Advertising Industry Needs to Change to Meet Reality

Sharpe Partners Owner Kathy Sharpe brings the hammer down once again on the heads of clueless media executives who insist the television model of today and the method by which it is measured and says face reality. No, not reality TV but the reality of TV. Viewership is down. Executives are blaming Nielsen methodologies blind to the truth that viewers are simply not there anymore. They've left the couch for the chair - the chair in front of the computer. And if they are watching TV, that are watching it own their on schedule using TiVo.

Handing media control over to consumers is actually a good thing. When people are slaves to other's schedules rather than their own, they are less likely to be happy about it. If consumers can control and schedule how they consume media, it can be reasoned that they will be more attentive to what they actually do consume.

Marketers must create content that compel consumers to seek it out and experience it on their own terms rather than having it shoved down their throats in 30 second intervals. Refusing to recognize this sea change of behavior will do no good to media companies trying to preserve their business models. Go where the money is. Don't force the money to come to you.