Giving Channel 4 insight on how best to plan broadcast and VOD promotional campaigns to maximise return on airtime

Channel 4 is a free-to-air channel available to all the UK. It is home to a best-in-class streaming service, six channels and a thriving audience on social platforms.  Since Channel 4 was created in 1982, it has been at the centre of national conversations and a catalyst for the creation of a world-beating production sector in the UK.  Channel 4’s purpose is to create change through entertainment. They do this by representing unheard voices, challenging with purpose and reinventing entertainment.

Challenge

Channel 4 need to understand where and how to plan portfolio and VOD promotional campaigns to maximise return on airtime.

Solution

Market proliferation has led to an ever-squeezed schedule.  TRP’s reporting provides both a granular (campaign level) and topline (portfolio and network level) view of campaign performance. This allows Channel 4 to understand and quickly adapt to changes in the media environment and viewing behaviours, thus planning and promoting campaigns using the best possible media strategy.

Decisions made based on our reporting include:

• length and weight of campaign required to support a new launch
• number of campaigns or content supported per week
• use of cross promotional strategies
• optimal length of promotional spot

Since 2003 we have supplied Channel 4 with rigorous data reporting for on-air promotional campaigns. Using our in-house databases, we examine multiple campaigns to create campaign performance metrics.  We supplement Barb programme data with our own metadata identifying Channel 4 portfolio series and episode number. This allows us to identify the unique content promoted by a campaign, rather than simply using the generic title.

Over many years of working with Channel 4 we have built up a catalogue of performance criteria and benchmarks with which to measure campaigns. Our service has evolved as we continually look for new ways to assess and measure performance. In recent years this has included assessing campaign uplift, viewers actively influenced by a campaign rather than heavier viewers who may potentially have watched anyway, and the impact of VOD campaigns in directing viewers to non-linear content.

Our bespoke in-house broadcast recording system monitors 60+ channels every day of the year. Our metadata team uses these recordings to supply independent promotional campaign logs to Channel 4 for several competitor channels.  Channel 4 uses promo clips and logs to keep up to date on other campaigns and content launches, which allows them to assess campaign performance in a like-for-like way.

Alongside the delivery of regular promotional reporting and logging, TRP provides bespoke deep-dive analysis to help optimise campaign performance. One recent study examined the time taken for viewers to convert to streaming content following their most recent exposure to an on-air promotion. At an individual campaign level, we analysed conversion windows of within 15 minutes, one hour, one day and one week of the last promo viewed. This enabled Channel 4 to assess whether promo positioning within the break, such as centre-break versus end-break placement, positively or negatively influenced non-linear viewing conversion.

In another project, Channel 4 sought to understand the impact of using multiple creative messages within a campaign. TRP identified viewers exposed to a single campaign message compared with those who had seen multiple creative executions and measured the effect on conversion efficiency. Through a series of campaign case studies, we identified the optimal point at which new creative messages could be introduced to maintain audience engagement without diluting the overall campaign proposition. The analysis also highlighted the campaign types most likely to benefit from a multi-message strategy.

The insight and analysis provided by TRP equips Channel 4’s planning team with a deeper understanding of promotional effectiveness, enabling more informed decision-making and helping to attract, engage and retain audiences across the network.