ATL & BTL Agencies

ATL & BTL Agencies refer to two different categories of marketing agencies, especially in promotion marketing and communication.^[1]

"ATL" stands for Above The Line, meaning that the advertising is going to be deployed around a wider target audience, e.g. television (TVC), radio, or billboards. applicable when a product is directed for a broader spectrum of consumers, for example a soft drink company might contract an ATL advertising agency to develop ads targeting a broad audience.^[2]

"BTL", or Below The Line, suggests that the advertising is going to target a specific group of potential consumers.^[3] BTL advertising agencies will be hired to help companies to develop ads and promotion strategies in a creative way, directed to certain groups of, using tools like direct emailing, targeted social media, or direct product demonstrations for a specific group of people, like giving away vitamin samples at the door of a famous gym.

"TTL" stands for: "Through the Line" marketing, which combines the above two methods. It involves using both ATL and BTL marketing strategies to create an integrated campaign across a number of channels.^[4][5]

History

The term above the line and below the line were originally found in Procter & Gamble’s budgeting manual. In 1954, the consumer goods company separated its marketing spend according to the way it paid its bills. Agencies that took a commission from the media were above, while promotions and other activities that had no commission to pay were kept below.^[5]