OTT Advertising: An Ultimate Guide
In the modern world, content served over the internet is the new norm. The future of TV is becoming more digital and data-driven. An example of a rise in OTT advertising can be understood from the after-effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, which resulted in many people shifting their interests to streamed content. As viewers continue to shift their viewing habits, advertisers must respond with relevant and strategic advertising on the available channels. This is where OTT advertising or Over-the-Top advertising comes in. OTT or streaming TV ads is the technical term for the streaming content we all watch and consume on OTT channels. OTT content can be streamed across multiple devices aside from TV, which can run on the internet, like mobile phones or gaming consoles like PlayStation. This expands audience reach options for advertisers. Because these devices are internet-based, OTT ads can be delivered to anyone around the world who has access to OTT platforms.
Going over the top through OTT advertising allows media companies and advertisers freedom of movement without pre-planned broadcast schedules or geographic boundaries. The growth of OTT advertising can be tracked through the decline of traditional cable TV. A majority of people are cutting the cords and switching to streaming services, which has opened up large-scale revenue services for OTT platforms. To understand in detail the examples and benefits of OTT advertising, read further.
What is OTT Advertising?
In the entertainment landscape where viewers are moving beyond cable, OTT is becoming an increasingly popular and effective way of reaching modern viewers. OTT advertising provides an effective connection between an interested consumer and a brand through the trinity of sight, sound, and motion. The current market is filled with examples of OTT marketing techniques and various platforms where the audience is present at large to consume the content. While OTT ads are similar to traditional television ads with respect to their format, the former is a more sophisticated form of advertising because they offer data-driven targeting, and personalization and also have engaging elements within the ad that allow the viewers to interact with the ads making it a memorable experience for them as well.
Today, ad-supported services in the video landscape include some of the most recognized names in the market. Some examples of OTT advertising platforms include Netflix, Disney+, Hulu, HBO Max, Peacock, etc., to name a few.
Benefits of OTT Advertising
OTT advertising is a game changer in today’s modern world as precise targeting mitigates waste and ad relevance leads to increased engagement, helping to reshape the paid media landscape. It bridges the gap from being a pure branding exercise to something that can also be measured and tracked. Like traditional TV advertising, OTT advertising is a great way to build brand awareness for brands. Some of the most important benefits of OTT advertising include:
Guaranteed Ad Delivery
With OTT advertising, where advertisements are way less skippable (depending on the platform and duration of the ad), advertisers are all but guaranteed better viewability scores and higher video completion rates. Hulu is one example of an OTT platform where users can’t skip or block an ad unless they are paid subscribers if they watch some content online. OTT advertising is effective because the advertisers can be sure that their ads will be delivered to the target audience. OTT platforms allow advertisers to target their ads specifically to viewers who are most likely to be interested in the ads displayed.
Accessible and Cost-Efficient
Traditional linear TV ads have a tendency to cost more in terms of monthly budget minimums compared to OTT advertising. Additionally, since advertisers are not limited by set schedules or geographical locations, the advertising budget is spent on presenting the ads to relevant audiences. With the help of OTT advertising, advertisers can bypass lengthy negotiations for an ad spot with a specific channel on a particular day and time within a pre-defined geographic location. Advertisers can simply serve the right ad to the right audience at the right time.
Dynamic Ad Content
Consumers prefer personalized ad experiences over any ad experience. With OTT advertising, advertisers can change their ad content based on who is going to view the ad. Brands and advertisers who spend their time creating custom audiences and personalized content can use OTT advertising to improve their ad performance at any stage of the sales funnel.
Improved Engagement Rates
OTT advertising helps advertisers showcase more relevant ads to the audience, which helps them optimize costs and avoid redundancy of ad spending on the wrong audience. OTT ads engage viewers better than linear TV ads because the ads are short and sometimes non-skippable. Plus, being a digital ad format, OTT advertising allows advertisers to include interactive elements in their ads, which further enhances the viewers’ ad experience.
Better Analytics
With traditional TV advertising, measuring ad performance is possible, but it is very difficult to retrieve actionable insights, do audience segmentation etc. This is where OTT advertising wins the round. With OTT advertising, advertisers can easily view essential metrics and data about their ad performance to analyze how well campaigns are performing. As a result, advertisers can see which ad type, campaign strategy, or platform drives the best result for their brand.
How to Get Started with OTT Advertising?
OTT advertising has been considered a boon to many advertisers, irrespective of their market size. Here’s how advertisers can get started with OTT advertising.
Create Ads
Before creating OTT ad experiences, advertisers must check each platform’s individual ad specs for ideal length, size, aspect ratio, and file size. It’s also a good idea to create different video ads for different audience personas to target each person in the sales funnel.
Ad Tag Compatibility
Next, choose an OTT ad builder that generates universally compatible ad tags. Some of the most popular ad tags include VAST (Video Ad-Serving Template), VPAID (Video Player Ad Interface Definition), and SIMID (Secure Interactive Media Interface Definition). It is important to ensure that the ad builder platform allows you to create ads on top of these standards, so they can be placed for serving ads through direct platforms as well as programmatic sales.
Set an Audience Base
The next step includes selecting an audience base for the ad campaign. Advertisers can choose the age, gender, location, and interests of the people they wish to target. Once advertisers select their target audience, the OTT platform will start matching the audience with real-life users.
Check Analytics
Once the ads are served across various OTT platforms, advertisers should make a point to monitor and track ad performance reports and analytics, so they can optimize their campaign accordingly in real-time and gain insights for future campaigns as well.
The Future of OTT Advertising
Given the advantages and examples of OTT advertising over traditional TV advertising, it is a no-brainer that OTT advertising is one of the best ways to reach the audience, even in the future. OTT ads are growing in popularity and are becoming an integral part of marketing plans and budgets for most businesses.
If you’re ready to promote your business with OTT advertising, Adctv can help. With this OTT ad builder, advertisers can take advantage of advanced features to create data-driven ad campaigns that are engaging for the end user as well. With Adctv as your OTT advertising partner, you can reach an all-new audience base to optimize your returns on digital ad spends with creative and engaging OTT advertisements.