Every marketing decision today must be backed by data to succeed, and over-the-top (OTT) marketing is that sweet spot between TV's massive reach (at 90% among adults) and digital marketing's data-driven capabilities.
So, what are the benefits of OTT? It offers marketers capabilities for hyper-targeting audiences, viewers being more open and engaged, and analytics that provides better insight into customer behavior. OTT and connected-TV (CTV) have also established themselves amongst viewers' habits, pulling in more than 3,930.3 million users by 2026.
Even better, advertising on these platforms is surprisingly simple to accomplish. To help you start benefiting right away, here are our tips for fitting OTT into your existing marketing plan.
Use Your TV Commercials on OTT Platforms
OTT commercials are effectively the same as TV commercials, which lets you create commercials that work for both mediums. They tend to be shorter at approximately 15 to 30 seconds, with shorter commercials preferred. However, 15-second commercials are 75% as effective as 30-second commercials and have less production costs to create. If developing a commercial, going shorter might be better for your ROI.
The most significant distinction between the mediums is how customers receive the commercials. OTT is its distribution system and presents commercials to customers differently. Not only can targeting narrow down your delivery to specific audiences, but you can also ensure the same viewer isn't receiving the same ad too many times. That reduces the risk of ad fatigue, where viewers see your ad so many times that they become bored by them and stop watching.
More than half (60%) of households have both pay-TV and streaming. Advertising on both platforms helps you reach a broader audience.
To reap the benefits of OTT and TV, create killer commercials for both simultaneously. All you have to is leave your content flexible enough for quick and easy modifications for streaming.
Make Ads That Appeal to Your Audience
OTT ads play to a captive audience, which is an immediate advantage to you when attempting to reach the right people with your message. However, you can create the most successful messages by keeping your audience in mind. Tailored messages resonate more and are more memorable when you use what you know about your target audience to design ads that appeal to their sense of humor and other interests.
Some great examples of this are two brand campaigns that hit the nail on the head with their advertising. First, the company Always began their "Like a Girl" campaign in 2015 that they still repeat today. The brand, which has an entirely female target audience, targeted its consumers with female empowerment and positive change.
Then, there's Apple's "Get a Mac" campaign that aired in 2006. It can be difficult not to go overboard in promotions in an industry with big-name competition when highlighting why your product is better. On the other hand, Apple did a great job conveying how their target audience could benefit from the Mac while appealing to their interests with humor.
Retarget Customers Across All Channels
Today, it's not unusual to see one person on several devices simultaneously. It's normal for at least 40% of people to start on one device and complete the same task on another, with that number jumping to 54% for those who switch between two devices simultaneously and 73% who are active on three devices.
OTT advertising allows you to retarget across channels to target audiences everywhere they're most active, based on their demographics and behaviors. You can also use analytics for retargeting based on their online behaviors and browsing history.
The best tips we can give you for retargeting include:
- Keep buyer journey in mind when retargeting to continue following consumers through their stages.
- Prevent ad fatigue and annoyance by keeping an eye on ad frequency.
- Continue to optimize your strategy by tracking, measuring, and making the necessary adjustments.
- Experimenting with your content and delivery can also lead to some significant breakthroughs.
Secure Airtime for TV Ads On OTT With A Media Partner
OTT and CTV have a lot of potential in today's highly personalized and targeted market. The best way to ensure you're using the channel to its full potential and giving your brand the best shot at reaching and resonating with the right audience is to partner with the experts who know everything about it.
A media partner can help you secure airtime for TV ads and arrange your ads for OTT services. You can start benefiting from both in your existing plan without the hassle of figuring out how the two channels can work together on your own.
