How Can TV-First Brands Integrate Social Media Into Their Branding?

Given the nature of the marketing world today, almost any and every brand you can think of is assimilated into the socialsphere in one way or another. Granted, some more than others, but their presence is still felt. 

What does differ, however, is how invested each brand is in social media and why. 

Social media integration isn’t the only viable avenue for brands looking to make a dent in the marketing world. More traditional pathways such as TV and print advertising hold a lot more power and just as much resonance as their youthful counterparts and are, therefore, still highly invested in by branded-giants from all industries. 

In fact, if it’s broad reach and visual storytelling brands are looking for, then TV advertising is the way to go in achieving this. On the other hand, if brands are looking towards targeted outreach, cost-effective campaigns and real-time performance tracking then social media advertising is the ticket. 

Despite each avenue offering up their own advantages, we’re still seeing a slower uptake of social media integration from more traditional brands.

But why is this?

What’s steering brands away from social media integration?

Despite social media being such a highly invested-in channel, it still misses out on investments compared to TV placements. 

The most common reason for this is because TV advertising generally comes with less risk and better recall due to a viewer’s inability to skip past those they don’t find engaging or interesting. Even if the viewer doesn’t like your ad, they’ve still seen it, contributing to TV’s generally high recall rates. 

In comparison, social media users are so frequently served ads on their favourite platforms that they are more inclined to skip past those that don’t immediately grab their attention.

The aforementioned ‘traditional’ brands who’ve noticed this have adopted the “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” mindset when it comes to social media integration, as they can afford the grand expenditures of TV ads and therefore don’t see as much of a need to make the move.

Why brands need to consider social media integration

Brands not making the most of social media ultimately risk losing consumer relevance. 

With the number of consumers looking to social media to influence purchase decisions and product/brand research on the rise, TV placements run the risk of losing relevance. Why would consumers sit idle on their sofas waiting for a possibly engaging ad to appear in the next ad break when they can open up Instagram or TikTok and be met with hundreds of ads straight away? 

Yes, TV ads are generally more memorable and impactful, however with the proportion of UK households watching any traditional TV broadcast declining from 83% in 2021 to 79% in 2022, there will soon be no eyes left for these TV placements to fall on. 

Cue the investment in social media integration. 

Where TV-first brands tend to only be able to keep a baseline relationship with the same audience, social media allows brands to touch base with more specific audiences, more frequently. This is exactly what keeps brands at the forefront of consumers’ minds. 

As well as this, social media integration offers brands an opportunity to visually showcase their personalities and core values. Being able to relay the very essence of what makes you you is a brand’s superpower when it comes to running ads here – as we can see with Fenty Beauty’s Eaze Drop Stick TikTok ad, below. Not only can brands effectively present themselves online, social media integration also hands them the opportunity to create and maintain a much more direct and engaging relationship with their audience. That which TV advertising cannot facilitate. 

@fentybeauty

When @Rihanna says SwipeMeltGo, you betta ✨SWIPE, MELT, & GO✨ ICYMI ?? Muva created the eaziest foundation y’all will ever use ? Get into #EazeDropStick to get that natural-skin flex—fast! ?‍? The smooth-glide stick applies with EAZEEE, no tools needed + the light coverage blurs + evens skin ? It’s so eazyyy, you rlly can’t f it up ? Cop this new new NOW at the #fentybeauty site + @sephora ?? Dropping globally on 9/22 ?

♬ original sound – Fenty Beauty

Considering notable shifts in consumer behaviour in recent years now favour a more authentic and direct approach to advertising from brands, running ads via social media rather than TV adheres to this. This isn’t to suggest the ineffectiveness of TV advertising, however. Instead, it’s a nod to the fact that those brands who notice new consumer needs, and act upon them, are likely to succeed with the likes of Gen Z and Millennials who operate almost exclusively online and are most likely to make purchases. 

So what should TV-first brands be doing to keep up?

Even TV-first brands can be found somewhere online to some extent. But just being present is not enough. 

Marketing Director for No.7, Richard Bowden, emphasises the importance of “not letting the brand marketing slide”. Essentially, brands need to be maintaining a balance of their mass marketing communications and sales activations, otherwise it could cost three times the investment to get it back to either where it once was or to a healthy point where it can comfortably compete with its competitors. 

Knowing where to focus your efforts to help create the right balance between TV advertising and social media advertising will only benefit your brand’s ability to optimally reach as many consumers within your target audience as possible. 

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@ Socially Powerful