Apologies, firstly, because I can’t do much in terms of searching (bad connection where I’m at), but how much is a commercial these days, on a major network ABC, CBS, NBC, and I guess Fox? I’m talking weekend commercial, about 2 mins. I’m exploring different advertisement options for a company I just opened, and I have two production companies quotiing me different prices. Any ideas?
Have you tried contacting the companies concerned?
Do you need the advertising to be nationwide, or targeted at local audiences? Because your cable company can provide advertising on cable channels that can be limited to individual cities and locations.
A 30-second network spot starts at around $250,000 and up, and costs significantly more depending on the ratings for the particular program. Prime-time spots are usually not sold in lengths longer than 30 seconds but I’m sure exceptions can be made if you’ve got the bucks.
Two minute advertisements are almost always local affiliate (or cable) spots, sold on a per-station basis outside of prime-time. The prices can vary quite considerably depending on the time of day and the power of that particular station (or size of the cable company).
Actually, a friend of mine who knows far more about this business than I do says that on low-rated prime-time shows, 30 seconds can be had for around $120,000. What a bargain!
friedo, thanks for the input, that’s exactly what I was looking for. The two production companies wouldn’t tell my how much actual air time was, just what the final bill was, an “all-in” price. I didn’t start the negotiations, as I was on a business trip. One company had something pretty aggressive, scaled up to two minutes (I’m not sure if this was one spot (and now that I think about it, it’s pretty long), or a sequence of spots or what. All I reviewed was the agreement and the bill, but I didn’t really talk to anyone yet. $120k does seem like a bargain for what these guys are charging.
When you refer to “production company”, do you mean the people who will actually create the commercial? Because their rates will be different (possibly more expensive) than having the finished commercial in hand and giving it to the broadcast companies. The production company and the broadcast company (i.e., the network) are completely different entities.
Yes, and he’s also looking at two separate expenses - producing the spot, then purchasing the time to air it.
I’m going to link to a thread that HelloNinja and I started a few months ago.
The answer is, it depends. It depends on if you want to buy a specific show or just run during a certain time of day. It depends on if you want to buy broadcast or cable. If you spend a lot of money, you’ll get a break on the rate for an individual spot.
Don’t get the quotes from a production company. Go directly to the source, the broadcast outlet. If you want to run a 2:00 spot, I’m assuming you have some sort of direct response commercial, with an 800 number right on the screen? Those rates are lower, but they will be a lower priority than a regular commercial unit.