September 1, 2005
Cable Booming
This summer (can it be almost over?!), there was a 9.9% decline in broadcast TV viewership, and a 5.2% INcrease in cable TV viewership.
Our great media director, Michelle Evans, has explained to me some of the reasons for cable's continuing growth.
One reason is more good programming, like The Closer on TNT.
A second reason is the fact that episodes of hit network shows are often being shown on cable later the same week that the shows have premiered on the networks.
And a third reason is that cable has been very savvy about identifying niche audiences and growing them. For example, the Scripps cable channels - that include HGTV and The Food Network - have been very successful at attracting more affluent viewers. Those channels expect their ad revenue to increase 22-25% this year.
The heat is on cable. And so are the price increases. Advertising costs-per-thousand increased about 4% on broadcast TV for the coming fall season, while they increased on average 11% on cable.
You can see the dynamic. It costs much more now to reach 1,000 viewers. And there's an ever-increasing fragmentation of the market, as cable channels increase their viewership and new channels come on line.
What's that mean for advertisers? It means be darn sure you've got someone mighty smart (like Michelle Evans!) overseeing your media planning and buying.
Out on a Limb
I'm going out on a limb and predicting that the New Martha Stewart will bomb. Ms. Stewart is apparently staging her comeback in a new guise...warm, cuddly, laid back, self-deprecating, informal, unscripted, and perfectly happy to laugh at herself making a mistake.
I have always believed that TV is a truth serum. Personalities come through loud and clear, and there's no hiding, no faking. The genuine article rules. And her audience - boomers - you know what they admire most? Authenticity.
Ms. Stewart's success has been predicated on the personality that came through loud and clear in all of her television appearances over the last many decades: extraordinarily talented, organized, knowledgeable, and helpful...with not one missed beat, not one hair out of place. There was the rest of us. And there was Martha.
My sense is that she is every bit as extraordinary as she has come across all these years.
So why now go for "the common touch." I just don't think it will ring true.
And...Oprah owns it.
posted by David Rawle @ 10:15 PM
2 comments
2 Comments:
But it might be riveting--in the same way a train wreck is riveting--to watch Martha TRY to be authentic. Actually what I like about her are her martinet, headmistress qualities--she's frightening and mesmerizing at the same time. I almost feel compelled to make a pie and raise chickens after I've watched her. Almost.
If she's too soft, I think she's got nothing going for her. What makes her a draw is that under that apron and overly scripted descriptions of birch bark frames is that we know she's nasty and smart as hell. She's got a facade for sure, but we're comfortable with it b/c it's all facade...I'd argue that her show really doesn't show her personality--except the OCD part--at all. There is some mystery to her on screen...and I'm with you, Nikki, for some reason even I feel like I can manage a greenhouse in my spare time after I watch her (and I kill everything green that's near me). BUT, if she goes too gooey on me, I'll know it's disingenuous. And on top of that, we don't need another boring personality-driven show... Tony Danza and many others have that angle covered.
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