As digital interactions become more prevalent, our company (Healthcare) faced the challenge of reaching our target audience effectively. Traditional TV advertising seemed obsolete, failing to adapt to changing consumer behaviors. However, we discovered a promising opportunity: Connected TV (CTV) advertising is expected to grow to $29.5 billion in the US by 2024, surpassing the former dominance of traditional TV advertising (Insider Intelligence). CTV advertising raised questions and concerns among many marketers: What is connected to TV advertising? Is it too costly, too complex, or too intrusive for our marketing objectives?
Let’s address these concerns head-on. Contrary to misconceptions, CTV advertising presents a remarkable opportunity for marketers. Far from being a burdensome endeavor, it offers a plethora of benefits, including precise targeting, robust measurement capabilities, interactive features, and heightened audience engagement.
This article delves into the transformative landscape of CTV advertising and unveils how you can harness its power to propel your business forward.
How CTV Advertising is Shaping the Future Landscape of Digital Marketing
Defining CTV — Its Features
Connected TV encompasses devices capable of streaming video content over the internet onto TV screens, such as smart TVs, streaming boxes, and gaming consoles. These devices provide viewers access to a diverse array of content from subscription video-on-demand (SVOD), and ad-supported video-on-demand (AVOD), to traditional linear TV channels.
Distinguishing CTV Advertising from Traditional TV Advertising
CTV advertising emerges as a dynamic alternative to traditional TV advertising. Its flexibility, personalization, and measurability set it apart. Marketers can tailor ads based on viewers’ preferences, behavior, location, and device, fostering a more intimate connection. Moreover, CTV promotion yields richer data and insights into ad performance and viewer responses.
Trends and Challenges
Key trends in CTV advertising include the ascendancy of AVOD services, the advent of programmatic buying, and the integration of interactive and immersive features. However, challenges such as market fragmentation, lack of standardization, and privacy/security concerns necessitate careful navigation. Clear Code shares insights on the trends, challenges, and future of CTV advertising.
How You Can Leverage CTV Advertising to Grow Your Business
Best Practices and Tips
CTV advertising is a form of digital advertising that appears within streaming content on internet-connected devices, such as smart TVs, gaming consoles, or streaming sticks. CTV advertising can help brands reach audiences who are streaming their favorite shows across a variety of devices and services, rather than watching cable or satellite TV. CTV advertising can also be more targeted, interactive, and measurable than traditional TV marketing.
To launch a successful CTV advertising campaign, marketers must comprehend the various types of CTV gadgets and platforms, the best techniques for producing engaging video ads, and the metrics for assessing the effectiveness and return on investment of CTV ads.
Additionally, marketers can leverage the expertise of content distributors, such as Amazon Ads, to place their ads within relevant and high-quality streaming content. Marketers can also consider the opportunity to build their ad campaigning on a white-label advertising platform, such as SmartHub, which caters to various traffic types, including CTV.
To unlock the full potential of CTV advertising, consider these best practices: define clear goals and KPIs, choose platforms and partners wisely, segment and target your audience strategically, craft engaging and relevant ads, optimize campaigns based on data and feedback, and rigorously measure results and ROI.
Success Stories in CTV Advertising
Brands have harnessed the power of Connected TV (CTV) advertising with remarkable success, showcasing its potential and effectiveness. Here are notable examples:
- Hulu: This streaming giant introduced an interactive ad format that allows viewers to shape scenarios and outcomes, boosting engagement, attention, and brand recall. Word Stream experts claim that Hulu’s ad selector feature has proven to be 150% more effective than regular TV ads at developing recall and 24% better at creating viewer purchasing intent.
- Roku: The platform innovatively launched “Roku Recommends,” a branded content hub featuring original shows seamlessly integrated with relevant ads. This strategy enhances both the viewing experience and brand perception.
- Peloton: A fitness front-runner executed a cross-device CTV campaign targeting health-conscious viewers. Utilizing dynamic creative optimization, and personalized ads based on location, device, and time of day resulted in a substantial lift in brand awareness and conversions. No Good analyzes how Peloton leveraged personalization, content, product development, and exceptional service to achieve a 95% retention rate and a 0.65% monthly churn rate.
These success stories exemplify what CTV advertising is and how it generates engaging, pertinent, and impactful ads, boosting performance and revenue. Despite its benefits — such as rich data, precise targeting, and high completion rates — CTV advertising faces challenges like fraud, brand risk, and viewability. To ensure quality and safety, brands should choose reliable platforms and tools, such as those offered by SmartHub.
Measuring Results and ROI
Assessing the performance and ROI of CTV campaigns involves monitoring both quantitative and qualitative metrics reflecting reach, engagement, and impact. Key quantitative metrics include:
- Impressions: Number of times an ad is displayed.
- Reach: Number of unique viewers seeing an ad.
- Frequency: Average times a viewer sees an ad.
- Completion rate: Percentage of ads watched until the end.
- Click-through rate: Percentage of viewers taking the desired action after watching.
- Cost per action: Average amount spent to achieve a specific outcome.
Quantitative metrics, tracked through tools like Google Analytics and Roku Measurement Partner Program (HBR), offer insights across platforms and audiences. Yet, to capture the full picture, advertisers must also consider qualitative metrics:
- Brand awareness: Recognition and recall of a brand name or logo.
- Brand recall: Viewers’ ability to remember the main message or offer.
- Brand favorability: Positive or negative opinion towards a brand.
- Brand sentiment: Emotional response to an ad.
Qualitative metrics, measured through methods like surveys and sentiment analysis, reveal the influence of CTV ads on audience feelings and opinions.
To optimize CTV advertising, combining both quantitative and qualitative metrics is crucial. Best practices, according to Insider Intelligence, include investing in programmatic buying for efficiency and precision, being mindful of ad frequency to avoid oversaturation or underexposure, and creating diverse ad variations to cater to different segments and contexts.
White-label advertising solutions, exemplified by SmartHub, offer comprehensive tools to enhance the performance of advertising companies built on their platform.
Conclusion
In summary, the landscape of digital marketing is undergoing a profound shift, and CTV advertising stands at the forefront of this transformation. The ability to connect with audiences in a personalized, measurable, and engaging manner is unparalleled. As you embark on your marketing journey, consider embracing the power of CTV advertising to achieve objectives beyond traditional constraints.
The future of marketing awaits, and CTV is your gateway to unlocking its full potential. Still pondering, ‘What is connected to TV advertising?’ Connect with industry leaders, including SmartHub, for a complimentary consultation to unlock its full potential.
