Green Roofs - Living Architecture Monitor - Fall 2011 - (Page 14)

RESEARCH VALUATING THE MARKETING BENEFITS OF GREEN ROOFS FROM MEDIA COVERAGE TO ADVERTISING, NEW RESEARCH HELPS TO PUT THE VALUE OF A GREEN ROOF INTO DOLLARS AND CENTS FOR MARKETERS By Ray Tomalty WHERE: • b = value of the benefit ($) • rradio = radio ad cost (airtime) ($/30-second spot) • tradio = total radio equivalent airtime (30-second spots) • rtv = tv ad cost (airtime) ($/30 second spot) • ttv = total tv equivalent airtime (30-second spots) • rpaper = newspaper ad cost (printing) ($/column inch) • l = total equivalent column length (column inches) Radio and television ad airtime is generally sold in 30-second blocks (a.k.a. “spots”). Unlike newspaper ad prices, radio and television ad prices are not published; rather, they are negotiated on an individual basis with every advertiser. For both media channels, ad prices are related to the size of the audience. For a radio station, the size of the audience will depend mostly on the time of day, the size of the market (i.e., the population within the radio broadcast’s reach), and the station’s relative popularity. Radio spots generally range from $50 to $1,000. Market research shows that, in the U.S., the cost of television advertising is on average US$20 (C$24) per 1,000 viewers (Grover, 2006) but the cost of airing an ad on local stations in medium markets outside prime-time can be as low as US$5 (C$6) per 1,000 viewers or even lower (Gaebler, undated). Thus, a show with 100,000 viewers will command a price in the range of $500 to $2,000 for airing a single 30-second spot. Newspaper space is priced by column inches. ass media and public interest in environmentally friendly products and services is increasing rapidly across North America. Green roofs and other green infrastructure on, or near, residential and commercial buildings is proving to be a marketing amenity that can increase a development’s exposure and enhances the absorption rate of its units. One way of estimating the marketing benefits of a green roof is to assess the value of the publicity gained as a direct conse- M CITY quence of the green roof investment. The value of the free publicity received can be estimated by comparison to the cost of advertising in three mediums: radio, television and print. The cost for each of the three channels is broken down into the production-cost plus the cost of running the ad. The former can be assumed to be constant as it is a one-time cost. The latter is the cost of having the ad aired on radio and television and printed in newspapers. The value of free publicity can in principle be estimated according to the following formula: b = (rradio • tradio) + (rtv • ttv) + (rpaper • l) TABLE 1 - AVERAGE COST OF RADIO, TELEVISION, AND NEWSPAPER ADVERTISING IN SELECTED CITIES (2009) METRO POPULATION RADIO (30-second spot) TELEVISION (30-second spot) NEWSPAPER (column inch) Average cost Toronto, ON Vancouver, BC Minneapolis, MN New York, NY San Francisco, CA Seattle, WA Average 5,555,912 2,285,900 3,175,041 19,750,000 7,264,887 4,038,741 $250 $158 $173 $1,405 $899 $209 $516 Cost per 1000 listeners $0.90 $1.38 $1.09 $1.42 $2.47 $1.03 $1.38 Average cost $2,778 $1,143 $1,588 $9,875 $3,632 $2,019 $3,506 Cost per 1000 viewers $10 $10 $10 $10 $10 $10 $10 Average cost $392 $199 $303 $1,575 $613 $365 $597 Cost per 1000 readers $1.41 $1.74 $1.91 $1.59 $1.69 $1.81 $1.69 Sources: www.gaebler.com, www.theglobeandmail.com, www.conestoga.ca, www.canada.com, and Lotz, personal communication. All prices in U.S. dollars. Figures in italics are estimates. 14 LIVING ARCHITECTURE MONITOR FALL 2011 http://www.gaebler.com http://www.theglobeandmail.com http://www.conestogac.on.ca http://www.canada.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Green Roofs - Living Architecture Monitor - Fall 2011

Green Roofs - Living Architecture Monitor - Fall 2011
Contents
From the Founder
Strata
On the Roof With…
Research
Marketing
Policy: The Game Changer
Policy: Toronto’s Green Roof by-Law
Policy: Energy Code Break-Through
Tools
GRHC: Update
GRHC: Welcome New Members
On Spec

Green Roofs - Living Architecture Monitor - Fall 2011