Linear vs. CTV: Stop Paying for People Who Don’t Care

If you’ve ever looked into traditional cable advertising, you’ve likely run into the concept of the DMA (Designated Market Area). It’s how the TV industry has operated for decades: you buy a "market," which usually means an entire city and the surrounding suburbs.

The problem? Most businesses don't actually serve an entire city.

The Broadcast Tax

When you buy a spot on local cable, you are paying for every single person in that DMA to see your ad. If you own a high-end luxury dealership in one specific zip code, you are still paying to reach households 50 miles away that will never make the drive.

In the industry, we call this waste. In traditional linear TV, waste isn't a mistake—it’s part of the business model. You have to pay for the people who don’t care about your product just to reach the small percentage who do.

The "Ghost" Audience

Linear TV relies on estimated ratings. You’re buying a "probability" that a certain number of people were in the room when your ad aired. There is no way to know for sure if those viewers are your target customers, or if they even stayed in the room during the commercial break.

CTV (Connected TV) flips this. Instead of buying a show or a time slot, you are buying a household.

Because the television is connected to the internet, we can use real-world data to identify exactly who is behind the screen. If your ideal customer is a homeowner who is interested in outdoor gear and lives within 10 miles of your shop, we can serve ads only to those specific houses.

Efficiency Over Reach

A common pushback is that CTV "reach" is smaller than cable. That’s technically true, but it’s intentional.

• Linear Cable gives you massive reach, but much of it is irrelevant.

• CTV gives you surgical precision.

By cutting out the households that aren't a fit, your budget goes significantly further. You aren't "spending less"—you are spending better. Every dollar is going toward a household that has a statistical reason to be interested in what you’re selling.

The Bottom Line

The era of "guessing and checking" with your TV budget is over. Moving from linear cable to CTV isn't just a tech upgrade; it’s an audit of your marketing spend. It’s about stopping the leak and ensuring that your message only lands where it has a chance to perform.