Hold Tight! Digital’s Wild Ride into the Future Continues
It’s already a given among most local media sales teams that they are selling their traditional medium as well as the digital medium. Initially, the focus was adding the local medium’s digital channel (Website, social media, etc.) to the sales mix. Digital’s influence on retail sales has increased so much so quickly, however, that your ability to advise your prospects and clients must encompass all digital channels.
For example, a new Forrester report published during early January forecasted digital will impact 58% of all retail sales by 2023, whether they occur online or in-store. During 2018, digital influenced 36% of the estimated total retail sales of $3.7 trillion, and mobile smartphones were a major player, influencing 31% of all retail sales, or $1.1 trillion.
At an even earlier date, 2022, smartphones will be involved in approximately 90% of all digitally influenced sales. Online marketplaces, with Amazon the most well-known, are also a specific, substantial influence, with Forrester estimating their 2018 influence on all offline retail sales at $393 billion.
It has become apparent that more and more consumers don’t distinguish the source of their shopping. It’s not in-store or online, it’s just shopping. Online marketplaces are where an increasing number of consumers find products and research them before buying via any purchase channel.
Now, another digital shopping technology is predicted to increase significantly during 2019, or T-commerce: the shopping and purchase of products via an active connected TV device, most commonly a smart TV – and they’re present in 74% of US households.
It’s not just an opportunity for consumers watching TV to shop and make purchases with their remote control, but also interactive and addressable advertising opportunities for your station and your prospects and clients. T-commerce will only become more viable and attractive as 5G technology starts to spread.
Local advertisers who start to promote T-commerce purchases in their TV commercials and the stations who offer the technology will have a clear advantage over other stations and other local media. Now’s the time to prepare yourself and your prospects and clients to ride towards that future.
