Opinion - Generation Media

Jonathan Chambers - Director of AV Investment, Generation Media. Tel: 0207 307 7906 Jonathan.Chambers@generationmedia.co.uk

Your type of viewer on paper?

This month, Jonathan looks at some different options that could be used to target kids and those all-important co-viewing occasions with parents.

Peppa Pig or Love Island? If you want to reach a five-year-old on TV, which would you choose? Content alone dictates that the correct answer is of course Peppa, quite apart from the huge cost implications of prime time ITV2. However, it may surprise you to learn that, on average, Love Island has a larger audience of 4-6 year olds than everyone’s favourite pig.

According to BARB data, this year’s opening episode of Love Island was viewed by 200,000 children aged between 4-15. Of these, almost a quarter (48,000) were aged between 4-6 (shockingly this was higher than the 7-12 year old viewership of 41,000). On the same day (28th June), the top performing episode of Peppa Pig achieved a 4-6 audience of 47,000. This of course doesn’t take into account the frequency at which Peppa is shown – layer this into the equation and Peppa Pig is actually the third most viewed show on UK TV (behind Coronation Street and Emmerdale).

What the above example does serve to demonstrate is the fact that children’s linear viewing habits are not limited to traditional children’s channels, especially when aiming for those allimportant co-viewing occasions with parents. And whilst Love Island will be inappropriate for many, for a whole host of reasons, there are many opportunities in market that brands should pay attention to this Q4.

Live sport for example can be a powerful vehicle for reaching children’s audiences and their parents, stereotypically and statistically boys and their dads. Take a look at the impact on search performance following a single spot prior to the England vs. Scotland game during Euro 2020. This is something we activated for a high-profile entertainment brand in the children’s space:

Opportunities like this don’t come around very often of course, and the likely six figure price tag for the spot reflects this. However, spots in Premier League football are becoming more affordable as broadcast rights continue to proliferate. Sky Sports and BT Sport games can now be accessed for less than £10k (dependent on the fixture), and don’t forget Amazon’s offering on Prime which is fully commercial.

But maybe football isn’t right for your brand and audience. What else is there in market? During the past few years, we have found great success as an agency in deploying linear budgets in family movies and dual viewing content across the ITV and Channel 4 portfolios. Classics such as You’ve Been Framed and Nanny McPhee still draw in relatively high audiences amongst both children and their parents. Reaching this dual audience has a higher potential to stimulate conversation and increase search activity for your brand – so make sure your PPC activity is switched on. For example, one of the top performing episodes of You’ve Been Framed during November 2020 amassed an audience of 43,000 children aged 4-9. At the same time, 38,000 housekeepers with children were watching.

With You’ve Been Framed appearing on ITV2 however, it may still preclude some advertisers (although short term deals should make this affordable for all), so why not turn to another family favourite on Sky? Friends has seen a huge resurgence in interest during 2021 thanks in no small part to the Reunion which was watched by an incredible 741,000 housekeepers with children when first broadcast on Sky1 (over 10% of this demographic). An ever-present on the Channel Five and Comedy Central schedules, strategically placed spots during afternoon episodes can still attract strong dual audiences. One of the top performing episodes during June of this year achieved an audience of 39,000 children aged 4-9 (of which 59% were female), with a further 34,000 housekeepers with children viewing at the same time. Spots like this do still come at a slight premium versus children’s channels (although only just when accessed on a short-term basis), but the value they hold in communicating to both key audiences at the same time (in an environment where both are engaged) arguably justifies this.

As children’s viewing habits, and those of their parents, continue to evolve across not only different channels but also across platforms, it’s important to constantly re-evaluate your media mix and be prepared to invest in new areas to maximise reach and engagement. The given examples should not be considered as an alternative to a strong linear campaign on children’s channels or across the increasingly cost effect YouTube. However, at the right budget level they can be very valuable additions which could make the difference in an increasingly competitive marketplace. Our team of experts, backed by proprietary planning optimisation tools The Media Aggregator and Jigsaw, are ready to provide you with the perfect balance for your brief.