TV's in trouble, too

Earlier this week I discussed some of the problems plaguing the newspaper industry. It's important to understand, however, that print isn't the only medium that's less effective for advertisers than it used to be. Wednesday's AdAge.com, for example, reports that marketers also are losing confidence in television advertising:

Sixty-two percent of marketers believe traditional TV ads have become less effective during the last two years. Given that belief, it's no surprise that close to half of them already have experimented with other ad formats that work with digital video recorders or video-on-demand programs. And more than 50% of marketers reported that when half of all TV households use DVRs, they will cut spending on TV advertising by 12%.

Now, TV still can be a great tool for reaching your audience--and it's by far the strongest traditional mass media vehicle available. But the truth is that all forms of mass media advertising are less effective than they used to be, and they'll probably be even less effective tomorrow. That's not to say they're irrelevant by any means, but you no longer can go lightly into a major ad campaign. The web has changed everything, and marketing is no longer about spending the most money or reaching the most people. It's about engagment. It's about great creating great content. And it's about knowing your audience.

In short, it's about this. And this.