What is Connected TV (CTV)?
Before jumping into the benefits of connected tv advertising, let’s discuss what CTV is. In recent years, television has evolved beyond its traditional boundaries into the world of streaming, thanks to connected TV (CTV). CTV refers to internet-connected television sets with access to a wide array of online streaming content and services.
Smart TVs and streaming media players (such as Roku, Amazon Fire TV, or Apple TV) fall under the CTV category. The benefits of connected tv advertising are numerous, but we discuss the top 10 in this article.
Connected TV offers consumers a range of streaming options, including video-on-demand services—like Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon Prime Video—as well as live streaming services, such as YouTube TV, Sling TV, or Hulu + Live TV. Viewers can access these services directly through their CTV devices without the need for a separate cable or satellite TV subscription.
How is CTV Different Than Linear TV?
Connected TV and linear TV are two forms of television broadcasting; each has its own attributes and characteristics. The key differences are:
- Content on-demand vs. set schedule: CTV devices deliver content via the internet through streaming services; users can access on-demand content, including movies and TV shows, at their own convenience. By contrast, linear TV follows a predetermined schedule set by broadcasters. Viewers watch this content in real time (or record it to watch later).
- Different hardware: CTV utilizes internet connectivity to stream content. It relies on smart TVs and streaming media players to access online streaming services. Traditional linear TV uses broadcasting signals transmitted through cable, satellite, or antenna connections, and does not require an internet connection for viewing.
- More flexibility: CTV allows greater flexibility when consuming content. You can choose what to watch, and when you want to watch it. You can pause, rewind, fast-forward, or select episodes or movies from a library of options. With Linear TV, you have less control. You must follow the broadcasting schedule and only watch shows or events being aired (unless you’ve recorded a show using a recording feature offered by your provider).
Benefits of Connected TV Advertising
1. Steadily Growing Alongside Declines for Linear TV
With the rise of cord-cutting, (along with ‘cord-nevers’—consumers who never subscribed to cable or satellite in the first place) the traditional linear TV audience is experiencing a steady decline.
By targeting CTV viewers, cord-cutters, and cord-nevers who access content through smart TVs and streaming devices, you can tap into a growing user base. CTV presents an opportunity to engage with a growing audience and meet them where they are.
2. Connected TV Advertising is Cost-Effective
CTV allows for precise audience targeting based on demographics, interests, and viewing habits. By reaching the correct audiences with relevant ads, you can optimize your ad spending and minimize waste. Unlike linear or traditional TV advertising, which often reaches a broader audience with varying interests, CTV enables you to focus on specific segments that align with your target audiences.
3. Expansive Premium Inventory
CTV provides a rich selection of premium inventory, encompassing popular TV shows, movies, live sports, and exclusive content. This diverse range of content provides an excellent opportunity to engage with your target audiences.
One notable player in the CTV landscape is Max. With its extensive library of blockbuster movies and exclusive originals, Max has established itself as a premium platform. Leveraging the expansive premium inventory on Max allows you to create impactful ad campaigns that resonate with your target audience.
Another platform, Comcast Now TV, boasts a growing subscriber base and offers access to a wide variety of content. Aligning your brand with this compelling content can effectively connect with your user base.
Additionally, Thursday Night Football (TNF) broadcasts on select CTV platforms, attracting a significant number of viewers, particularly avid sports fans. Advertising during TNF games presents a valuable opportunity to tap into the enthusiasm and engagement surrounding live sports events, capturing the attention of a passionate audience.
4. Cherry-Picking
Cherry-picking in CTV refers to selectively choosing specific streaming platforms or channels based on perceived value and performance. You can target and choose specific inventory options that align with your campaign objectives, target audiences, and desired outcomes.
It’s important to balance cherry-picking inventory and maintaining a broader reach to avoid overly limiting campaign exposure. You should consider both the value of selectivity and the potential benefits of reaching a wider audience. A well-rounded CTV marketing strategy involves a thoughtful selection of inventory that aligns with campaign goals, target audiences, and available resources.
5. Omnichannel Experiences for Audiences
In the realm of CTV, crafting omnichannel experiences for audiences seamlessly integrates CTV advertising with other marketing channels, such as social media, email marketing, or mobile advertising, to deliver a cohesive and captivating brand journey.
By harnessing the unique strengths of CTV in conjunction with other channels, you can effectively connect with audiences through multiple touchpoints, reinforce messaging, amplify the impact of your campaigns, and increase conversion rates.
Consistency in branding across various channels, including CTV, plays a pivotal role in building an omnichannel experience. It is crucial to ensure that your visual identity, tone of voice, and messaging remain aligned across CTV ads, websites, social media, email marketing, and other channels. Consistency strengthens brand recognition, fosters trust, and provides a harmonious experience for your audience.
