Guide

How to Advertise on TV: A Guide for Businesses

TV advertising lets businesses reach viewers on local broadcast, cable, and streaming TV. A typical campaign moves through five steps: set goals, choose markets and budget, review a media proposal, create the commercial, and measure results.

Want to advertise your business on television but aren't sure where to start? PRIMEDIA Network makes it easier to plan, produce, and place TV commercials that reach your target audience.

Whether you want to reach customers in a single city, expand into multiple markets, or build a nationwide advertising campaign, we help you explore television advertising options that fit your business goals and budget.

From media planning and commercial production to ad placement and performance tracking, PRIMEDIA Network brings the pieces together so you can focus on growing your business.

Why Advertise Your Business on TV?

Television advertising allows businesses to introduce their products and services to audiences through sight, sound, and motion. A well-planned TV commercial can build brand awareness, communicate what makes your business different, and encourage potential customers to take action.

TV advertising can help businesses:

Build brand awareness: introduce your company to new audiences in your target markets.

Reach new geographic markets: advertise in selected cities, regions, or markets across the United States.

Generate leads: encourage viewers to call, visit your website, request an estimate, or schedule an appointment.

Support other marketing channels: reinforce your digital campaigns, direct marketing, and other advertising efforts.

Promote products and services: demonstrate what you offer through professional video and messaging.

The right approach depends on your audience, business objectives, geographic reach, and available advertising budget.

What Are Your TV Advertising Options?

Not all television advertising works the same way. The best option depends on whom you want to reach, where those viewers are located, and how you want your message delivered.

Local Broadcast TV Advertising

Local broadcast TV advertising places your commercial on local television stations, including participating ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, and other network-affiliated stations.

It can be a strong option for businesses that want to reach audiences in specific cities or expand into multiple markets. Broadcast campaigns can also help regional and national advertisers reach viewers through local stations across the country.

PRIMEDIA Network provides access to a nationwide network of local television stations, helping advertisers explore placements across multiple markets.

Cable TV Advertising

Cable TV advertising allows businesses to place commercials on participating cable networks and reach audiences through programming categories such as news, sports, entertainment, food, and lifestyle.

Cable campaigns can be useful when you want to target selected markets, television networks, or advertising time periods.

PRIMEDIA Network helps businesses explore cable advertising opportunities through its media buying services.

Streaming TV and Connected TV Advertising

Streaming TV advertising reaches viewers watching television content through internet-connected services and devices. Connected TV (CTV) generally refers to advertising delivered on television screens through connected devices, while over-the-top (OTT) describes video content delivered over the internet outside traditional cable or satellite television distribution.

These campaigns can offer different targeting options, including geographic and audience-based targeting, depending on the platform and available inventory.

PRIMEDIA Network also offers streaming TV and CTV/OTT advertising options for businesses looking to reach audiences beyond traditional broadcast and cable.

Which Type of TV Advertising Is Right for Your Business?

There is no single best option for every advertiser. A local service business may prioritize selected broadcast markets, while a national brand may combine multiple markets, cable networks, and streaming platforms.

PRIMEDIA Network can help you compare available options and develop a media plan around your goals, audience, and budget.

How to Advertise on TV in 5 Steps

Getting your business on television doesn't have to be complicated. With the right media partner, the process can be organized into five straightforward steps.

1. Define Your Advertising Goals

Start by identifying what you want your TV campaign to accomplish.

Are you trying to generate phone calls, attract customers to a store, increase website traffic, promote a specific service, or build broader brand awareness?

Your objectives help determine the appropriate advertising channels, geographic markets, messaging, and measurement strategy.

2. Establish Your Budget and Target Markets

Decide how much you want to invest and where you want your commercial to run.

You might target a single metropolitan area, several cities or states, or a broader nationwide audience. Your budget, market selection, station availability, audience, and scheduling requirements all influence the campaign plan.

You don't need to know every detail before getting started. PRIMEDIA Network can help you explore available options and build a proposal around your requirements.

3. Review Your Custom Media Proposal

Your media plan should outline the recommended advertising opportunities, target markets, proposed placements, schedule, and associated costs.

Review the proposal to understand how your budget will be allocated and how the plan supports your objectives. Ask questions about expected reach, frequency, timing, and how campaign results will be measured.

PRIMEDIA Network prepares customized advertising proposals to help businesses evaluate their options before committing to a campaign.

4. Create Your TV Commercial

Once the campaign approach is established, you'll need a commercial that communicates your message clearly and gives viewers a reason to respond.

Depending on your needs, production may include: concept development and scriptwriting, professional voiceovers, stock footage and other visual assets, editing and commercial assembly, calls to action with website URLs and toll-free phone numbers, and QR codes or other response elements where appropriate.

PRIMEDIA Network offers TV commercial production services, helping businesses develop advertising creative without having to manage every production detail themselves. Ask about the production services included with your proposed campaign.

5. Launch Your Campaign and Measure Results

After the commercial and media schedule are approved, your ads can be scheduled to air according to the campaign plan.

Measurement should reflect your original objectives. Depending on your campaign setup, useful indicators may include phone calls, website visits, inquiries, leads, appointments, and conversions.

Dedicated phone numbers, tracked landing pages, web analytics, and other attribution methods can help you understand how advertising contributes to business results. PRIMEDIA Network offers campaign tracking and reporting services to help advertisers evaluate media performance.

How Much Does TV Advertising Cost?

The cost of advertising on TV varies depending on where your commercial airs, which stations or networks you choose, the time periods you target, how frequently your ad runs, and the size of your campaign.

There is no universal price for a TV advertising campaign. A campaign targeting one local market will have different requirements from one covering multiple metropolitan areas or a nationwide audience.

Several factors affect the cost of TV advertising: geographic coverage, station and network selection, commercial frequency, scheduling, production requirements, and campaign duration.

The most useful way to understand your options is to request a proposal based on your specific goals and budget. PRIMEDIA Network provides customized media proposals with no obligation to move forward. You can review the available opportunities and costs before deciding whether a campaign makes sense for your business.

Can Small Businesses Afford TV Advertising?

TV advertising isn't limited to large national brands. Small and midsize businesses may be able to use television when their campaigns are planned around appropriate markets, schedules, and budgets.

For example, a home improvement company may focus on selected local markets, while a medical practice may prioritize its service area. A retailer might use TV to promote a seasonal offer, and a growing company could expand into additional markets as its needs change.

The important thing is to evaluate the available inventory, campaign costs, and potential business value rather than assume television is automatically too expensive. PRIMEDIA Network helps businesses explore advertising options based on their goals and budget. Request a custom proposal to find out which opportunities may be appropriate for your company.

Why Choose PRIMEDIA Network for TV Advertising?

PRIMEDIA Network helps businesses navigate television advertising by bringing media buying, commercial production, and campaign support together through one provider.

Nationwide advertising access: explore opportunities across local broadcast television markets throughout the United States, along with cable and streaming advertising options.

Media planning and buying support: get help identifying advertising opportunities, comparing placements, and building a schedule around your target markets and objectives.

TV commercial production: develop a commercial using your existing content or production resources available through PRIMEDIA Network. Ask about the creative and production services included in your proposal.

Multiple advertising channels: consider broadcast TV, cable, streaming TV, and connected TV opportunities to support different campaign objectives.

Campaign tracking and reporting: where supported by your campaign setup, use tracking and reporting tools to evaluate responses, leads, and other performance indicators.

A more straightforward buying process: work with one team to explore media options, review a proposed schedule, and coordinate the next steps.

Frequently Asked Questions