Could programmatic video kill the TV ad?
The challenges are real enough that programmatic video won’t be usurping linear TV advertising anytime soon – but it’s certainly a bold alternative, writes Rubicon Project’s Martyn Bentley.
Video ads have a way with consumers; charming them with emotion-invoking visual stimuli. For this quality alone, its only rival is TV; yet, unlike linear TV advertising, video’s performance is entirely trackable and it is an ideal platform to target people with ads in real-time.
Last year’s eMarketer report paints a bright picture for the future of programmatic video with 2014’s advertiser and publisher spend reaching $700 million. That figure is set to triple as 2015 comes to a close.
So are we about to see programmatic video replace the mighty linear TV ad as the format of choice for the marketer? When you consider the many benefits video has over linear TV, there’s every chance that might happen.
First of all, programmatic video is able to deliver relevant ads to individual users based on their preferences, their live digital footprint and intention signals. And with so many consumers watching online content via platforms like YouTube, we can reach those consumers more easily and intuitively with targeted ads.
Programmatic video ads are by their very nature interactive, offering more opportunities for brand engagement.”
Further to this, programmatic video ads are by their very nature interactive, offering more opportunities for brand engagement – for example, with click-through coupons or other brand-related content in real time. Not only does this benefit the brand but it enhances the viewing experience for the viewer as well.
Programmatic video has its clear advantages but it also has some grey areas to surmount first, which means it won’t be replacing the TV ad any time soon.
At the top of the list of difficulties is the variable quality of campaigns offered through open ad exchanges – where anyone can buy content – meaning there isn’t always assurance of a good-quality campaign. To overcome this, many publishers sell their inventory to agencies and brands or through private marketplaces with just a handful of trusted buyers.
Likewise, programmatic advertisers may not be able to gauge how valuable the open-exchange inventory is. They tend to rely on video-specific measurements that include viewability, per cent of video watched or per cent of completed videos. Once again these metrics are not without fault.
The advertiser should also learn to distinguish between click-to-play and auto-play ad formats. Although auto-play views show as completed, the consumer’s attention may not have been captured. The metrics used should be determined by the campaign and effectively reflect the goals of the advertiser.
Click-through in programmatic video can be problematic too. Accidental clicks, when consumers attempt to close an ad but miss the tiny cross, are common. Advertisers must therefore measure both the volume of clicks and the quality. Site analytics, bounce rates, and subsequent user engagements – such as clicks on the store-locator tab on a landing-page – will help them to do so.
The good actors in our industry will recognise that everyone will ultimately benefit from a more transparent marketplace.”
Remaining knowledgeable on the latest industry standards should be top of the list. This can only enhance your ability to make decisions as to the best choice of partner and ensuring they too are following industry advice.
But marketers also need to be aware of a basic fact when it comes to getting the best video inventory – you often get what you pay for. So, take your time to research your ad partner and always place their adherence to industry best practice over price.
Another crucial thing for marketers to do is make sure their partner always uses transparent sources of reporting. These should include URLs and domains of all the sites where your ad has appeared. Insist that your partner regularly reviews the sites it’s offering inventory on.
Naturally, the best partners will also maintain close contact with the seller whose inventory you’re buying, in order to ensure questionable activity doesn’t happen. If you suspect this isn’t the case, then challenge them to demonstrate how they screen accounts and placements. They should welcome these questions. The good actors in our industry will recognise that everyone will ultimately benefit from a more transparent marketplace.
The challenges are real enough that programmatic video won’t be usurping linear TV advertising any time soon. But with programmatic TV still in its infancy, programmatic video is currently providing a bold alternative. So much so that marketers are flocking to use it to drive brand campaigns – just look at the aforementioned eMarketer figures.
Yes, there are pitfalls that continue to put off content producers and more traditional marketers; but it’s the end result of better and more efficient consumer engagement through video, aligned to changing and fragmenting consumer habits which we should all be concentrating on.
Martyn Bentley is regional vice president, Buyer Cloud, Rubicon Project.