The rise of connected TV (CTV) and over-the-top (OTT) streaming services has transformed how consumers watch television. With rising subscription costs and increasing preference for ad-supported streaming services, advertisers are shifting their focus to CTV as a platform to reach their audiences and achieve their marketing goals.
According to a recent report by Hub Entertainment Research, more than half of consumers (55%) use at least one free ad-supported streaming TV service. This trend is driving increased investment in CTV advertising, with spending expected to exceed $20 billion in 2023, according to the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB).
While the economic environment remains uncertain, advertisers seek ways to make their ad investment dollars work harder. In this blog post, we’ll explore four essential CTV advertising priorities that can help advertisers achieve their brand goals and maximize the value of their ad dollars in 2023.
Reaching Precise Audiences with Efficacy
Advertisers increasingly shift their budgets to CTV advertising and take a more precise approach to reaching their audiences. CTV offers a range of targeting capabilities, from location-based targeting to interest and behavior targeting.
In addition, CTV advertisers are tailoring their targeting strategies to meet their specific brand goals. For example, they may focus on driving brand awareness with demographic or contextual targeting, or they may target in-market shoppers with intender targeting.
Looking ahead to 2024, we expect CTV advertisers to pursue a more sophisticated persona-based targeting approach to reach customers whose lifestyles align well with their brands or services. For instance, some providers use an audience-first targeting strategy, leveraging audience personas based on direct and adjacent interests and behaviors. This approach can help advertisers capture potential customers missed by a narrower targeting approach.
Less Experimentation, More Outcomes-Based Performance
In today’s challenging economic environment, marketers demand flexibility and accountability with their media investment dollars to ensure performance-based media plans and measurability. CTV’s data-driven capabilities make it a proven channel for delivering full-funnel brand goals.
According to a survey conducted by Advertiser Perceptions for 2022 CTV/OTT spending, 43% of marketers say that CTV/OTT spending increases are driven by the ability to achieve brand awareness and performance marketing goals.
With greater scrutiny on ad budgets, marketers will look to tie CTV viewership to direct business results beyond the traditional critical metrics of success such as reach and frequency. For instance, a non-profit advertiser can match exposure to CTV ads with donation data to determine how many donations a streaming TV campaign generated. Additionally, marketers can go deeper to understand the true impact of their CTV campaigns on viewer perceptions with brand lift studies, such as which messaging resonates best with which audience.
Delivering Greater Ad Personalization
Advertisers demand greater localization and personalization for their CTV campaigns to tailor their creative to different audiences. Introducing new dynamic creative capabilities creates more personalization and relevancy for streaming TV ads.
Dynamic creative allows advertisers to deliver messaging unique to each individual household with localized and interactive enhancements.
This personalization adds an extra layer of relevance to drive advertiser results with specific localized and personalized call-to-actions.
Brand Safety is a must-have
To protect brand reputation and know for certain that ads are running in brand-safe content, advertisers must dig deeper to truly understand the publisher vetting process, inventory sourcing and the reporting provided by their CTV advertising partners.
Choosing performance-driven partners that can deliver brand-safe premium content, precision audience targeting at scale, personalization, and proven measurability will be the holy grail for advertisers to win over audiences for the ad-supported streaming revolution in 2024.
In conclusion, CTV is rapidly evolving as a platform for advertisers to maximize their ad dollars and reach their audiences effectively. Popsycle Digital is the leading CTV buying agency at the forefront of this rapidly evolving landscape. With a deep understanding of the potential of CTV, Popsycle Digital leverages advanced audience targeting capabilities to ensure precise ad placements, reaching the right audiences at the right time. Ou outcomes-based approach focuses on delivering measurable results for advertisers, ensuring that every ad dollar is maximized. Popsycle Digital also excels in ad personalization, creating tailored experiences that resonate with viewers and drive engagement. Additionally, our commitment to brand safety ensures that advertisers can trust their CTV ad investments in a secure and reputable environment. As advertisers look to achieve their marketing goals in 2023, Popsycle Digital is the agency to turn to for expertise and success in CTV advertising.