Infomercial

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Infomercials are television commercials that run as long as a typical television program. Infomercials, also known as paid programming (or teleshopping in Europe), are normally shown outside of peak hours, such as daytime or late night/early morning (usually 2:00 a.m. to 6:00 a.m.). Some television stations have undertaken to air such programming as an alternative to the former practice of sign-off.

While the term "infomercial" was originally applied only to television advertising, it is now sometimes used to refer to any presentation (often on video) which presents a significant amount of information in an actual, or perceived, attempt to persuade to a point of view. Often, it is unclear whether the actual presentation fits this definition because the term is used hoping to dis-credit the presentation. In this way, political speeches may be derogatorily referred to as "infomercials" for a specific point of view.

Contents

[edit] Format

The word "infomercial" is a portmanteau of the words "information" and "commercial". As in any other form of advertisement, the content is a commercial message designed to represent the viewpoints and to serve the interest of the sponsor. Infomercials are often made to closely resemble actual television programming, usually talk shows, with minimal acknowledgement that the program is actually an advertisement.

Infomercials are designed to solicit a direct response which is specific and quantifiable and are, therefore, a form of direct response marketing (not to be confused with direct marketing). The ad response is delivered directly to television viewers by infomercial advertisers through the television ad. In normal commercials, advertisers do not solicit a direct response from viewers, but, instead, brand their product in the market place amongst potential buyers.

Infomercial advertisers may make use of flashy catchphrases, repeat basic ideas, and/or employ scientist-like characters or celebrities as guests or hosts in their ad. The book As Seen on TV (Quirk Books) by Lou Harry and Sam Stall highlights the history of such memorable products as the Flowbee, the Chia Pet, and Ginsu knives. The Flowbee and Ginsu were put on air by infomercial guru Kevin Harrington. Many infomercials have limited time offers and/or claim one can only purchase the wares from television, that slightly pressure the viewers into buying their products.

[edit] History

During the early days of television, many TV shows were specifically created by sponsors with the main goal of selling their product, with the entertainment value secondary. A good example of this is the early children's show The Magic Clown on NBC, which was created essentially as an advertisement for Bonomo's Turkish Taffy.[1] Eventually, FCC limits on the amount of advertising that could appear during an hour of television did away with these programs, forcing sponsors into the background.

It is quite possible that the first modern infomercial series which ran in North America was on San Diego-area television station XETV-TV, which during the 1970s ran a one-hour television program every Sunday consisting of advertisements for local homes for sale. As the station was actually licensed by the Mexican government to the city of Tijuana, (but the station broadcasts all of its programs in English for the U.S. market), the FCC limit at that time of a maximum of 18 minutes of commercials in an hour did not apply to the station.

Infomercials proliferated in the United States after 1984 when the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) eliminated regulations on the commercial content of television established in the 1950s and 1960s.[citation needed] Much of their early development can be attributed to business partners Edward Valenti and Barry Beecher, who developed the format to sell the Ginsu Knife.

In Britain, teleshopping was pioneered in 1979 by Michael Aldrich who demonstrated real-time transaction processing from a domestic television and subsequently installed many systems throughout the UK in the 1980s.[2].

Some televangelists such as Robert Tilton and Peter Popoff buy television time from infomercial brokers representing TV stations around the U.S. and even some mass-distributed cable networks that are not averse to carrying religious programming. A block of such programming appears weekdays on BET under the umbrella title BET Inspiration.

Infomercials are often screened in the United States and Canada during late-night/early morning hours, although midday and prime time airings are not unheard of. There are also entire networks devoted to just airing infomercials all day and night for the sole purpose of cable/satellite providers receiving revenue from the channel operator from any sales for their area, or to fill empty time on local programming channels. CNBC, which airs only one hour of infomercials nightly during the business week, airs up to 28 hours of infomercials on Saturdays and Sundays during the time where the network's business news coverage otherwise airs. A comparison of television listings from 2007 with 1987 verifies that many broadcasters in North America now air infomercials in lieu of syndicated TV series reruns and movies, which were formerly staples during the more common hours infomercials are broadcast (i.e., the overnight hours). Infomercials are a near-permanent staple of ION Television's daytime and overnight schedules.

