Viewers Enjoy Shows with Targeted Commercials, Hub Survey Finds

Hub Entertainment Targeted Advertising
(Image credit: Hub Entertainment Reserach)

Targeted ads make shows on television more enjoyable, according to a new study from Hub Entertainment Research.

In a survey, 60% of viewers who thought they saw commercials that were customized for them said they were highly satisfied with the programming. Similarly, when they saw ads based on their search history, 56% said they were highly satisfied.

Other commercial break features viewers liked included having a countdown clock running during the ads and having the ads shown before a show begins.

“There is still a lot of work to be done on ad targeting and customization in the TV space, particularly with streamers, but the common trope that ‘consumers don't like ads’ is not correct,” said Jon Giegengack, founder and principal at Hub.

The survey was part of the first wave of Hub’s TV Advertising: Face vs. Fiction study. It was conducted in June among 3,001 U.S. consumers age 14-74 who watch at least 1 hour of TV per week. 

Jon Lafayette

Jon has been business editor of Broadcasting+Cable since 2010. He focuses on revenue-generating activities, including advertising and distribution, as well as executive intrigue and merger and acquisition activity. Just about any story is fair game, if a dollar sign can make its way into the article. Before B+C, Jon covered the industry for TVWeek, Cable World, Electronic Media, Advertising Age and The New York Post. A native New Yorker, Jon is hiding in plain sight in the suburbs of Chicago.