Sponsor (Oct-Dec 1960)

TV ABROAD (Continued front page 40) Sometimes they're made centralis for distribution throughout an entire region, as in the case of U. S. advertisers who prepare commercials in Mexico for utilization there and in Latin America. But some foreign markets have laws prohibiting the import of tv commercials made elsewhere, and there's a law in some countries that commercials must be live. Sometimes brand names vary from country to country and commercials must be made locally. The length of foreign commercials varies from 10 seconds to three minutes, depending on the country and on the advertiser's choice of length. In Italy, for example. there's a three-minute period within which all the commercials are lumped together. In Latin America a halfhour film program is actually only 22 to 25 minutes long, and the balance of the time is filled with commercials of varying length. Are V. S. commercials ever dubbed for foreign use? Very few commercials used in the U. S. are dubbed for foreign use. A few years back we dubbed some Westinghouse commercials into both Spanish and French, and we also dubbed into Spanish some Bab-0 singing commercials which proved to be very effective. But such dubbings are the exception rather than the rule. What kind of price structure does V. S. tr film hare abroad? Hon do prices compare with the I '. S. for the same circulation? Regarding price structure, it must be understood first of all that the value of money in many foreign countries has no relationship to its value here. For example the people in Japan live on a yen standard of 360 to the U. S. dollar under which SUM) represents a tremendous amount of earning and buying power. When a sponsor buys a tv show for $500 he is spending a tremendous amount of local currency in the terms of his business — even though he is spending less translated in U. S. dollars than for a comparable market at home. Supply and demand, of course, operate abroad just as in the L. S. Some of the factors affecting film prices are availability, quality, the local cost of live talent, the number of television stations within each In Roanoke in '60 the Selling Signal is Seven... Many people, much wampum, in Roanoke. Heap big voice is WDBJ-TV, serving over 400,000 TV tepees in Virginia, N. Carolina and W. Va. Roanoke not get-rich-quick market, but plenty steady. Growing, too! That's why smart ad chiefs are going western . . . Western Virginia, where they'll sell like sixty on seven. In Roanoke, seven is WDBJ-TV. Maximum power, highest tower. Superior programming for braves, squaws and offspring. ASK YOUR PGW COLONEL FOR CURRENT AVAILABILITIES Roanoke, Virginia market, and the seriousness of cf.rj petition among U. S. firms sellir there. Another dominant factor the purchasing power of the popul tion as it affects the dollar value expenditures of the tv users. It is unquestionable that prices tv film shows are considerably low in foreign markets than in compar ble U. S. markets, offering what's pe haps the lowest cost-per-1,000 in for a U. S. sponsor. What kind of success hare foreift advertisers had tcith I. S. tr films? In Mexico City Procter & Garr has used a daytime and afterm strip of re-runs for the past thre years. It is our understanding thj the cost-per-1,000 is the lowest eve in Mexico and one of the lowest in anywhere in history. (Agency Noble Advertising, Mexico City. > Shell Oil Co.'s first overseas fill buy was Highivay Patrol in Poi tuguese for all of Brazil. Today itl one of the top-rated shows there an is having a tremendous impact fd the entire Shell marketing organic tion in Brazil. You may also have heard of t success of Pet Milk with Cisco Kid Puerto Rico and General Elect with Favorite Story in Mexico Cit\ Incidentally, local advertisers h; great success with U. S. shows. On of the largest realtors in Buenq Aires, Villafane Molina v Cia.. r ceived over 1.500 inquiries on i apartment project in one month, was advertised only on the Cisco K program. They've sponsored the pr gram for three years now. Just why do V. S. advertisers In If. S. film shoics overseas? To sell »/* cific products, or for public relatt and employee relations purposes? The majority buy because fill shows are able to draw large aud ences at low cost, that favorable coal per-1,000 again. The determinin factor is still how many people yo can get to listen to your messages an at what cost. We have found thi about 95% of U. S. advertisers tv film overseas to sell specific prod ucts. and perhaps only 5% buy flj purely institutional reasons. But th motives are actually mixed to sons extent. Certainly most sponsors w to sell their products, but they mil also consider a show for its corporal image as well. Why did Chase Manhattan Bam SPONSOR • 24 OCTOBER 196