The panelists included Tam Media Research vice president Pradeep Hejmadi and senior brand manager Vivek Srivastava, Brandspeed Director Jon Griffin and Red Bee Media director creative Andy Bryant.

"Today television channels air close to 30,000 commercials and 45,000 promos. In all, almost 55 per cent of non-programming time and Rs 67 billion worth of on-air time is used by channels on promoting their own shows and channel," said Srivastava.

He went on to explain that different platforms exhibit different receptivity levels for different show formats and different channels genres follow different promo strategy. "Promos of The Great Indian Laughter Challenge I & II (non-fiction) on Star One managed to rope in 16 per cent of audiences who watched the promos, to sample the show. On the other hand, India Calling (fiction) managed to convert seven per cent of the audiences. For Nach Baliye (nonfiction) the number was 20 per cent, Ye Dil Chahe More (fiction) it was 11 per cent and for Don (fiction) it was eight per cent," Srivastava said.

Hejmadi mentioned how on-air promos in the future would change. "We are already witnessing the change now. Channels like Star Plus, Sony and Zee use their top shows Kasautii Zindagi Kay, Indian Idol and Saath Phere respectively to promote their new properties. The mention of new shows on the channels are being woven into their present shows," he said.

Bryant focussed on the television promo wave in Europe and UK. "The role of a good promo hasn't really changed over the years. It has to give viewers the information they value. Moreover, in this cluttered television environment, it is important that the promo manages to grab the attention of the viewer and enhance the viewing experience," he said.

He went on to say that many a times clips from programmes don't add up to the most compelling proms for viewers. "Sometimes it is important to have a different and original idea itself to promote something. Often times, creativity is the key for attention grabbing and instant impact," added Bryant.

Griffin said, "There are three phases that one needs to keep in mind for a television promo. The first is to define your content and audience. The second is to define the formats and lastly to organize and segment your content to various media devices logically."

However Griffin was quick to caution, "Don't launch content before it is platform optimised. The negative fallout of this is greater than you realise. Also, don't assume you know your audience behaviour. The important thing is to build in the wow factor."