Last week covered AtL, so it of course, stands to reason that today would be about its counterpart, BtL.
While AtL is broad and expansive, Below the Line advertising is narrow and focused. So why use a rod and reel when you can use a net? Because with a net you can get a lot of the wrong thing instead of some of the right thing.
By targeting core demographics with tactics like Direct Mail, Newsletters, and Billboards, you can find the kind of audience who pays for your product or service.
Take a local restaurant for example. They are limited by geography; that is to say, someone fifty miles away is very unlikely to eat there compared to someone two miles away. AtL would be shooting a fly with an elephant gun, and a waste of time and resources. Direct Mail, however, would target people within say, a fifteen mile radius, and as such increase diner attendance and awareness.
That's not to say big players don't benefit as well. I can think of no better example of a BtL campaign by a corporate giant more effective than Chick=Fil-a's "eet mor chikin" billboards. Not only were they targeted by geography and demographic (motorists, families and adults) but they were unorthodox with their use of 3D models on a normally 2D platform.
And it worked. They've been hugely successful using DM and billboards in lieu of commercials and jingles. It just goes to show: if you have something worth selling, and a creative way to let people know about it, whether you're using a net or a rod & reel, you'll catch what you're fishing for.
Next time will be an exploration of the strange and modern in-between, sometimes called Through the Line, or TtL.