Impact of COVID-19 on TV market laid bare

TV advertising volume fell 5% as the coronavirus outbreak took hold in Australia, according to a new study of almost 16 million ads served on Australian TV between September 2019 and December 2020.

Monitored by media analytics firm Adgile with analysis by WARC, the findings are included in WARC’s latest Global Ad Trends report.

Key findings

• The travel & tourism and media sectors were most severely affected, although ad volume in the health & beauty sector jumped 47.2% from pre-COVID levels.
• TV ad campaigns ran for longer as production was curbed. For example, FMCG TV campaigns are now over a week longer than was the case before the outbreak.
• FMCG advertisers were also quick to launch new products, with 15.4% of all advertising creative within the sector focused on a new product, compared to just 2% before the outbreak.
• Retailers, usually promoters of value and sales-led advertising creative, pivoted to brand-building messaging during COVID-19. Some other sectors also shifted to brand-led advertising during the outbreak, although more product-led creative emerged as the crisis eased over the summer.

Key quote

“Adgile’s unique first-party brand content data, combined with WARC’s insightful analysis and reporting, revealed a TV landscape in Australia that changed significantly in composition during 2020. But the impact of COVID on TV may well be felt long-beyond this period – in reframing expectations for greater flexibility of planning and buying, and the requirement for more accessible data that enables real-time measurement and effectiveness” – Paul Evans, CEO of Adgile.