Looking back on 2022, our sales/turnovers stack up, more or less, as:
Television Advertising 35%
Radio Advertising 25%
Digital 2o%
Press 10%
Outdoor 10%
Our Television spend (RTE, Virgin, TG4, Sky, C4) is a little distorted in that TV spends are higher – so whilst the overall value is high, the number of transactions is lower than say, Radio. More Clients buy Radio Advertising but the cost is less and therefore whilst TV brings volume, Radio transactions are there day-in day-out. The strength of TV advertising is significant still, though given the longer term demise of linear TV with a future really, as live Sports broadcasting only. That said RTE were operating at 92% Ad capacity during the year which is incredibly strong given the cost of TV Advertising and the need to have a TV Commercial (a general barrier to entry). However, the intro of addressable TV (Skysmart/Adsmart) has brought TV to a new ‘budget’ advertiser audience as it was intended to and indeed, the players sell well.
TV is still unquestionably the ‘brand builder’ and our Clients who used TV (some for the first time) cannot speak highly enough of its effectiveness. It works, it continues to work.
Radio has been an eye-opener too. Relatively low cost (especially when compared to TV) it is really delivering high audiences and high frequency. It’s a medium that’s doing the business and will continue to do so. We expect TV and Radio to be our big focus in 2023.
The relatively low numbers on Digital might show a ‘plateauing’ (if that’s even a word) but also is indicative of Clients in-housing (doing it themselves). A bit of Admatic expertise does help….but there’s a general view that Clients feel it’s not working as well as it was and they’re looking for other new choices. Still, very happy to do it!
The low Press spend is more than surprising. Shocking even. A few years ago it would have been number one or two. Declining readerships, high costs but particularly, a strong view with our Clients anyway, that “no one reads them anymore” is a natural barrier. Unfairly, but it’s the way it is.
Outdoor at 10% is probably where it has always been, but definitely represents a bounce back. Certainly, we’ve never seen such positive interest in Outdoor from mid 2022. Perhaps as people have been Covid ‘out and about’ they’re more conscious of it, but it’s definitely on a spurt.
We’re here to help, had a good year and will build on it. Keep saying it’s all thanks to our growing Clients and to whom, we owe everything. We know that but we’ll keep delivering value. It’s not our money, it’s theirs.
Just thought these trends might be interesting, for what it’s worth.
Stuart