Digital vs. TV — what’s best for your brand? (Hint: It’s both!)

Today, in the United States, we can all agree that we’re spending more time with media — no matter when, where, or on what device. We’re frequently consuming content, and that content is constantly influencing us. It’s the way we live —- connected online and continuously plugged in. 

Time spent with digital media surpassed that spent with traditional media in 2018. Fast forward to 2023, and the projected numbers are astonishing — 500+ minutes with digital media per day for the average adult. 

Digital advertising is a massive industry. The United States is the largest digital advertising market worldwide. Pre-pandemic digital ad spending in the United States was around $153 billion, including all forms of digital advertising. We saw that rise to $176 billion in 2020, $240 billion in 2021, and an astonishing $280 billion projected by the end of this year. 

However —- before you start counting TV out — we’re also spending nearly 300 minutes daily with traditional media. We’re seeing predictions that the number of TV households worldwide will continue to increase year-over-year — with a forecast of 1.81 billion homes in 2026! 

What’s great is that there’s much overlap between time spent online and time spent with television. TV on, phone in hand. We are streaming our favorite shows while also working on our tablets. That’s double the potential to reach your target audience and reinforce your campaign message. (Sometimes triple if you’re like me and tend to work, watch TV, and get distracted by your phone simultaneously — whoops). 

We shop unintentionally through social media ads, retargeted ads from our abandoned online shopping carts, and TV commercials while watching our favorite shows. Brand messaging and the opportunity to influence a consumer come in multiple formats on multiple devices. Most consumers are consuming media on all of them. 

Any company or brand can capitalize on the increased exposure and flexibility of multiscreen campaigns. The value of TV and digital together has never been more apparent. We all have (and love) options — the entire world is connected and ready to consume. With television, OTT/CTV, digital solutions, and mobile solutions, a4 is here to connect your brand with the world on every screen.