Top tips to getting DRTV right

It is estimated that more than a quarter of all UK television commercials now carry a “direct response” call to action, whether it is to call, text or visit the advertiser’s website. But there’s more to a successful DRTV campaign than meets the eye. In its recent white paper, DRTV Advertising: Everything You Need to Know, the DRTV Centre’s David Pearson outlines his top ten tips for making direct response TV a success medium for your business. Among them:

Have a clear proposition
DRTV isn’t a place for teaser ads, you need to emphasise what you’re selling and explain all the benefits as concisely as possible. The ad needs to work so that a viewer who is a complete stranger to your product understands what it does and what’s in it for him. According to David Pearson, “the more you tell, the more you sell”. Keep underlining your selling points, you are seeking an instant response, after all.

Repeat the call to action
If possible use a freephone telephone number to encourage immediate orders.  You may want to encourage viewers to text their request for more information, or to visit your website to place their order, so remember to reiterate your text number and website URL to make it memorable. The more times you repeat your telephone number or URL there more likely it is to stick in the viewer’s mind.

Be prepared for the response
Pearson writes that about half of the response to each individual TV spot will be received within five minutes of the commercial airing on TV. Eighty percent will be received within 15 minutes. Between spots, “the phones will be just about dead”. Clearly, you need to have in place a response handling system that can cope with such a spike in demand. Pearson recommends using an outsourced service provider at peak times as its operatives are trained to handle large volumes of calls. The principle applies to your website too—ensure your site has the ability to cope with unprecedented levels of traffic.

Test
Like any form of direct marketing, the golden rule is to test. Unlike brand advertising, DRTV is accurately accountable and most variables are measurable says Pearson, so be sure to test your ad on a low-cost small-audience spots before fully rolling out your campaign.