Gun Commercials On TV

[H.m.B]

Have see both Henry and BondArms advertised on Newsmax cable.

 

[AK Hunter]

It's hard to advertise something you could be sold out of before you get the commercial aired.
Our local Rural King sends out flyers in the mail & everything they have a good price on is gone before I get the flyer.
The flyer comes out on Monday or Tuesday so I have been trying to do a walk through on Sunday or Monday right before they close, to catch them pricing things down early.

 

[Gun4Fun90]

I mean the reality is free market. Most existing gun owners tend to disproportionately watch things like outdoors channels and shows and read magazines like guns & ammo or sportsman guild, so it makes sense you are more likely to see gun related products advertised there.

as for why they don’t have more “prime time” advertisements to try and market to more people and bring in new users and get more people interested in owning a gun? Well the truth is that Call of Duty and Grand Theft Auto are better at that than any marketing campaign they could possibly launch. Plus you know reality, reality is greatly good at making people realize maybe they should get a gun before the bad people show up in their doorstep.

 

[PapaG]

Henry regularly advertises on tv

 

[danez71]

Beyond the default answer of free market capitalism.... Various media providers, networks, and stations have policies against gun and ammo ads along with other products.

From 2013

https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2013/03/22/comcast-gun-ads/2009

• Time Warner%2C Cox already have some restrictions
• Comcast adopted policy after buying NBCUniversal

Comcast (CMCSA), the nation's largest cable-TV company, made the decision last month after it finalized its purchase of media company NBCUniversal, which Adweek magazine said has had a long-standing in place banning those items and fireworks.


CBS Interactive says materials that promote firearms directly or indirectly can run only in areas where 70% of the population is above the legal age, and the CBS advertising division also must approve the commercials.

 

[Reinz]

Daniel Defense made an ad for last year’s Super Bowl and was tuned down.

 

[jag22]

I'm old enough to remember the first TV ads for condoms (Trojan) and bras
(Playtex) way way back. So to review, today we have no condoms or guns but
we got Victorias Secret. I'm okay with that.

 

[illinoisburt]

Market definitely plays a role. Local TV stations around Birmingham have plenty of ads for gun stores. Then again if you weren't used to TV ads here you would swear half of them were spoofs from SNL show. As for national cable channels, that's a lot more limited though we do get BassPro, Academy, and Cabelas hunting sales ads in the fall which show guns, camo, ATVs, etc. on ESPN and FoxNews just not year round.

 

[Stefan A]

In Maryland of all places, I have heard an ad for a gun store/range on a Baltimore area radio station.

 

[JeeperCreeper]

I think fun fact:

Outdoor and sportsman's channels don't create shows, they lease airtime.

So if you have enough money, you can air your own show. Hence, the wide range of quality in programming and "one off" shows.

So really, those channels are all one giant entertaining commercial.

Again, from what I hear

 

[Carl N. Brown]

Considering the record NICS background check numbers, an indicator of gun transactions, people are seeking to buy guns in droves. If demand is high, why pay for advertising?

Looking back over the years, I recall very few TV clips selling guns, but more gun magazines than other genres on the racks.

 

[GEM]

In San Antonio, a new gun store opened and was on the popular talk radio station. The hosts proclaimed them as the best store with the best experts for your needs. Went in there once and they were a bunch of stuck up, pompous orifices, They folded in a few months. All prices were MSRP and down the road, Academy beat them hands down.

 

[RetiredUSNChief]

For those of us old enough to remember actual gun commercials, anybody remember Don's Guns out of Indianapolis, Indiana?

If you do, you'll remember his catch phrase:

"I don't want to make any money, I just love to sell guns!"

Which, of course, was as bald faced a lie as you could get. I visited Don's Guns once back in the early 80s and was singularly unimpressed.

Several of his commercials are on YouTube and at least for me they're entertaining for their nostalgia, at least!

I just checked...Don's Guns still exists, but Don Davis himself passed away at 82 years of age in 2016.

 

[DustyGmt]

There is a outdoor sporting channel on Dish network, can't recall the name but it's like one of the first channels past all the HBO,Starz, SHO, etc... on that channel I was routinely seeing Glock, SIG, HK and Vortex, Monstrum, etc.... it was weird seeing gun ads on TV. Buy it wasn't like regular cable. Not like something you'd see in a Two and a Half Men commercial break but still.....

 

[hk940]

Down here in W NC there are ads for gun stores and Henry rifles, we even have an ad for McHayesville GA Drug and Gun store!

 

[WestKentucky]

Outdoors channel as mentioned above, and “local” radio station out of Nashville keeps talking about the Glock store and indoor range and how the radio personality goes there regularly for lessons and has all kinds of fun. I just can’t listen to it for long because the guy puts himself out there on the radio and then wants to argue with people about how he is right and they are wrong. I generally agree with him but I just can’t get over the attitude and arguing. I have kids so there’s plenty of that to watch firsthand.

 

[Airborne Falcon]

It crossed my mind this morning that I've never seen a commercial on TV for guns or ammo.
Never heard anything on the radio either.
The only thing that comes to mind is magazine ads.
Why?

I've seen a bunch of Henry ads over the years, on all the conservative news stations.

I've seen a lot of firearms ads and ammo ads on The Outdoor Channel and The Sportsman Channel.

We see and hear loads and loads of Palmetto State Armory ads on TV and on the radio in these parts .... all across South Carolina.

There have been others.