This is TTT, Channels 2 and 13…
As a child when we heard these words we knew it was time for TV. And by TV I mean TTT, the one channel you could get when you turned on the television. Not so now. TTT (now called CNMG) has a lot of competition. And not only from within. Apart from several other local channels and cable and direct TV with a gazillion options; there are traffic jams, gym and spin classes, study programmes, the internet with facebook and it’s own TV station called You Tube and a whole range of regular and exotic hobbies to keep eyes away from the telly.
Costs of Advertising
What does this loss mean for local advertisers who once had a captive audience with the most powerful and emotional medium on the planet (that affords sight and sound to enter your living room)? What does it mean for the medium? Well to answer the last question first; the medium must do things to make itself more interesting than its alternatives. And individual stations must differentiate themselves more effectively than competing stations. The advertiser must stack TV up against alternatives in terms of cost and effectiveness of getting its message to potential buyers. The picture is not looking very bright for TV. Here’s the cost to reach 1000 persons in Trinidad and Tobago using the leading brand in each sector:
TV (30 seconds) – $15.72
Newspaper (25 by 5 b&w) –$15.46 (color:$28.18)
Radio (30 seconds) – $2.83
And of course, there’s the cost of production of the ads which is highest for TV.
Local TV must Redefine Itself
To cut a long story short, TV needs to bring down its cost of operation while simultaneously improving its product. This must lead to better pricing and programming. Not easy and not impossible. Wal-Mart does it through smart sourcing and getting more out of its real estate. Have you been to a Wal-Mart recently? You don’t need to go any where else to buy any thing unless you’re looking for lumber or eye surgery.
So local TV needs to do more with less if they are to survive. And they need to break the mould where TV is meant to satisfy everyone. They need to tap into TV junkies and tailor their programming to them, not to the guy in the gym. What about those households who are not on cable, surely they must be an important grouping.
TV is a broadcast medium. However, I think it needs some narrow casting. It needs to find those persons whom they can reach more cost effectively than cable and with a competitive product. Otherwise like TTT, they may all have to sign off. (dr)
