The evolution of our viewing habits plus the rapid pace of technology innovation is making TV a viable medium for healthcare organizations to get their message out. Hyper-localization, something not normally associated with TV, is now possible. Add to that, the explosion of viewing platforms and what you have is an unprecedented opportunity just waiting to be seized.
Convergent TV
Even before the pandemic, there was a tectonic shift underway in the TV and entertainment industry. Streaming services like Netflix gave us on-demand content. YouTube and Twitch gave us Internet celebrities that were an alternative to Hollywood.
Cable multiplied our viewing choices by 10. The Internet multiplied it by 100.
David Pollett, Chief Revenue Officer at Cross Screen Media, a platform that helps brands and agencies maximize their ad spend in TV and video calls this “Convergent TV”. He presented the concept at the Virtual HITMC event in May.
Linear TV is traditional networks and cable. Content is delivered at a scheduled time to a wide audience who experiences it in the same way. Digital Video on the other hand is delivered via connected TV sets, on mobile devices, desktops and even social media. The combination is what Pollett considers Convergent TV.
An unprecedented Opportunity
“There is an incredible opportunity right now,” stated Pollett emphatically. “There is a lot of high-value, high-scale and highly targetable inventory that is undervalued at the moment. There has never been a better time to jump into Convergent TV.”
There is also unprecedented need according to Pollett. He cites a May 2020 report from the American Hospital Association (AHA) that estimates that as a result of cancelled hospital services due to the COVID-19 pandemic, US nonfederal hospitals will lose $161.4 billion in revenue over a period of four months (Mar – June 2020).
In a more recent report, the AHA estimates the revenue loss in 2021 to be anywhere between $53 billion and $122 billion.
Changing Behavior
The challenge facing healthcare organizations, is getting patients to come back.
Some are staying away out of fear for their own safety (COVID-19 and other viruses). Some because they have found ways to cope with their conditions on their own.
“Before you can change behavior, you have to change belief,” said Pollett. “And key to changing belief is having an emotional connection. TV can help deliver messages crisply and clearly AND it allows you to make an emotional connection. Having the viewer recall that emotion when they see your other advertising enhances your overall campaign.”
Not all Impressions are Created Equal
During his session Pollett highlighted something that I found extremely enlightening – the difference between an impression on various platforms.
Facebook has become a go-to for many marketers – especially with the social platform’s ability to target audiences with a high degree of granularity. That level of specificity is a marketer’s dream. Want your ad to only be displayed to teachers in rural areas who are 45+ and own a dog/cat – Facebook can do that. Pollett, however, reminded us that a Facebook impression is not the same as one on traditional TV or even a streaming service.
Consider the following chart:
Facebook considers 2s of a video to be a full impression. That’s great if your video is 2s long, but it’s terrible if your video is a normal 30-second spot.
Pollett’s slide shows that when you factor in the amount of time that a viewer watches your ad, Facebook ends up being one of the most expensive mediums. Pollett’s message is clear: even though Facebook looks like a cheap and affordable way to get in front of an audience, the fact that you can click away from the ad or skip it, means your cost per second of viewership is actually higher than other platforms like Roku or NBC Universal.
“This is what a convergent TV platform and service provider can do for you,” explained Pollett. “They can highlight the best opportunities and return on video ad spend. They can also help you chase the best eyeballs and keep up with the rapid changes in audiences and video platforms.”
Hyper-localization with video now possible
In the old days, if a hospital wanted to use TV to appeal to their local market, they would have to purchase commercial time on a local station that would broadcast to an entire region (the red area in the picture below). With new digital video, however, it is now possible to buy ad spots that go to specific households in a much more defined area (the blue zones).
This capability is a huge improvement in efficiency and effectiveness for video advertising.
To find out more about Convergent TV and it’s possibilities for healthcare, watch this video of Pollett’s session:
Image Credit: Photo by Nicolas J Leclercq on Unsplash
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