At the 70th anniversary of broadcast ads, TV is still the jewel in the crown – but marketers need to keep a firm grip on ROI.
TV is still the most impactful ad channel
TV advertising is officially 70 years old, with the anniversary of the launch of ITV being marked this week. The inauguration of Britain’s first commercially funded TV channel came right at the start of the baby boom, ushering in the mass market (and mass reach) era. And new data from Kantar’s Media Reactions 2025 reveals that broadcast TV is still marketers’ most trusted ad channel today, with 55% saying ads on TV are trustworthy.
But we’d been led to believe that TV was on its way out – no one watches linear programming any more, right? And despite developments in gen AI, high production costs mean TV ads take up a disproportionate share of the budget, making them an obvious place to look for savings when times are tough. Our new research shows that a net 26% of marketers plan to decrease their spend on linear TV next year, but that’s offset by a net 54% of marketers planning to invest more in TV streaming, and 19% spending more on product placement on TV and online video.
We are also seeing compelling examples of marketers ripping up the playbook. At Cannes Lions, Desperados won multiple gongs for its ‘Latin Vibe’ campaign, which had a music track at its heart, rather than a traditional TV spot. It was a great showcase of how to rethink the traditional model and connect with GenZ consumers – many of whom don’t watch linear TV from one week to the next.
So, why are marketers still enamored with the gogglebox?
It’s not just habit, or indeed the ego boost of seeing their campaign in the Corrie ad-break. TV is still the most impactful ad channel. When we look at campaign outcomes, TV drives the most awareness, brand associations and motivation to buy the product. But – and it’s a big but – when you cross-reference that against investment, marketers are spending more on TV proportionately than they are getting back.
So, if you’re looking to get the most out of your TV spot, here’s three watchouts:
Watch closely campaign impact by channel and ROI – it is likely that some channels are overperforming relative to spend. Overall, we see that TV delivers huge impact but takes up more than its fair share of investment. Other channels like point of sale deliver disproportionate returns. It’s important to constantly rebalance the media mix to make it as sure it is as efficient as possible.
Media Reactions also shows that with the fragmentation of media, marketers are increasingly concerned about how integrated their campaigns are. Almost 9 in 10 (89%) said their campaigns were well integrated in 2019 but that’s now dropped to 67%. Integrated means that the assets are coherent, and recognizably part of the same campaign. We know that 45% of brand impact comes from synergy effects – up from 18% ten years ago. So, it’s more important than ever to get the campaign connections right.
We also found in Media Reactions that marketers are conflicted when it comes to measuring the ROI of their media investments. A total of 82% say that a mix of long-term brand and short-term (sales) measurement is the right combination. But, in actuality, only 68% measure both. To understand the full impact of any media channel, you need to have a holistic view.
The TV industry is very good at managing change. Having been involved in the switchover to digital TV back in 2012, I know that the broadcasters compete where needed, and coordinate where necessary.
Looking ahead, if the industry moves to an IP-only future, there will be more talk of a Shakespearean-level existential crisis. Ad infrastructure will need to evolve further, and the definition of broadcast v streaming will become even more blurred. In the future, marketers will need to stay nimble to measure and understand its effectiveness, irrespective of device, delivery or format.
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