We Want Your Ad Placement During This Election Year!

2012 Media Landscape in the Tampa Television Market

Another political season is now upon us, and we feel that it is important to break down what exactly this means in relation to buying and placing television advertising in the Tampa Bay Market.

As we focus on planning for 2012, we have to keep in mind that Florida will see heavy political activity, being that we are 1 of 9 “battleground” states with 29 electoral votes up for grabs. There will be heavy Presidential candidate and Senate candidate spending, as well as something new to 2012, super PAC, or super political action committee spending. These groups are unconstrained by how much they can collect from donors and corporations.

2012 political media spending is estimated at $37 Million for the Tampa Bay Market.

Of the $37 Million, 75% of this spending will be between Labor Day and Election Day on November 6.

However, there are other important dates to keep in mind: July 30^th through August 14th will have moderate to heavy spending with Presidential and Senate candidates getting ready for the state primary on August 14^th. 

We also know that political candidates will be focusing the majority of their budgets on local news, prime access (7-8p), and prime-time programming (8p-10p), usually only 15% of the budget will fall in daytime television. The positive here is in knowing where the heavy spending will be, enabling us and our local clients to be more strategic with their dollars.

It’s important for you to be aware of the impact political advertising will have on our market, and that Ren Scott Creative Marketing has the knowledge, relationships and tools in place to be competitive and successful in such an environment.

With that being said, being proactive is vital to a successful campaign in 2012’s hot political environment. We look forward to watching the political campaigns this year and helping our clients navigate their media and advertising placement for success admits the heavy political competition.

Contact us before making a media buy this year.

During the latter half of 2011 and the first month of 2012 we’ve met with a number of clients here in Tampa Florida, and across the country about their outlook an objectives for 2012.  

The million dollar question has been…

What should you be doing in 2012 with your Marketing and Advertising?

That’s a loaded question…It Depends. 

Here are 5 suggestions to help you build your marketing and advertising campaigns this year.

1.)                Research and Reflect. 

Take a look at your goals you set forth in 2011 and compare them to your results.  This is also a good time to spy on the competition.

1. Did your marketing have a positive impact on your revenue?
2. What worked and didn’t work? 
3. Were you able to measure your ROI?
4. What did you learn?

We find that the top reasons campaigns didn’t provide the desired impact was any combination of the message/creative, the medium used, and a poor call to action. 

Sounds like the basics… 

Make sure your Marketing and Advertising fundamentals are rock solid in 2012.

2.)                Pay close attention to trends in technology and the behaviors of your target audience.

In 2011 it was all about Social, and we estimate that 2012 will be all about mobile marketing and advertising.  It is estimated that one half of all local searches are done from a mobile device.  With these new mediums you need to be cautious.  Our tip is to slowly integrate the new mediums into the campaign and make sure they reflect your message and overall strategy.  Above all it is necessary    

The new emerging channels should be a complement to other mediums.

3.)                Don’t fix what isn’t broken.

Your social platforms, your website and blogs can build your brand and be an outstanding inbound marketing tool; however Broadcast TV, Radio, and now Online packs the biggest bang for the buck.  You may be asking well… which of the big three is best?  Again that Depends.  Many of our clients are extremely successful with Broadcast TV and wouldn’t see comparable ROI in other mediums.  Each client isn’t one in the same, and each project demands a unique marketing mix. 

However, this is interesting…

Online is projected to outdo Print this year.  It’s about time.  The forecast and results of Ad Spending for TV is still out performing all other mediums.  According to this online study TV will still demand the most of Ad budgets through 2016. 

Don’t leave the traditional mediums behind.

4.)                Measure and Track -  Accountability

Make sure your taking advantage of the metrics available on all mediums.  If it’s a lead generation campaign then monitor the results with a trackable phone number or if it is an online campaign you can monitor performance with unique landing pages and analytics from your web host or Google.  There are even ways to track the activities and engagement on your Facebook fan page. (not supported by Facebook; 3^rd party support required)  We even suggest offering unique phone numbers for your landing pages that are coordinated with a PPC campaigns.  Not all users are going to fill out a form.    This can easily become another blog topic, so I’ll save that for later.

