November 24, 2023

How TV sponsorship affects brands. Part 3

Gazprom-Media Sales House, RACA, and advertising market players have conducted the third wave of an industry survey aimed at evaluating the effectiveness of TV sponsorship. The methodology and key results are listed in the article below.

One of the axioms of the advertising market is the high effectiveness of TV sponsorship at the upper levels of the sales funnel: building brand knowledge and creating long-term brand loyalty. Yet, many advertisers note the lack of data on TV sponsorship and talk about the importance of an evidence-based approach in evaluating the tool’s impact on brand metric growth.

On the initiative of Gazprom-Media Sales House, a large-scale industry survey is conducted every two years, engaging RACA, leading media holdings, and advertising agencies. Survey respondents comprise business representatives engaged in media advertising placement.

The first wave of the industry survey, which focused on evaluating the effectiveness of TV sponsorship, was launched back in 2018. Since then, the main goal of the project has been to identify the key characteristics of TV sponsorship and analyze its influence on consumer behavior. Nevertheless, the structure of the survey is updated every year according to the latest market agenda.

In 2023, experts focused on the experience of advertisers who choose TV sponsorship to implement their marketing strategies. The survey has the following objectives.

Survey Objectives

1 To identify the criteria advertisers prefer to evaluate the effectiveness of sponsorship projects and the choice of TV channels.

2 To evaluate the prospects for increased investment in TV sponsorship and the potential for expanding the share of TV sponsorship in a company’s media allocation.

3 To analyze the experience of TV sponsorship use.

4 To define growth points for TV sponsorship in the market.

Sample

The survey was conducted via an online questionnaire. 103 representatives of large companies from various business segments participated in the survey: food services, restaurants, real estate, online services, marketplaces, home appliances and electronics, communication services, etc.

Over 80% of the respondents are top and middle managers, directors of marketing and advertising management, division and department heads, as well as brand and media managers.

This approach facilitated representative sampling and the collection of data pertinent to the survey’s objectives.

improving brand health metrics,

ensuring that the advertising message reaches the intended TA,

increasing ad recall.

В 2023 году в этом списке:

fostering brand loyalty,

establishing or refining the brand image,

showcasing the product’s unique advantage.

At the same time, the respondents believe that integrating sponsors into content is the most effective way to achieve these goals.

Advertising that is seamlessly integrated into the context increases both brand awareness (78.2%) and audience loyalty (76.9%).

Aside from the presentation format, another important factor of sponsorship effectiveness is the choice of TV channel. The formula for success has three components: the TA, costs, and creatives.

According to the respondents, entertainment TV channels emerge as the most effective. TNT (74%), Friday (73%) and STS (56%) are the main sponsorship platforms for advertisers on TV.

Comedy shows are in the top 3 genres, along with feature shows and sports broadcasts. The respondents noted that the sponsorship within this type of content delivers the best results.

Advertisers consider the involvement of celebrities, the adaptation of the ad to the channel’s style, and the exclusive video production based on a design brief to be the primary value-added factors in TV sponsorship.

Most respondents are aware of the strategic importance of TV sponsorship. 51% of respondents noted that this tool is becoming relevant and self-sufficient, while 76% of advertisers are actively integrating it into their brand’s media allocation.

The positive experience of using this tool is reflected in financial planning. Compared to 2021, there has been a 6 p.p. increase in the number of market players willing to allocate up to 30% of their annual budget to sponsor campaigns.

A quarter of advertisers stated that they are willing to invest up to 50%.

Within 2–3 years, about 41% of respondents plan to increase their investment in TV sponsorship.

Communicating the results of effectiveness research helps influence advertisers’ perceptions and is a valuable asset for media market players.

After reviewing data from the previous waves, 26% of respondents have incorporated sponsorship into their media mix, and another 26% have increased their placement volume.

Conclusions

Thanks to the joint efforts of the experts, the objectives of the survey were achieved and unique data on the Russian advertising market was obtained. The results have confirmed the relevance and effectiveness of TV sponsorship, demonstrated the growing interest and trust in this tool, and also allowed to assess the potential of financial investments by advertisers.

The project partners: RosReklama VGTRK Sales House, MEDIA-1, FUSE MDG, Group4Media, Okkam, RoRe, Igronik, OMD OM Group, ADV, SberMarketing.

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