TV holds strong in real estate’s evolving media plan

The Indian real estate sector is advertising with renewed confidence. Budgets are expanding, campaigns are becoming sharper and the focus has moved decisively from broad visibility to measurable business outcomes.

What is unfolding is not a withdrawal from traditional media, but a strategic rebalancing of the media mix.

Data from the e4m dentsu Digital Advertising Report 2026 underscores this shift. In 2025, the real estate sector spent ₹3,857 crore on advertising, up from ₹3,138 crore in 2024, a 22% year-on-year increase. The sector accounted for 3% of the total ad pie across verticals in both years.

While overall real estate ad spends expanded 22% year-on-year, television’s share of the media mix declined from 49% in 2024 to 42% in 2025, indicating a recalibration rather than a retreat. In contrast, digital’s share rose from 41% to 48% over the same period.

Importantly, the decline in proportional share does not imply a fall in television investment. With the overall pie expanding, spending on TV has grown in absolute terms as well. What has changed is the distribution of incremental budgets.

According to the report, the sector has benefitted from urban demand recovery, premiumisation trends and improved financing conditions, factors that have strengthened marketing investments overall while accelerating digital allocations.

Industry leaders describe the shift as structural and role-driven.

Vinay Hegde, CEO–Investments, Madison World, sees the transition as a natural response to evolving consumer journeys. “Expectedly it is a strategic pivot towards more response-driven digital media largely due to changing consumer behaviour towards online research and engagement and the category’s targeting requirements in driving qualified leads and conversions,” he says.

He adds that each medium now operates with greater clarity of purpose.

“Print maintains its niche utility for high trust, branding and credibility. TV is mass, more top funnel. Digital serves the purpose end to end. Real estate requirements are more local and specific, a precision which digital is able to provide, and offer better targetability and measurable ROI.”

The growing emphasis on accountability is echoed by Vishal Prabhu, Creative Director – Strategy, White Rivers Media.

“Budgets are rising, but accountability has risen faster. Real estate is a high-value, long-consideration purchase, so marketing is no longer just about visibility. It is about traceable demand. Television still builds credibility and scale, but developers today also want to understand lead quality and conversion pathways. Digital bridges that measurement gap,” he said.

Prabhu points out that buyers increasingly begin their discovery online.

“By the time a buyer speaks to a sales team, they are already informed. Marketing therefore has to intercept that digital journey, not just build awareness on mass media. Television has not disappeared from the mix, but incremental spending is naturally flowing toward channels that shorten the path from exposure to enquiry.”

Shashank Gupta, Director, RPS Group, frames the numbers as a redistribution of emphasis.

“While overall marketing budgets have grown 22% to ₹3,857 crore, developers are allocating a greater proportion of incremental spends to platforms that deliver sharper targeting and measurable outcomes. Digital platforms such as Google and Meta enable intent-based targeting through search, social media and SEO,” Gupta said.

He maintains that television continues to serve specific objectives.

“Television remains relevant for premium project launches and brand recall. But nearly half of real estate advertising is now digital, where metrics such as click-through rates, conversions and cost per lead provide clearer ROI visibility.”

Yasin Hamidani, Director, Media Care Brand Solutions, cautions against misreading the shift. “Television hasn’t become irrelevant; it’s become selective. Real estate brands now use TV mainly for marquee launches or credibility bursts, while shifting sustained spends to digital where targeting is sharper and measurement clearer.”

He adds that the category’s high-intent nature naturally favours platforms that capture active demand. “The shift isn’t anti-TV — it’s pro-efficiency, driven by data, retargeting and cost control. Most campaigns now follow a hybrid approach: TV for trust and stature, digital for leads and conversions.”

Vejay Anand, Senior Advisor, Prequate & Marketing Strategist, sees the trend as a sign of sectoral confidence. “Real estate ad spends have surged 22% to ₹3,857 crore — a clear sign of sector confidence. The changing share between television and digital reflects a shift from pure mass reach to measurable impact, not an abandonment of TV.”

He attributes digital’s growing proportion to operational advantages such as precision targeting, real-time optimisation and retargeting capabilities. “Developers today prioritise leads alongside visibility. Brand-building matters, but transactions matter too. In 2025, reach without relevance is inefficient.”

Taken together, the data and industry voices suggest that television remains a significant and growing part of the advertising mix — but no longer the sole centrepiece. As real estate marketing becomes more performance-led and funnel-driven, incremental investments are increasingly aligned with platforms that can identify, engage and convert high-intent buyers.