TV advertising in Iran has had an enormous budget increase during the past 2 years, and yet, conversely, TV viewing considerably has decreased in the same time. In the past years, TV was almost the sole platform of media in Iran you could have to target a massive market during golden hours – but now, people aren’t watching as much TV as before in Iran.
There are a few reasons for this change. First, a study found that nearly half of Millennials are no longer watching video content on traditional TV in Iran. Instead, young people prefer to see content on online streaming platforms like Filimo, Namava, and Rubica which have been taking over the viewing space.
Data indicate that, on average, young people consume 30 hours of video content on digital streaming platforms per week. This is pretty difficult to reach this generation through traditional TV advertising in Iran. Moreover, watch regular TV in Iran, they aren’t only engaged in the show — for example, on commercial breaks they mostly pick their phones or other devices, so they might not remember or even watch TV advertising in Iran at all. According to studies, if this behavior continues, by 2023 viewing hours could be less than half what they were in 2010, and cut in half again by the year 2028.
The Growth of Digital Advertising
In contrast, online streaming platforms have been facing huge development. For instance, Filimo has increased its users and viewership very quickly. Besides, the digital advertising budget is getting pretty close to TV advertising in Iran. It’s also prevented that by 2023, digital advertising in Iran will exceed two-thirds of total media spending.
Following is four reasons that digital advertising spending is surpassing TV advertising in Iran:
1. Affordable Price
The difference in costs between TV advertising in Iran and digital marketing methods is incredible. A short TV advertising in Iran that may or may not influence your target audience will cost you a fortune plus setup costs. On the contrary, you can hire experts to conduct SEO and possibly invest in SEO products while SEO itself is free. It also can help you organically reach your target audience over a long period of time. You may also enjoy PPC and email marketing in a very cheap set-up, and they only cost anywhere from a few cents per click to a few dollars.
2. Easier Segmentation
Traditional TV advertising in Iran is a platform that gives you the option to broadcast to anyone who turns on the channel. If you have a specific target audience to whom your product or service is appealing, you have to guess what sort of TV programming could appeal to your ideal audience. It’s nearly impossible to apply or collect any audience-specific analytics.
On the other hand, digital media platforms are able to collect personal data on a more individual level, giving you the opportunity for highly greater personalization. Imagine you are searching for a “red Salian jacket?” Well, my company has that product, and we have designed and applied the right filter to catch your search term on Google instantly. Even if you don’t buy the jacket today, that’s okay, we can take advantage of the technology of retargeting to show you a digital ad on your social networks about our red Salian jacket and remind you of your interest in the future.
3. Digital marketing is more agile
Digital media advertising methods enable you to any time track, measure, and make changes needed to enhance your ads. Everything from correcting a few words, adjusting a color, or changing a filter can be done quickly, and economically. Every modification you apply to your digital marketing campaigns or the Farsi content can be made measurable by pursuing CTRs and conversion rates to recognize exactly where something needs to be tweaked, and how you’ll see if you made the right choice.
TV advertising in Iran, in contrast, needs time to see if they work out efficiently. They also can’t be accustomed easily or cheaply. You only should produce multiple versions for the same advertisement to air in different requirements, but in addition to that, it’s expensive to make changes and adjustments.
4. Now Video Advertisements Are Online Too
Ultimately, experts in digital advertisement had to find a solution. Gradually, they started to regulate more versatile methods by images, images in slide decks, and video. Iranian people are already increasingly moving toward the internet. And now Farsi content is their preferred method of entertainment in the digital world. Digital video ads are a prevailing danger to Radio and TV advertising in Iran because it’s ultimately a familiar type of storytelling that everyone expected on TV, and digital platforms are preferred by consumers. Moreover, the satellite is also another great threat to official TV advertising in Iran.
Why Is TV Still an Important Player?
It looks like the online and digital media seems to be conquering TV advertising in Iran, but apparently, it’s not or, at least not entirely. Researches indicate that people pay more attention to ads on TV than they do on Filimo, Namava, or Rubica. Ultimately, TV advertising in Iran still works. It’s often effective to diversify the channels on which you promote your products or services, and TV is one of those channels. Therefore, even when digital media may be conquering TV advertising in Iran, it likely won’t go entirely by the wayside.
All in all, we are saying it again, where attention shifts, advertising follows. Even though research suggesting things aren’t as terrible for TV advertising in Iran as you might think, the numbers clearly show that more audiences and consumers are shifting toward watching Farsi content online and/or on satellite. This is to say that, as marketers, you have to be dedicating more of your costs to where your target audience is. TV advertising in Iran doesn’t have to be canceled entirely, and probably shouldn’t be, because the existence of a brand on IRIB (official TV broadcasting in Iran) is still valuable and helps brands to position themselves the best. Because of restricted rules and regulations of IRIB, Farsi-speaking audiences still trust TV advertising in Iran more than digital or satellite. To recap, finding the precise combination of digital and TV is highly critical for finding success in this new age of online-first viewing.
Zigma8 advertising agency as one of the well-known creative agencies in Iran, is there to lead you through your advertising campaigns in Iran, and is there to suggest you the most efficient methods in order to get the best results. You can get in touch with us at our contact.
