editors, or an advertising agency which means the entire process is a complicated procedure.
Making changes in a television advertisement is another demerit of this advertising medium. The script has to be updated and the entire advertisement is re-shot which means emptying your pockets further unlike newspaper advertising wherein updating sale pricing or special offer is as simple as swapping out a coupon.
Advertisements on the television lasts only for a few seconds thereby not being very effective in conveying much about the product to the target market.
At times, due to lack of relevant information on products, television advertisements can be obscure and doubtful.
Not all advertisements are creative and intrusive. Hence, not all viewers may be attracted towards the advertisement.
The advertisement has to be broadcasted at least 5 to 7 times to achieve message retention and consumer action. In case the product is not telecasted several times, it is simply a waste of money.

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