TVB: Station Web Ad Sales Up 14% In 2010

Online sales at TV stations grew by 14% in 2010 to a record $1.4 billion, according to a Borrell Associates report commissioned by TVB and released today. Online revenues amounted to 6% of total gross revenues in 2010, up from 3.5% just three years ago.

The report also predicts another banner year for TV online operations in 2011 with 17% growth.

Jack Poor, VP–marketing insights at TVB, said: “Despite search, despite social networks, and despite national portals’  focus on local sales, TV station sites continue to grow in share of the local online ad spend.”

“Benchmarking: TV’s Local Online Sales” examines revenue sources, growth rates, site traffic and other interactive issues and offers benchmarking for stations in large, medium and small markets. The research was conducted by Borrell Associates, which tracks interactive advertising for 4,332 local websites in the U.S. and Canada through voluntary submission of data. This is the sixth year Borrell has conducted the benchmarking report for TVB. This year’s report focuses on data submitted by 630 TV stations.

Gordon Borrell, CEO of Borrell Associates, said that a break-out year may be imminent. “Mobile applications will inject new excitement into an otherwise flattening Web-advertising environment and as TV’s most familiar form—video advertising — goes interactive.”

The top local ad-spending categories, according to the report, continue to be general merchandise stores, car dealers and real estate agents—reflecting the efforts of merchandisers to meet up with consumers who are researching major purchases online. 

The Borrell report makes several important recommendations specifically for broadcasters:

• Online video has a bright future, but there’s as much risk in TV stations losing broadcast video advertising as there is gaining it online.  A key strategy for TV managers is to look for more opportunities to deliver video advertising in more creative ways than just pre-roll.
• E-mail advertising has an equally bright future, though tends to go untapped by TV stations.
• Sales training (and retraining) is becoming a requirement to survive both the old media and new media environment.
• Incremental growth is achievable with barely an effort, which means exponential growth might be achievable.

The full 41-page report includes appendices listing market-by-market online advertising expenditures for 2010 and estimates for 2011.

Find more on the report here.