When high reach of younger viewers is the goal, BVOD should be a serious consideration 


Sian Smallman, All Response Media
By Sian Smallman, All Response Media

Research from ThinkBox revealing TV viewing trends, shows that BVOD is becoming increasingly important when reaching younger audiences at scale.

BVOD delivers on reach  

Breaking down TV into linear and streamed content reveals the increasingly significant role of BVOD for reaching younger demographics. According to ThinkBox, the most cost-effective way to maximise 1+ reach of 16-34s is to deploy both linear and BVOD (see chart below):

Source: BARB – Techedge K2 BVOD Planner / Thinkbox estimated average CPTs (6 weeks Sept Oct 2021)

What Thinkbox do not take into consideration is frequency, which would be much lower, therefore achieving an average campaign frequency of 4 would be much more expensive using a mix of BVOD and linear.

Also, the CPT of BVOD is higher than linear, and does not have the ‘wastage’ of impacts delivered to secondary audiences, which we know can be a real driver of large marketing effects. So, it’s important to bear in mind the objectives of the campaign rather than using a blanket approach with a flat recommended % of BVOD per campaign.

10 per cent BVOD for an adults plan is not required 

For an all Adults audience, however, investing across both linear and BVOD doesn’t appear necessary as the curves are similar. A standardised approach should be avoided for all audiences, because putting investment into BVOD when you have a broad audience is less likely to be cost-effective. This is also true of 50+ audiences.

Source: BARB – Techedge K2 BVOD Planner / Thinkbox estimated average CPTs – 6 weeks Sept-Oct 2021

When is the right time to use BVOD?

Our independent ARMalytics data shows Linear TV as remaining more responsive overall. The premium charged for BVOD often outweighs the targeting advantages, making TV better value for most audiences.

BVOD can be useful for niche audiences, or for expanding reach in branding-focused campaigns. At ARM we calculate the ‘wastage’ of linear TV and compare it to BVOD pricing, and in some cases, with niche audiences, BVOD will be the more effective option.

All Response Media viewpoint

Tom Parker, Business Director We are starting to see the shift in viewing habits accelerate, and this is not just the younger audiences anymore. We know that Linear TV viewing for 16-24s and 16-34s has been declining for a while, however this is now evident in older segments such as 25-44s too. The pandemic put a halt on the decline, but as we move out of Covid you can see the trends start to continue downwards.”

Therefore, we need to be proactive about how we evaluate and use BVOD in our planning considerations, but a blanket approach would be unwise.

For all branding and brand response campaigns, BVOD should increasingly be a part of the marketing mix if the audience evaluation has been considered. We can help to calculate this as it will be different for each sector and business, and there is no one size fits all approach here without wasting £££s.

For performance or DR campaigns, the ROI requirements make it much more difficult to consider BVOD, however we need to think about frequency of a lower Linear audience, and factor in that there will be audiences who we miss almost entirely without using BVOD, leaving you at a disadvantage to competitors.

We have a host of tools in our ARMoury to help evaluate audience loss and opportunity, ROI requirements and of course, measurement. This includes on a national and regional level. Please come and talk to us and we will also be discussing this in our client reviews and PCAs.

To find out more please get contact marketing@allresponsemedia.com to arrange a consultation.  

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