Make sure you can get information and metrics from all levels and channels of your marketing campaign.

5.)                Be alert and stay nimble

With the pace of the marketplace it’s important to consistently review your statistics and be prepared to make adjustments to your strategy and message.  Be smart about budgeting and have flexibility to move on innovative advertising opportunities.  You may find yourself needing to make a change to your strategy once you start monitoring the performance. 

Wrap Up

Now that you have a plan we suggest to start early with scheduling your campaign goals, and mapping out milestones.  If you haven’t already; it’s never too late to start.  The common denominator with all of our advice is to make sure you have a clear message with consistency across all mediums, and the tools to measure your effectiveness.  Know your ROI.  Invest the time to learn and understand new technology to be able to manipulate them for maximum return. 

Here at Ren Scott Creative we specialize in shaping the message and analyzing the metrics during a campaign to ensure your marketing and advertising is accountable and exceeds your projected goals. 

If you’re interested in having your marketing and advertising mix analyzed or would like to discuss shaping and positioning a message, please contact us for a complementary consultation.

As you will see by the article, my feeling is yes. These folks have worked hard building a career of credibility and, once they leave the news, they are free to use that credibility however they choose. But I’d like to take the discussion a little further because it’s the essence  of why I left television news and started Ren Scott Creative Marketing. You see, back in 1984, I left a great job as a copywriter for a major New York Advertising Agency because I felt, if I was going to write, I was going to write about things that were truly important. To me that meant no more commercials about hairspray and candy bars, but stories about civil rights and fighting for people who weren’t being treated fairly. So I went back to Columbia University, got a Masters in Journalism, and started working my way up from the 198th Market (then Palm Springs, CA) to the # 1 market….New York. And for many years it was a blast. We did great reporting on important issues and served the public trust. But then it all changed. Stations started putting on more news with less people. No more time for real quality reporting. No more money for seasoned reporters who had earned their stripes.

I tell this story because it explains the value of what I and other former newspeople are doing now, and how we’re doing more good than we could ever do in the current news environment. If I were with a news station now I’d be covering fires, murders and sex crimes. I’d have a couple of hours to grab a few sound bites and some video, slap it together and get it on air. But instead, today, I am telling the stories I want to tell…and I am taking days and often weeks to craft them into high quality videos that inspire people to act. Over the last 7 years we have produced videos that have raised several million dollars for various non-profits including The Crisis Center of Tampa Bay, Christine’s Hope for Kids, Metropolitan Ministries and Heartbeat International. I have promoted a back pain treatment that changed my life and, through my marketing, has helped thousands of others get out of pain. I’ve promoted the work of a quality cosmetic surgeon who has made hundreds of people feel younger and better about themselves. I’ve helped promote a credit union because, while major banks are taking TARP money and charging higher and higher fees, credit unions are providing community bank service and being responsible with investors’ money. I’ve produced a half hour show to educate Floridians how to protect themselves in the event of an influenza outbreak. From educating consumers about Medicare to how to better care for their skin, my company has produced some great work and promoted some great causes.

So when some in the current journalistic community suggest I have sold out or gone to the dark side I offer one simple axiom. One of my last stories for ABC was a promotion for Desperate Housewives. Now I’m raising millions for charities and helping people get out of pain. I feel very good about the work we are doing at Ren Scott Creative Marketing. We choose our clients carefully, and we promote good causes, companies and products. No dark side here.

You can read the article here  http://tinyurl.com/6o6h96x

We began as a high-end video production company. After 6 years of steady growth, Ren Scott Productions has grown into Ren Scott Creative Marketing – a full service ad agency and more.

To celebrate we’ve added a few new things:

• NEW NAME
• NEW WEBSITE
• NEW OFFICE
• NEW PRODUCTION STUDIO
• NEW SERVICES

Truth is, for several years now, we have been doing complete marketing campaigns for our select clients, but we’ve never promoted it on a broader scale. So for all those clients and companies out there who want advertising, branding, web design, video production, media placement/tracking and a full service video production studio all with one marketing company, welcome to Ren Scott Creative Marketing. We look forward to working with you and doing what we do best…provide great service along with affordable, trackable marketing results.