Advertisers are failing to exploit the full potential of multiscreening in Central and Eastern Europe’s largest markets.
In its regional MEC Multiscreen Study, the media agency MEC says that although the lion’s share of internet users in these markets connect to the web while watching TV, many from mobile devices, advertisers are aware of the trend but only some continue interaction with their audience on another screen.
In the Czech Republic, 50% of advertisers who encourage visits to their websites in TV commercials do not have a mobile website. In Russia, this aspect is neglected by 41%, while the figures in Hungary (24%) and Poland (20%) are lower and therefore more encouraging.
Commenting on the results of the study, Anna Lubowska, MEC chairman of CEE, Russia, Ukraine, CIS, said: “Television and the Internet in the markets covered by the study account for 60% (Hungary) to nearly 80% (Poland and Romania) of the advertisers’ media budgets. Therefore, a hefty portion of their return on investment in advertising depends on how effectively those media are used in campaigns. The multiscreening phenomenon, which has changed and enriched the way we watch television over the recent years, is clearly underrated in the strategies of advertisers in the region”.
Other results of the study explain the reasons why the multiscreening trend should be embraced in the strategies for TV and online presence. The percentage of online users who happen to search the web for information about the brands advertised on TV ranges from 40% (Hungary) up to 77 % (the Czech Republic and Romania). In Russia and Poland the totals are 74% and 58% respectively.
It is during commercial breaks that audiences are more likely to go online than while programmes are aired, which adds to the potential for advertisers to attract viewers’ attention.
