Better be a toy ad!

Viewers are less likely to skip ads they consider relevant to them, reports TiVo (via AdWeek).

The company just released its May 2008 data from PowerWatch, its second-by-second commercial audience measurement service. Data was gleaned from 20,000 TiVo users.

Findings from the survey:

• All demographic segments time shift and fast-forward through commercials at a high rate.
• 57 percent of all viewing is "time shifted" during prime time on broadcast networks. (That is, the shows are watched by viewers outside their usual time slot.) 66 percent of ads are skipped.
• For all TV networks and all time periods, 36 percent of viewing is time shifted and almost half the ads are skipped, reported VP and GM Todd Juenger of Audience Research and Measurement.

Specific ad-skipping varies by demo. In May, homes with children under 12 were 37 percent more likely to view ads for children's skincare products than homes with adults over 50. Toy and game ads were also 22 percent more likely to be viewed in homes with children under 12.

Homes with adults over 50 were 15 percent more likely to watch a political ad; hair restoration products and wig ads were 10 percent more likely.

"If you have an ad that is relevant, you are more likely to pay attention," said Juenger. "Commercial skipping is not as random as some people think and there are clear differences by demographic group."

"Effective message delivery can help make an ad resonate more," agreed SVP Tracey Scheppach of video innovation of Starcom. The company joined TiVo's PowerWatch Panel in November 2007.