How Much Does it Cost to Advertise on TV?

Great question! The answer depends on whether or not your ad is going to be local, or national. Local ads cost significantly less, and are the go-to for smaller businesses for obvious reasons; your business with 1 to 3 locations on the East Coast doesn’t need to reach people in California. National ads- on the other hand, will cost much more per spot, but will cost less when divided among the viewers you are reaching.

If you’re reading this, chances are that what you’re interested in is a local advertisement — however both will be covered. Before we start, it is worth noting that there’s a third option that most business owners don’t think of; which is running your ads on the TV within your business itself. If you think that’s counterintuitive to the point of playing an ad on television, keep on reading and see why more and more business owners are adopting this new strategy.

Want to Advertise on TV? Here’s what to Expect

Business owners looking to run a local ad can expect to pay upwards of $1,500 for a 30-second advertisement on a broadcast network — compared to national ads, which can cost as much as $120,000 for an ad of the same length. Cable TV networks in limited areas can cost as little as $50 per spot, but the viewing audience for those ads is very small.

A Quick Calculation:
Just think if there are 200,000 cable subscribers. 50% of them may be watching TV at any given time, so that’s 100,000 audience. Now, those people have the choice between a thousand different cable channels. Most will gravitate towards the broadcast stations like NBC, Fox, CBS and ABC. So you may only be left with 40,000 viewers that are choosing between the other 1,000 channels. Divided evenly between the channels you might expect that ad to be shown to just 40 people. So even for a “cheap” ad on regional cable purchased for $50, you’d be paying $1.20 per viewer in the example above.

Television ads are costly, and that money spent is a lot for a small business — especially when there’s no guarantee that you’re going to make that money back. When it comes to most advertising platforms; cable TV, billboards, newspapers, etc. — you’re paying to have your message exposed to thousands, if not hundreds-of-thousands of people on the off-chance that a large number of them will see it,  be interested, and then act on it. That’s a lot of off-chances.

Don’t bet your advertising budget on the Law of Averages. Not when you can achieve the same goals, with the same ad, for far less money.

The Advantages of Advertising on your Own Business’ TV

Some might argue that the point of having a commercial ad is to have it play on broadcast television; in people’s homes. The “I don’t need to advertise to customers who are already in my business” stance comes from a place of logic, but it has its flaws. Most notably, it’s ignoring the simple fact that those customers- who are already in your business, are there because:

1.) They trust you, or they trust your brand

2.) You sell a product that they need, or you offer a service that you provide.

3.) They are statistically more likely to (re)visit your business than someone who had never been there before.

Less often than you might think it’s because they saw your ad at home on TV. The small handful of “those-interested” that you might get out of a TV ad will have an equal mindset to those who are already visiting your business naturally. It’s far easier, and way more cost-effective, to target customers who are already in your location.

Why spend thousands of dollars fishing for 1-in-1,000 people who are interested in your brand when you can instead target 1,000 visitors who you know are already interested?

Selling visitors on additional products and services while they’re right there — where they can buy or act on it that second, is the best strategy for generating more sales and repeat business. If you were advertise on TV, your product, service, or message would REALLY have to motivate the consumer to stop what they’re doing, get up, go out, and visit your business. No matter which way you look at it, the best place for your business’ ad is your business’ TV.

Finding the Right Advertising Platform to Stream your Business’ Ads

DIY solutions cost time, money, and upkeep to maintain; trust a business TV provider to do all the hard work for you.

Finding the right platform can be a little overwhelming, especially if you’re new to the technology. The best place to start looking for business TV software is It’s Relevant TV. The TV experts there know businesses, and they know television; schedule a call with them for a closer look at the technology, or chat with a representative if you have any questions about using custom TV software in your business.

If you’re going to advertise on TV, make it your business’ TV.