Making the Most of Television Industry

Making the most of television industry will expose your company to the community
By Kelly Shetsky, Anchor/Reporter The television business offers you targeted and affordable advertising options. You can reach an upscale, diverse audience of thousands of people. Because TV stations track their viewership, you can reach that niche of women, men, families or children. Targeting an audience according to geographic location helps eliminate the waste of producing a commercial or public service announcement for nothing.

You can also increase revenue by using the TV industry for free advertising. No, they're not going to produce a commercial for you for free (unless you're a non-profit organization) but they will send news crews to local community events. If your business sponsors the Race for the Cure, for example, you'll get free television exposure. Also, if you make yourself available to local reporters and photographers for news segments, you're reaching thousands of people for free.

1. Determine whether to hire TV production companies for your advertising needs

2. Get free exposure through local reporters and producers with the TV industry

3. Know that the television business will cover major community events so it benefits businesses to get their name linked to the initiatives

Use TV production companies or local TV stations to produce top-quality advertisements

You can hire television production companies to write, produce and edit commercials and then buy air time on local television stations for those commercials to run. You can also use television companies like the local ABC, NBC, CBS and FOX for their production capabilities. They usually have top-rated creative services departments that can do it all for you.
Try:  Television companies such as Time Warner Cable have sales and creative services departments to meet advertising needs. Contact the affiliate to the network television industry in your area, such as KARE 11 in Minneapolis-St. Paul or WTEN in Albany, New York, to discuss an ad buy on their websites or on-air. Use ProductionHUB to request a quote from television production companies.

Petition TV companies to produce public service announcements for your non-profit

The FCC requires the television industry to run a certain amount of community service programming every week. That's why stations will produce and run public service announcements. Use "real" people and their stories whenever possible, as opposed to the "face" or "official" of the agency.
Try:  Arrange to shoot a spot that truly depicts what your agency does for the community. The Ad Council is the leading producer of PSAs. The group focuses on education, community and health and safety. Use The Community Tool Box for tips and information on public service announcements.

Take advantage of the TV industry in your town to get free advertising

Let's face it, local television news is always doing stories about the economy, the rising prices of products, car sales, healthcare issues and gas prices. If you run a hospital, car dealership or any other business, make yourself available to these TV companies. Instead of potentially losing the audience during a commercial break, you'll catch thousands of people's attention during the evening newscast.
Try:  A news story about your establishment is free advertising, which is very valuable to your bottom line. MDA, Muscular Dystrophy Association, works with businesses across the country. All those businesses get exposure during the annual telethon and year-round on the MDA website. Susan G. Komen for the Cure also had corporate sponsors who underwrite and support their mission.

• Even if you're a for-profit business, TV companies may produce a free public service announcement for you if you're holding a charitable event such as sponsoring a walk to raise money for cancer research or a food drive for the local pantry.