What is DRTV?

December 23, 2013

Direct Response Television (DRTV) refers to timed commercials in intervals of one to two minutes or half-hour paid-programming created for TV where viewers of the program are promoted to place orders during the playing advertisement along with a toll-free number or web address sale.

Such formatted programming is different from commercials which primary objective is to increase brand exposure. Commercials can also be formatted to create leads, and can also be considered DRTV as they can be tracked directly to measure their response on the viewers.

There are two different types of DRTV:
 long form and short form

Short form media ranges between 00:30 seconds and 1:00 – 2:00 minutes, long form media can be about 30 minutes long.

Long Form – 30 minutes   |   Short Form – 1:00 – 2:00 minutes

Will DRTV work for my brand? 

DRTV campaigns have had positive results with media designed to integrate the television message alongside other campaigns. DRTV campaigns that mix brand with response objectives tend to result in weaker campaigns. An advertisement should have a specific direction –  either direct response or brand building – advertisements with unclear messages tend to fail to achieve their objectives.

Your advertisement needs a primary objective; response or brand building.

Direct Response Marketing Benefits

DRTV has the quickest potential to introduce a new product onto a audience on a large scale via TV or radio.

With a direct response from a potential customer base, your ad can be improved and changed based on the feedback received – both long and short form media provides a detailed look into the effectiveness of your advertisement. As the effectiveness of your DRTV campaign grows, so does your customer base who will continue to purchse your products or services after the initial marketing release.

Which products or services are best suited for DRTV?

DRTV advertising is well suited towards products and services that tend to demonstrate products that improve the quality of life in the following categories: fitness, personal care, health, cosmetics, supplements and house-ware.

These categories have demonstrated the most successful results, and it should also be noted that many break-though products have had incredible overnight success due to a DRTV infomercial agency choosing direct response as the primary medium for advertising for products outside the scope of the above listed categories.

  • Fitness
  • Personal care
  • Health
  • Cosmetics
  • Supplements
  • House-ware
  • Finance
  • Business
  • Educational
  • Personal improvement

What is Direct Response Marketing & Advertising Video Guide

Which Direct Response Radio Products advertise the best?
  1. Financial Services loans, insurance, debt consolidation offerings, brokerage product offerings
  2. Intellectual Property or informational products wealth building, parenting, fitness, anxiety/stress reduction, weight loss
  3. Nutritional Supplements solution specific products targeted at any of the various top health concerns
  4. Beauty skin,  air, teeth, weight
  5. Fitness promotions for various home fitness products and routines
  6. Seminars promoting an upcoming seminar in specific markets
  7. Hard goods computers, radar detectors, other new or specialized productions
  8. Retail