6. Variety of Ad Formats
CTV offers a variety of ad formats that cater to different advertising goals and audience preferences. These formats are designed to provide engaging and interactive experiences for viewers. Pre-roll, mid-roll, and post-roll ads are video ads that play before, in the middle of, or after the content, respectively.
CTV also supports interactive ad formats that enable viewers to engage with the content. These ads may include interactive overlays, clickable elements, or even interactive games, and encourage viewer participation.
Other ad formats include display ads, banner ads, native ads, and branded content. CTV’s versatile ad formats provide you with options to deliver messages effectively and engage with your viewers in several ways.
7. Precision Targeting
Precision targeting in CTV refers to targeting specific audiences with accuracy based on various demographic, behavioral, and interest-based factors. CTV platforms offer advanced targeting capabilities that allow you to reach your desired audience segments more precisely with relevant and personalized viewer experiences.
8. High Completion Rates and Viewability
High completion rates and viewability are two important metrics that demonstrate the effectiveness and value of advertising in CTV.
Completion rates refer to the percentage of viewers who watch an entire ad from beginning to end. CTV typically boasts higher completion rates compared to other digital advertising formats. CTV often includes non-skippable ads, ensuring viewers watch the entire ad without the option to skip. This results in higher completion rates as viewers are more likely to engage with the ad content.
Viewability refers to the extent to which an ad is visible to viewers. CTV offers high viewability rates, providing you with increased confidence that your ads will be seen by the intended audience. CTV offers engaging and immersive ad experiences, capturing viewers’ attention and encouraging them to actively engage with the content. Engaged viewers are more likely to pay attention to the ads and increase viewability.
9. Real-Time Metrics, Data, and Optimization
Real-time metrics, data, and optimization are instrumental in maximizing the effectiveness and efficiency of advertising through CTV. CTV platforms offer robust measurement and optimization capabilities that empower advertisers to make data-driven decisions and maximize the effectiveness of their campaigns in real-time.
These platforms provide immediate access to key performance metrics, granting advertisers valuable insight into their campaign performance. Metrics such as impressions, completion rates, click-through rates, viewability, engagement, and conversions can be tracked in real-time.
Furthermore, CTV platforms capture and analyze significant audience data, encompassing demographic information, viewing behavior, interests, and more. This wealth of data enables advertisers to better understand their target audiences and create more targeted and relevant campaigns.
By leveraging real-time data, advertisers can continuously optimize their CTV campaigns to enhance performance. Promptly identifying underperforming ad creatives, placements, or targeting segments, advertisers can make immediate adjustments to improve their campaigns.
This optimization process may involve refining audience targeting, adjusting ad placements, modifying creative elements, or reallocating budgets based on real-time insights. Real-time metrics, data, and optimization in CTV drive advertisers to yield better results and continuously refine strategy for optimal impact.
10. Next-Level Measurement Capabilities
Next-level measurement capabilities in CTV advertising have significantly advanced beyond traditional metrics, allowing you to gain deeper insights into the effectiveness of your campaigns and measure business outcomes.
CTV platforms enable cross-device attribution, meaning to measure and attribute conversions across multiple devices. This allows you to track the customer journey from CTV ad exposure to conversions on other devices, such as smartphones, tablets, laptops, or desktops.
These platforms can also leverage location data to measure foot traffic. You can track whether viewers exposed to CTV ads subsequently visited your physical locations, such as retail stores or restaurants. CTV platforms can partner with a location data provider to collect anonymous data about viewers’ physical location. When a viewer is exposed to a CTV ad, the platform can track the exposure, creating a link between the ad exposure and the location data.
The CTV platform can then match the ad exposure data to the corresponding location data to determine whether viewers who saw the ad visited your store. This measurement capability helps assess the impact of CTV advertising on driving in-store visits and provides valuable insights into offline conversions.
CTV platforms can also measure the impact of advertising on in-store sales. You can leverage third-party data sources, such as customer purchase or loyalty program data, to determine the lift in sales attributed to CTV advertising. This measurement capability enables you to connect your CTV campaigns to sales outcomes.
Division-D Can Skyrocket Your CTV Advertising Efforts
Division-D is a leading digital advertising company that specializes in helping businesses maximize the effectiveness of their CTV advertising efforts. With our expertise and advanced technology, Division-D can propel your CTV advertising campaigns to new heights.
When it comes to the benefits of connected tv advertising, nobody knows them more than Division-D. We offer end-to-end CTV advertising solutions, ensuring a seamless and efficient experience for advertisers. From strategy development to campaign execution and optimization, Division-D provides a comprehensive suite of services to meet your CTV advertising needs.
