The 10 rules for successful TV ads.

(that generate sales and don’t break the bank).

Seeing your TV ad live is a fantastic feeling. But that can quickly become despair if the ad doesn’t show results. Most companies don’t have the luxury to carve out a brand budget that doesn’t need to show a return. These are the 10 rules to follow to increase your chances for success. 

Writing & Production

1. Write your script pitching your product as a direct response (DRTV) ad if your goal is to generate revenue. Pitch your product to the audience clearly and succinctly. The message needs to be easily understood. For your first ads, prioritize direct response over brand to increase your probability of success. 
   
   Gametime’s first ad was a hard-core DRTV spot:

   
   Compared to later shoots where we added more brand elements:
   

   
   

2. Don’t be boring. Grab and hold the audience’s attention. Have the actors speak directly to the camera. Include humor to make more engaging ads.

3. Write the script for a 15-second ad. Standard practice is to cut down 30-second ads to 15s. However, it costs twice as much to run a 30s ad vs a 15s ad. Rarely does the longer length double the response rate and conversion. When cutting down an ad key elements of the pitch and story often get lost, reducing performance. You’ll get better results with similar yet separate reads for 15s and 30s.

4. Shoot multiple ads at the same. Most production costs are set up, tear down, and getting everyone onsite. I aim to fill a 10-hour shoot day by filming 2-3 ads to take advantage of the lower incremental cost.

5. Keep experimentation in mind. A/B testing isn’t limited to digital advertising. You can test variations of your pitch or hook with a minimal increase in cost. The primary constraint is ensuring all variations are roughly the same length. Speeding up or slowing down a read or action in post-production can make them all the same length. Then, launch the variations and prune down the low performers.
   
   Measurement
   

6. Use multiple attribution methods to triangulate the actual revenue driven by TV: minute-level attribution, where you look at the 5-10 minutes before and after an ad airing, how did you hear about us survey, and QR codes. 

7. Unlike digital advertising, TV ads have a significant long-tail effect, where users respond months after an airing. A proper agency or an internal data science team can calculate the lag effect. That said, minute-level attribution is strongly correlated to long-term performance.

8. Don’t discount how much TV improves overall marketing performance. TV improves the effectiveness of Meta, TikTok, and every digital channel by lowering the barrier to an ad click. While at the same time improving your retention overall, I gave a presentation at MAU, a mobile marketing conference, on this very subject.
   
   Buying TV Ads
   

9. Start with remnant inventory, the unbought inventory that’s available at a fraction of the cost.

10. Have patience. You won’t see great results immediately. Ads need to air for 3-6 months before performance achieves a steady state.