Sponsor (1956)

and which seems i<> be going ahead. I would guess thai merchandisabilit) inol an importanl factor anyway." I. I lie >i/c ol the basic investment required to do a significant job in each of the various areas being considered. This is the starting point in Deckinker's recommendation, lie said. "We want to do a good job in any medium used in any given market, before we add on another medium in that market." That's wh) his basic recommendation was "a good, strong use" of daytime tv, with "this minimum achieved before we go to evening television and then to radio." 5. The flexibility with which a campaign in each medium can be expanded <>r contracted. "Broadcast media allow me a lot of good flexibility. The copj sounded to me like something thai requires a minute to tell the story. But I can conceive of doing it in 20 seconds to get bigger ratings in fact, even in some additional 10-second announcements at the beginning of the season just to remind everybod) aboul this particular potable when the) re buying most of this type." 6. I he econoim with which an audience can be reached. This is "rather a treacherous area." said the media director. "To paraphrase an old proverb. we re comparing apricots and tangerines. For what it's worth, we feel happy about the fact that, among the major media, spot daytime tv is about as efficient as vou can get. If the choice has to be one or the other, we'd rather that it he among the less expensive per contact than among the more expensive. That way, we don't have to rationalize win we don't care about the cost per contact." 7. ^ ear around effectiveness, or lack of it. The product is highly seasonal in sales, peaking in the South during warm weather months, in the North during cold weather. Tv and radio are likewise seasonal. said Deckinger. "The summer months are quite a problem in these media. We would therefore pick up a few extra spots in the summer in the South, when were trying to emphasize the product there. Seasonality is almost automatic in the North. If I just ran five commercials all year round, the seasonal nature of the medium would automatical!) fluctuate with the seasonal \ ariation in m\ product." \nnouncement frequenc) in the North, therefore, would be intensified in January. February and March and again in October, November and December, when schedules in the South would be at their lowest. Southern schedules, conversely, hit a peak from mid-March to mid-September, when buying stress diminishes in Northern markets. 8. Competitive advertising. Product X's main competitors are not only out-spending it but out-spending it specificall) in the broadcast media. Should the strategy, therefore, be to go into another medium completely? Or to stay in broadcasting'.'' Deckinger chooses to stick with the latter, because "with good buying I can match mv $750,000 against his SI million and come out okav. "I know that it is often said that if a medium is overcrowded, you might gel lost in the shuflle. To some degree. however, the overcrowding actually presents a favorable atmosphere. It creates a situation in which your particular type of product has a chance of succeeding because people are thinking along that line. "Make your cop) and your buying belter, and you'll win the battle." Copy platform is vital In summarizing the major considerations in his choice of daytime tv as the basic medium. Dr. Deckinger said "the most important single factor is the cop) platform, followed — in order — by the marketing characteristics and the size of the basic investment. As a windup to his presentation in favor of daytime tv for Product X, he showed the anahsjs which covered "the proper relationship of frequency rate and the impacl of advertising." Frequency, in the first place was adjusted seasonally. In this calculation, he assumed sales were about one-half heavier in season than out of season. I le also assumed the same seasonal patterns in North as well as South. His 1 ui \ i n o phm balances out to this pattern: An average of five announcements weeklv in the North in the winter, four in the summer; three in the South in the winter, six in the summer: making over-all averages of four in the winter and live in the summer, or four and one-half \ ear-round. In terms of four-week cumulative or total rating, the schedule delivers "something like a third to a half more home contacts in-season than off-season."' \nd in terms of net coverage — the percentage ol homes reached at least once — the box score looks like this: "I gel into II '< of all tv homes, which is pretty good when you consider that only about 60' 1 of all tv homes use their set at all on adult programs in a four-week davtime period." "Market dent" is big The minimum "market dent."' as be puis it. in any one season in four weeks is about 36%, with the maximum, 45%. The final media "dimension is frequency, or real repeat contacts on homes reached at all. "This varies from three to almost lour times a month, which is excellent for television. Summing up his recommendations, and the reasoning behind them, Dr. Deckinger re-emphasized the creative factor w ith the assertion : "Interpretation of the creative strategy, in 0(1', of all cases, is the most important factor in media selection. That media selection encompasses: "Daytime lv. to reach the buying agent in mv best families, in a medium that allows mv cop) strateg) its lnllest expression. This is supplemented, if possible. "with further demonstration in evening lv for audience extension to the 10', of tv homes — less on target, but still containing at least some potential users which don I view adult lv in the davtime. Ibis would give additional coverage of the primary market, since at least some of these folk look at tv at night, too. And. if there's still more money, he'd "add cheap message frequency, particular I v at the beginning of the season, with radio. This adds further audience extension through coverage in the .'!_' , of homes in the area w Inch do not hav e tv sets. This advertising plan hits "the best target home-. \\ e have good coverage. considering the product is used bv 00', of the homes, and our brand averages a I'd', share in these 60% of homes. We could do a wonderful busiiiess-holding and business-building job on the homes thai we reach with the basic plan." ^ SPONSOR 22 DECEMBER 1956 51