Expanding Our Messages

We spend a lot of time talking about the creative process that leads to the fabulous public service advertising campaigns our agency volunteers produce.  But the best creative in the world can’t create social change if the target audience doesn’t see or hear it.  Countless times I’m contacted by people who have created a PSA and can’t understand why they can’t get media companies to give them time and space to run it.

Media public service directors are bombarded with literally hundreds of requests for free media.  In our survey of TV PSA directors they report receiving an average of 100 tapes a month from organizations asking for donated media.  Adding to the competition for this precious inventory are the media outlet’s own branded public service messages, such as NBC’s The More You Know, as well as an increase in promotional ads.

It’s remarkable that the Ad Council is able to generate over $1.8 billion a year in support of our campaigns.  At a time when pressure on non commercial inventory has never been higher we have experienced an amazing 40% increase from 2003 to 2005.  Our campaigns earn over $35 million on average from television, radio, outdoor, print and the internet.

This doesn’t happen by accident.  It’s true that media companies see the Ad Council logo as something of a “Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval”.  And with every new campaign, we package and distribute the work to 28,000 media outlets.  But the reality is that our media department puts a tremendous amount of effort into securing donated media.  Over the past three years we have begun three initiatives that have driven the increases we have seen.  The first is that we have begun asking major media companies for an upfront commitment of donated media – and this year these commitments will reach $600 million or about a third of our total.  The second is utilizing technology to promote and deliver our work to media supporters – from email marketing to offering shopping cart technology to PSA directors ordering our work online.  The third strategy has been placing full time executives in the top ten markets across the country to call on local media outlets.

Our campaigns are fortunate – some would even say lucky – to have the media support they enjoy.  But as my father used to say, “The harder I work, the luckier I get.”