New report reveals television advertising still packs the greatest punch

24 August 2010

• Television adverts most memorable and have the greatest impact
• Online advertising struggles to make an impression
• PVRs encourage viewers to fast forward through adverts

Television was the most memorable type of advertising in 2010 and had the greatest impact according to a report to be published by Deloitte on behalf of the Media Guardian Edinburgh International Television Festival, which takes place 27-29 August 2010. 

James Bates, media partner said: “The UK’s appreciation of television advertising appears to remain robust. It is now regarded as a top three advertising format by 56 percent of respondents, compared to 64 percent in 2009 – it still leads by a long way. Television was way ahead of newspapers (30 percent) and magazines (17 percent). In contrast, banner adverts polled poorly in both years (4 percent) and a new option for 2010, online video adverts, also underwhelmed (3 percent).”

Television advertising’s appeal to the young

Television advertising’s appeal was strongest amongst the youngest, with 18-34 year olds rating television advertising’s impact the highest at 63 percent. Among those aged over 55, a third stated that no form of advertising had a great impact on them, compared to among 18-24 year olds, for which group the proportion was just 13 percent.

TV adverts most widely remembered

When respondents were asked to think of the advertising campaign they considered to be most memorable in 2010, 52 percent ranked television highest followed by 10 percent for newspapers. This compared to just 1 percent for banner adverts, 1 percent for iPhone or iPad adverts and 2 percent for online video adverts.

Relevance of the traditional television advert

Just over a third (36 percent) said they were most likely to pay attention to the traditional, 30 second advert, compared to 1 percent for a video advert before an online video clip or as part of the web site.

Online video formats were particularly poorly rated – only 3 percent of respondents were most likely to pay attention to a pre-roll advert. Less than one percent of respondents cited a video advert shown on a mobile phone, or an advert played in the middle of an online video as the format they were most likely to pay attention to.

James added: “Questions over the relevance of the traditional television advert have been raised for years, yet when asked about their most favoured video format, respondents voted for the standard 30 second commercial.

“Online advertising’s poor showing relative to television may surprise given that the former has often been portrayed as television’s nemesis.

“What television does best – display and brand building - is what online struggles with. Online advertising is best at search, which previously newspapers, particularly for classified, had excelled at.

“However, despite the positive perception of television advertising, its bed of roses is not free of mildew. Among television advertising’s greatest preoccupations is measurability. While television generates billions of commercial impacts every day, it is hard to measure precisely how many of these are viewed.”

Viewers’ television advertising behaviour

When television viewers were asked about whether they watched the entire advertising break when watching television live, 13 percent always or almost always watch the entire advertising break, while 11 percent said they never watched it, and 2 percent never watch any television which has advertisements.

Of viewers watching pre-recorded television via their PVR, 86% reported that they always fast forward through the adverts.

Shorter advertising breaks (48 percent), more memorable advertisements (32 percent), and shorter advertisements (17 percent) were the top three reasons that would encourage viewers to watch all the advertisements in a break. Less popular were advertisement breaks that focused on one theme, such as cars or food (8 percent) or personalised advertisements (14 percent).

Other key findings

• • Over the past 12 months 33 percent of viewers have watched the same number or more adverts than before.
  • When watching a non-staged television programme, such as a football match 21 percent are less likely to watch the entire advertising break than if they were watching a drama, film or documentary.

Ends

Notes to editors
Official website: www.deloitte.co.uk/tmt/television

About the research
Statistics outlined in this press release are taken from a survey conducted by YouGov, based on a question set written by Deloitte, amongst 4,199 UK adults (aged 18 years plus). The sample of 4,199 respondents was split at the beginning of the survey in order that half completed the first module of questions and half completed the second. This was implemented to ensure quality of response throughout the entire questionnaire.

Fieldwork was conducted between 9th and 12th July 2010. The survey was conducted using an online interview, amongst members of the YouGov panel of individuals who have consented to take part in surveys. Respondents were sampled/weighted to reflect the UK population, based on the following criteria: age, gender, social grade, region and newspaper readership. Population figures used for sampling/weighting were sourced from the Office for National Statistics and National Readership Survey data.

About Deloitte
In this press release references to Deloitte are references to Deloitte LLP, which is among the country's leading professional services firms.

Deloitte LLP is the United Kingdom member firm of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited (“DTTL”), a UK private company limited by guarantee, whose member firms are legally separate and independent entities. 

Please see www.deloitte.co.uk/about for a detailed description of the legal structure of DTTL and its member firms.

The information contained in this press release is correct at the time of going to press.

About MGEITF
A unique opportunity for individuals from across the media to share ideas, make new contacts and reconnect with friends and colleagues, the MediaGuardian Edinburgh International Television Festival offers delegates a varied programme of topical debates, one to one networking opportunities, master classes and keynote lectures from leading UK and international media figures. The Festival programme is developed by an Advisory Committee made up of individuals from across the industry.

The MediaGuardian Edinburgh International Television Festival is a delegate entry event which annually attracts over 2000 delegates from all sectors and levels of the industry. The Festival will take place from August 27 – 29 at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre. To find out more, and to register, please visit www.mgeitf.co.uk.

MGEITF is a charitable organisation which supports and develops new talent from all backgrounds through its two talent schemes, The Network and Fast Track. Approximately one third of the delegate fees go towards supporting these initiatives.

About YouGov
YouGov is an international, full-service research company primarily using online panels to provide quantitative and qualitative research across a range of specialisms. These include consumer markets, financial services, public sector, technology and telecoms and media. YouGov’s full-service offering spans added-value consultancy, syndicated and product offers, omnibus and field and tab services.

YouGov is considered the pioneer of online market research. Through panel management expertise, flexibility and an innovative approach to recruitment, YouGov operates a quality panel of about 280,000 UK members representing all ages, socio-economic groups and other demographic types, with excellent response rates. YouGov also specialises in growing and maintaining dedicated panels of specialist consumer and professional audiences.

YouGov has been acclaimed as the UK’s most accurate opinion pollster and dominates Britain’s media polling. YouGov is one of the most quoted agencies in Britain and has a well-documented and published track record illustrating the success of its survey methods and quality of its client service work. For further information visit www.yougov.com.

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