Advertising breaks as attention shifts

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I was recently asked to name my favourite TV advert of the moment. A few years ago this would have been easy to answer. But I realised I could not immediately think of one.

By Guy Cookson, marketing director, Hotfoot Design.

In part this is because my viewing habits - along with millions of others - have drastically changed.

Rather than checking the TV schedules and watching programmes by appointment I now stream shows on Netflix, Amazon Prime and BBC iPlayer.

And on the occasion that I do watch broadcast TV, and an ad break comes on, the small screen in my pocket is way more likely to capture my attention than the large one in the corner of my room.

It was not always like this.

There was time when TV ads were memes. People quoted them in everyday conversation - often ironically. They worked as a cultural currency because everybody saw the same ads.

My two young sons rarely watch anything on live TV either. And as a result, they hardly ever see traditional commercial breaks.

Not that it matters, however, as the TV shows they most like to watch on-demand are co-produced by the Lego Group and feature Lego toys as the lead characters. Brands have discovered they cannot rely on buying our attention. Now they have to earn it - and that is the kind of challenge we relish.