Local Cable TV Ads vs Connected TV Geotargeting

There are significant differences between ads placed on local cable TV and those of the geotargeting connected TV variety. Business owners, managers and marketers should be aware of the differences between each type of advertising format including their respective merits and disadvantages.

Let’s take a look at how local cable TV ads differ from connected TV geotargeting.

Geotargeted Connected TV Ads

Geotargeting is often confused with geofencing. However, the two are not the same.

Geofencing is more centered on connecting with people through the internet, especially smartphones, that enter a specific area.

Alternatively, geotargeting centers on using platforms to connect with specific target demographics. Geofencing ads tend to appear on smartphone apps, mobile browsers and web-based apps such as social media platforms.

Geotargeting ads on connected TV provides a valuable opportunity for businesses to advertise their value offering to target customers in a specific location. This advertising format empowers businesses to select unique content for ads in accordance with programs aired in certain geographic locations.

Radius targeting through connected TV is employed when attempting to connect with targeted customers in an especially narrow location. Establish a radius around your company’s location, air your commercials on connected TV to connect with customers within that radius and it won’t take long for customer foot traffic to increase at that store.

Geotargeting ads tend to be successful when businesses zero in on the optimal geographic location, airing high-quality content at the right moment in time. Pinpoint the connected TV programs your business’s target audience is most likely to watch, figure out the times when those customers are inclined to tune into connected TV, present your value offering with a captivating ad and you will notice an uptick in interest sooner rather than later.

Geotargeted connected TV ads ultimately make your business and its products/services that much more locally relevant.

It must be noted there are a couple potential downsides to connected TV geotargeting. This approach limits exposure to the ads to people in a certain geographic area who use connected TV, meaning the audience has the potential to be comparably small. If you were to continue re-airing the same geotargeted connected TV ads over and over, the audience might grow tired of watching those ads and eventually tune out the message.

Local Cable TV Ads

Ads placed on local cable TV are shown to customers in a geographic area with access to cable TV, meaning the audience is likely to be larger than that of connected TV users. Though connected TV is gaining ground on cable and will eventually surpass it, cable still has a place in marketing.

The downside to local cable TV ads is the same as that of connected TV geotargeting ads in that the audience has the potential to grow tired of seeing the ads repeated over and over again. 

If your business plans on airing subsequent commercials on local cable TV after the first commercial airs for weeks or months, it is in your interest to create a new commercial with fresh content rather than recycling the old commercial. Furthermore, there is also the potential for local cable TV ads to be quite expensive, especially when aired during a popular program in a prime time slot. 

The other major downside is that cable TV doesn’t allow you any type of meaningful analytics or conversion tracking that connected TV offers. This reason alone is why many marketers are shifting their budgets from cable television to CTV advertising.

Consider the merits of spreading out your advertising budget cross local cable TV, connected TV and local broadcast channels for broad exposure and you’ll maximize the reach of your commercials to the largest possible local audience. 

However, if your business sells a particularly nuanced product or service with a limited target customer base, advertising on cable TV makes sense. To be more specific, it is sensible to advertise your products or services on specific local cable TV programs that your coveted demographic or customer persona is most likely to tune into.

Alternatively, if your business sells comparably general services or products used by people across a wide array of demographics, zeroing in on a specific program or time slot on either local cable TV or connected TV through geotargeting will not matter as much. 

Final Thoughts

In the end, your decision to advertise on local cable TV or connected TV with geotargeting will come down to your budget as well as the specific TV content your target audience is most likely to be interested in. Take some time to review the programs on each platform along with the times they air and get a sense of which fits your advertising budget, value offering and target audience the best. When in doubt, tap into the expertise of an experienced marketing agency for guidance in selecting the best platform for advertising your unique products or services.