The first feature length documentary to chronicle the history of the infomercial was Pitch People.

[edit] Criticism

Because of the sometimes sensational nature of the ad form and the questionable nature of some products, consumer advocates recommend careful investigation of the infomercial's sponsor, the product being advertised, and the claims being made before making a purchase. At the beginning of an infomercial, stations and/or sponsors normally run disclaimers warning that "the following program is a paid advertisement," and that the station does not necessarily support the sponsor's claims. (See "External Links" for two such examples.) A few stations take the warning further, encouraging viewers to contact their local Better Business Bureau or state or local consumer protection agency to report any questionable products or claims that air on such infomercials.

[edit] Widely used pitches

  • "Would you pay..." (lists large and outrageous amounts that quickly decline before the announcer rejects the past prices and hypes the lowest price possible)
  • "But wait!" (after pitching one deal and before pitching another, better deal. For example: "But Wait! Call in now and we'll knock off one payment, and add (product)")
  • "For (number) easy payments of (price), (product) can be yours!
  • "And if you aren't satisfied, you can try (product) risk free for (number) days"
  • "If you call within the next (number) minutes, you'll also get..."
  • "Supplies are limited, and this deal is available for only (number of minutes before end of program)..."
  • "I am so convinced that you'll love this product that I am offering......"
  • "We guarantee that if you don't lose up to (any number of) pounds in (any number of) days....."

[edit] Parodies

The Infomercial format has been widely parodied. One example was a skit in the cartoon series Tiny Toon Adventures in which an infomercial hostess is trying to sell a clothesline for $39.95, but has to include additional offers to try and justify the high price. Another example could be found in the Garfield and Friends episode, "Dream Giveaway", in which Garfield dreams of attempting to give away Nermal in an infomercial, but no one wants to take him. Yet another example can be found in The Lion King 1 1/2 when Pumbaa sits on the remote in mid-movie and the screen switches to a jewelry infomercial (QVC). Quebec-based Têtes à Claques has produced several Informercial parodies in French.

[edit] Additional notes

  • Two networks, SPEED Channel and Versus, call their infomercials by the euphemism "Consumer Product Showcase." The origin of the name is an executive decision made by the Bill Daniels family, which owned both channels at the time (then called SpeedVision and Outdoor Life Network, respectively). Today, SPEED is owned by Fox Cable Networks and VS. is controlled by Comcast.
  • DirecTV has nine channels that air infomercials at least 12 hours a day: 222, 223, 224, 225, 237, 246, 268, 314, and 315.
  • The strategy of buying primetime programming slots on major networks has been utilized by presidential and state candidates for elected office to present infomercial-like programs to sell a candidate's merits to the public. Fringe presidential candidate Lyndon LaRouche regularly bought time on CBS and local stations in the 1980s and 1990s during his campaigns, and Ross Perot also bought network time in 1992 and 1996 to present his presidential policies to the public. Hillary Clinton bought an hour of primetime on the Hallmark Channel in 2008 before Super Tuesday, and on cable sports network FSN Southwest in Texas before that state's primary to present a town hall-like program.

[edit] See also

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ Fifty years of candy: consolidation, clowns and confidence. Candy Industry, August 1, 1994
  2. ^ ‘Checking on the check-outs’ Financial Times London 12 July 1980.

[edit] External links

  • The DMA The Direct Marketing Association has a broadcast council focusing on issues in DRTV.
  • Electronic Retailing Association Trade association for tv, radio and online retailers. Also has magazine on DRTV issues.
  • Response Magazine Independent Magazine Reporting on DRTV
  • DMNews Weekly news magazine covering all direct marketing issues.
  • jwgreensheet The Jordan-Whitney DRTV monitoring website with rankings and copies of commercials.
  • IMSTV.com Infomercial Monitoring Service. Another DRTV monitoring service with rankings and copies of commercials.
  • Screenshot examples from WLUK-TV andWACY-TV of a station's infomercial disclaimer.
  • FastCompany.tv's Global Neighbourhoods TV