Advertising revenues from television channels decreased by 23 percent in the first half year. At the same time, more television was watched than last year: an average of 6 extra minutes per day, reports research firm Screen Force.
Companies spent less on advertising, partly to save on costs and because of great uncertainty due to corona.
“Demand almost completely stopped”, says Marc Oosterhout, communications strategist and director of advertising agency N = 5. “Advertising time is a matter of supply and demand. How many companies want to advertise, how much space is available. Whether consumers make more use of the medium plays only a minor role.”
News popular
News and current affairs in particular were very popular in the past six months. On average, people watched the news for 37 minutes a day, an increase of 40 percent. Much less attention was paid to sports. Major events such as the European Football Championship and the Olympic Games, which normally attract a lot of advertisers, were postponed for a year due to corona.
“Not all advertisements were stopped,” says Michel van der Voort, director of Screen Force. “Advertisements from the medical world, for home and garden equipment and from the government, for example, have been done a lot. And you had a lot of ‘hook-up campaigns’, linking up with the corona crisis.” The theme was ‘connectedness’.
Airtime that was ‘over’ was offered to industry associations and SMEs who were struggling. “Special, but not unique”, says Oosterhout. “It is rare that the demand for advertising stops so quickly and so violently.”
Events
Advertising sales on the radio also fell between 20 and 30 percent. But Liedewij Hentenaar, director of the Radio Advice Bureau, emphasizes the positive side: “During the lockdown, our listening time increased by 10 percent. That is a reverse trend if you look at how it went in recent years.”
A big blow to all media was that major events were canceled. In addition to the sports competitions, this included the Eurovision Song Contest. Hentenaar: “Things like that have an effect. Talpa – the company has four radio stations – has laid off staff.”
On the brake
Oosterhout of N = 5 saw the work dry up quickly during the corona months. In the advertising world, temporary contracts have usually not been renewed in recent months: “In situations that are very drastic, advertisers put on the brakes. They often find it inappropriate to make advertisements or they are afraid that something will go wrong. also less money available and the marketing budget is always the first to be cut, because you can stop it relatively easily. “
According to Van der Voort, all links in the chain ultimately suffer from it: “Media miss their income, advertising agencies have no work, companies have less turnover, there is less money for new programs.”
The advertising market is expected to recover fairly quickly. Oosterhout: “It’s picking up again. Advertising is a typical V-market: it stops very abruptly, but there is also a rapid recovery.”
–
