Direct
Response Television (DRTV):refers to commercial spots or infomercials which ask viewers to respond to a “call-to-action” and place an order /request more information, either through a toll-free number or on a website (e.g. www.buythewidget.tv).
There are two forms of DRTV: the short form, which is 1-2 minutes in length, and the long form, which is 30 minutes in length. The long form is commonly referred to as an infomercial. The short form is commonly referred to as a DRTV spot.
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Infomercials
The term infomercial refers to a very specific
form of TV advertising. It is a commercial message,
and as such represents the viewpoints and serves
the interest of the sponsor. It is a "paid
program." IT IS LONG FORM. Unlike conventional
30 and 60 second TV ads, an infomercial runs
at least a half hour. The reason: a half hour
is the smallest block of airtime a TV station
will sell without interrupting its programming
schedules. (NO program on TV is shorter than
30 minutes.) IT SOLICITS A "DIRECT" RESPONSE.
An infomercial must solicit a response which
is specific and quantifiable. The solicitation
and the delivery of the response must be direct
between the advertiser and the viewer.
DRTV
Commercial Spots The
term DRTV spot refers to standard length direct
response advertisements that are aired within
or between regularly scheduled programs. IT IS SHORT FORM. Unlike infomercials,
they are not program-length ads. Although standard
length is usually one or two minutes, spots
may run anywhere from ten seconds to three minutes. IT SOLICITS A "DIRECT" RESPONSE.
Like infomercials, DRTV spots are designed to
solicit a specific direct response from the
TV viewers.
Long
Form: 30 minutes infomercials.
Short
Form: 60/90 and 120 second DRTV commercial Spots
Quick Facts
According to the Electronic Retailing Association, DRTV is a multi-billion dollar industry.
Nearly two-thirds of Americans have seen a direct response television ad.
One in four Americans say they have purchased from a direct response television ad.
Sales from DRTV spots have more than doubled in the last five years.
A successful direct response campaign can generate more than $40-million dollars in sales in just three months.
Retail sales are generally leveraged soon after a successful DRTV campaign; for every product sold on TV, we can expect 4 to 8 to purchase the product at the retail level.
