Social Media Advertising
Article | July 14, 2022
Creating ad campaigns is a gamble. As advertisers, you are never sure if it was optimized enough, have no idea which micro-targets it resonates with the most, and it could take up to a year to determine the campaign’s sales impact. Market trends change by then. However, AI-powered ad creative can turn things around for you. You will know exactly what aspects of the ad resonate with your target demographic.
“It’s a welcome change for creatives, who find it empowering because they can think more broadly, experiment more, and learn faster,” says David Olesnevich, Head of Product at IBM Watson Advertising
“It’s a welcome change for creatives, who find it empowering because they can think more broadly, experiment more, and learn faster,” says David Olesnevich, Head of Product at IBM Watson Advertising
Let us take a look at what an AI-powered creative can do for your ad campaign:
Instant Optimization
AI-powered creative can be optimized instantly, not just for display ads but also for OTT video ads. You don’t need to spend extra time or resources to scale your optimization efforts.
Multiple Variations
Elements in AI creative can be varied and combined with music tracks, sound effects, voice-overs, scripts, video clips and sequences, hero shots, text overlays, end cards, and calls-to-action.
Easy Scaling
AI-powered creative ad campaigns are easy to scale across sectors for micro-targets defined by demographics, psychographics, life stage, customer journey stage, purchase behavior, and other KPIs like video completion, app installs, site visits, form-filling, purchases/conversions.
Enhanced Targeting
This technology can target your desired demographic based on message resonance. Consumer characteristics that respond to different message element combinations can help create persona profiles.
Brand advertisers like you need to prepare themselves for a cookie-less future with Google phasing out third-party cookies by 2023. Additionally, you need to also take into account Apple ending the IDFA (ID for Advertising). Figuring out micro-targets will get tougher because of these factors. You will have to harness solutions that respect consumer privacy without depending on the traditional advertising identifiers that will no longer remain.
Creative Professionals Can Better Maximize Client ROI
AI-powered creative is a modular and smarter way to develop ads. It takes the guesswork out of advertising with more actionable information to enhance brand campaigns and how they deliver a higher ROI.
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Advertiser Campaign Management
Article | August 12, 2022
When it comes to PPC advertising, it’s not uncommon to think: Bing Ads vs. Google Ads. On top of that: Which platform has more reach? Is Bing less expensive? Which has more targeting capabilities? Which will produce more conversions and revenue? While many PPC advertisers view the two platforms as competitors, they actually work best hand-in-hand. Google undoubtedly has the majority of the search market, but Bing advertising certainly shouldn’t be forgotten. Rather than Google Ads vs. Bing Ads, marketers should be thinking Google Ads plus Bing Ads.
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Social Media Advertising
Article | July 14, 2022
As a marketer, your goal is to create ads that stick in the minds of your audience. You devote extra time and resources to creating memorable graphics, engaging CTAs, and interesting copy that works. You also buy just the right ad spots. But, what happens when your potential customer scrolls right past your ad? Your costly video ad never creates a difference and your campaign fails. Combat this video ad fatigue with audio advertising to effectively influence your target demographic.
After the audio content boom driven by podcasts, audio advertising is rising and becoming marketers’ new favorite. Nielsen Catalina Solutions’ 12-month-long study of audio ads on Spotify versus video and display ads found that audio ads were up to 25% more effective than other ad formats.
Mostly, audio ads are delivered through podcasts. We’ll dive into this shortly. First let’s look at how audio advertising can influence the buying decisions of your target audience:
Audio Advertising: Superpowers Explained
Audio advertising uses a broad content category such as background scores, jingles, and branded content apart from audio ads. By fusing audio ads into audio experiences such as ad-supported music streaming or podcasts, marketers can position relevant products and services in front of customers. Here are more of its advantages:
Audio Ads Offer Immersive Experience
A study done by Lightwave and iHeartMedia showed that one of the biggest benefits of audio advertising was its ability to connect with the audience on a deeper level. Remembering catchy jingles is also a part of this connection. Audio ads communicate emotions, capture the attention of the listeners within seconds and engage them enough to paint a picture in their minds. They achieve this without a big budget or production crew. A strong script and an audio booth are all you need to create an immersive audio ad.
They Have a Greater Reach
Primarily, audio ads are delivered through podcasts because they can be easily categorized and are widely consumed. According to Statista, almost 60% of all U.S. consumers older than 12 listen to podcasts. Interestingly, 70% podcast listeners do not multi-task while listening to a podcast, so you are catering to alert listeners who might end up retaining your ad (Edison Research). Apart from podcasts, audio ads are also run in locations such as radio, music, and news streams.
They Are Insightful and Creative
Marketers can use 3D and 8D audio to create soundscapes that offer an immersive experience. Additionally, audio ads create a 1-to-1 relationship. With the help of programmatic advertising, they also collect many layers of data that provide buying insights. Integrating audio ads with voice assistants is a creative approach to entice customers while being interactive.
Nars Cosmetics UK used Spotify to offer its customers voice commerce. Upon hearing the ad on Spotify, they could order samples and set up delivery using their smart speakers.
Smart Speakers Are Changing the Game
Smart speakers are contributing to screen-less moments in American homes. This means your video ad campaigns won’t get the kind of response you expect, but your audio ads just might. The Edison Infinite Dial report found that there is an average of 2.3 smart speakers in each home in the U.S. This number shows that a wide range of people use voice search and will listen to audio ads as a result.
Summing It Up
Audio advertising drives engagement and conversion through immersive storytelling, catchy jingles, and longer ad retention. It can be a great addition to your digital marketing strategy and refine the way you influence your audience’s buying decisions.
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Social Media Advertising
Article | May 11, 2022
Netflix Takes an Unexpected Route
Popular streaming giant Netflix’s subscriber count plummeted for the first time in a decade. After it announced the loss of 200K subscribers in Q1 of 2022, its stocks dipped more than 35%. In addition, a shareholder recently sued the platform for violating securities law after its subscriber growth reached an all-time low and the stock value crashed, making the picture bleaker.
It’s not surprising that the platform had a change of heart about bringing advertising to its platform. The decision puts the platform in the same category as its competitors, HBO Max, Amazon’s Freevee, and Disney+, who want to offer cheaper, ad-enabled content to consumers. It also addresses the company’s issue of slow revenue growth.
“Those who have followed Netflix know that I’ve been against the complexity of advertising and a big fan of the simplicity of subscription, But as much as I’m a fan of that, I’m a bigger fan of consumer choice.”
co-CEO Reed Hastings
What Do Advertisers Think?
The advertising community had mixed reactions to the announcement. Long commercials are not an option on streaming platforms like Netflix. The ads run only for a few minutes every hour to retain the viewer experience. Despite this, advertisers are excited to target Netflix’s rich audience of over 200 million.
There is no clarity on who will sell the ads and how the campaigns will be managed. Only time will tell how Netflix’s move will affect its subscribers and the advertising market.
The company will keep ad-free tiers for subscribers who wish to enjoy high-quality ad-free content. It may change its subscription plans to offer low-cost plans with ads and minimize password sharing. There is no set timeline or regions decided for implementing these plans.
The company hopes that this “consumer choice” to choose a cheaper plan will revive its subscriber growth graph.
What Comes Next?
Though Netflix has done the unexpected, it is giving well-established ad-funded broadcasters and streaming platforms a reason to worry. As of now, the potential for a low-cost VOD service equipped with ads is huge for advertisers. Once the plans are introduced, new audience profiles will emerge. Advertisers will want to understand and target them. As an ad platform, Netflix’s performance will only be understood through testing and learning.
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