Broadcasters Get Hyper-Local

Navigating local platforms - particularly hyper-local - can be daunting to a marketer with no natural roots in a community. Fortunately we're long past the days of having to rely upon newspapers, Yellow Pages, and direct mail to deliver extremely local targeting.

Today, local television broadcasters are much more than a single voice speaking to an entire market.

The digital assets of television stations provide that strong local online presence for brands to connect with consumers. According to the latest Media Comparisons Study by Knowledge Networks, 55% of Adults 18-49 turn to their local TV station's website for their news and information, well above the 39% delivered by the number two local online medium, newspapers. And the current state of Patch is well known.

Station websites are just the beginning of the online resources that are available through local TV stations. More and more broadcast groups are adding hyper-local to their online mix, giving marketers the ability to reach deep into a marketplace, with precise targeting. You reach your target audience, with hyper-local resources that can be tapped into right now - not just in some unwritten future.

Stations are using a mix of digital integrations, including both station-generated and consumer-generated content via social media such as Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr and Pinterest, to bolster their connection to community interests and drive brand affinity. They're also leveraging mobile, both in their own custom station apps and with secondary mobile-centric apps such as Flipboard.

More and more stations across the country are adding Mobile DTV to their portfolios, giving marketers the ability to reach local consumers through the latest media hybrid - traditional over the air television, on the go. The recent launch of Watch ABC is a good example. It's one more digital connector that will extend a brand's reach - significantly shortening the distance between the consumer, message and transaction. If viewers can see your ad as they pass by your product, they're more likely to become consumers.

Local stations provide the resources to be complete local consumer relationship partners for marketers and advertisers who are looking to build their brands at a market and community level. Their reach in the local marketplace doesn't end at the first screen. Broadcasters offer a complete array of digital connection opportunities, providing pathways into the most sought-after local marketing real estate there is - a consumer's heart, mind, and home.

Don Seaman joined the TVB in January 2012 as Manager of Marketing Communications, where heis responsible for promoting and raising awareness of the TVB, and of Local Broadcast Television’s value propositions within the traditional and digital media industries. Don can be reached at don@tvb.org.

Read all Don's MediaBizBloggers commentaries at Local Matters.

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