MTV in the United States is well aware of the tumble its ratings took going into last year’s upfront sales. So, for 2008 the music video network has resolved to make sure viewers interact with brands in every way possible.
Nielsen’s commercial ratings currency-which counts how many viewers stay tuned during the ad breaks rather than how many watch the programs-wasn’t exactly kind to MTV, which lost an average of 13% to 15% of viewers during ad breaks, while most broadcast networks were able to keep losses between 8% and 10%.
MTV delayed adopting the commercial metric this fall but soon will begin to sell using the tougher ratings. And it will count on its earlier branded-entertainment efforts-from product integration (Herbal Essences’ trip to the Video Music Awards) to multi-episode commercials within ad breaks (American Eagle’s “It’s A Mall World”) to an entire series produced around a brand (Unilever’s “Gamekillers” for Axe body spray)-to persuade marketers to stick around.
For some buyers who negotiated ad deals on commercial ratings for this season, reaching 85% of an audience during a commercial break on MTV could be more efficient than paying more for the 92% who stick around during a broadcast ad break, especially if a larger share of those broadcast viewers are ignoring the ads. “I might not necessarily get more people to watch an MTV show, but I might get a hell of a lot more people to watch my commercial if I do something inside that break that’s interesting,” said one major media buyer who worked with MTV on integrated deals last year.
A year ago, MTV’s ratings were slumping in comparison with its competitors. But the fourth quarter found MTV in the midst of a comeback with some of its programs. Ratings were up 23% for this year’s VMAs; The Hills and A Shot at Love With Tila Tequila attracted an average of six million viewers apiece.
Increasingly, more brand managers are willing to experiment with new ad formats. Brian Terkelsen, executive VP of MediaVest branded entertainment group Connectivetissue, said the overall conversation has evolved from “Get me some of that innovation stuff” to “Prove it’s doing something for me,” and MTV has been one of the few networks to do the latter for his clients.
-Advertising Age
