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New technology allows for more targeted DRTV spots
It seems ridiculous that a printed medium—direct mail—has been targeting consumers for decades, while television has been stuck with non-targeted advertising, airing the same ad to everyone.
Thanks to a new concept called addressable TV advertising, it’s now possible for advertisers to deliver customized messages to TV viewers. Addressable TV advertising brings the direct mail practice of targeting to a TV audience. You now can deliver TV ads tailored to consumers based on geographic, demographic or behavioral components. This advance has been made possible by new technology that inserts different versions of the commercials at the cable head-end, or where the local signal originates.
The most widely-deployed targeted TV advertising solutions are Adtag and Adcopy, now available from cable operators’ ad sales divisions, such as Comcast Spotlight (which represents most of the top 25 markets), and market interconnects (which represent multiple cable operators, such as the New York Interconnect and Adlink in Los Angeles). Altogether, these capabilities already are available to reach nearly 30 million cable households. Major advertisers, such as 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Ford and United, have begun to take advantage of these targeting solutions.
Targeting
TV ad targeting simply involves the delivery of specific content to a specific audience. TV ads aired on a national basis often rely on some degree of targeting based on the program, network or day-part demographics. It also is relatively common for major advertisers to use geographic targeting to deal with market opportunities, preferences or competitive environments at the designated market area (DMA) level.
Local advertisers have long been able to buy local cable zones, which are roughly the population of a city neighborhood or small town. The good news is that solutions like Adtag and Adcopy now make it possible for larger advertisers to automate delivery of targeted commercials to individual cable zones—all with one buy. This enables more granular targeting for advertisers who want to reach all or just part of a DMA with specific messages.
Although not widely deployed, the delivery of household-level targeted TV ads already is technically feasible. As digital cable and satellite set-top boxes become increasingly widespread, deployment of household-level ad targeting will become more broadly available.
Customization
Some advertisers deal with diverse consumer segments by using multiple versions of the same commercial. For example, automotive and retail advertisers sometimes version their TV ads based on specific DMA segments and competitive requirements. But most advertisers still rely on few, if any, versions of their ads. This isn’t because it can’t be done; versions can be created for different audience demographics, product uses, day parts or DMAs in which a commercial airs. Again, the trouble is that conventional, mostly manual processes make it expensive and difficult to manage.
It seems ridiculous that a printed medium—direct mail—has been targeting consumers for decades, while television has been stuck with non-targeted advertising, airing the same ad to everyone.
Thanks to a new concept called addressable TV advertising, it’s now possible for advertisers to deliver customized messages to TV viewers. Addressable TV advertising brings the direct mail practice of targeting to a TV audience. You now can deliver TV ads tailored to consumers based on geographic, demographic or behavioral components. This advance has been made possible by new technology that inserts different versions of the commercials at the cable head-end, or where the local signal originates.
The most widely-deployed targeted TV advertising solutions are Adtag and Adcopy, now available from cable operators’ ad sales divisions, such as Comcast Spotlight (which represents most of the top 25 markets), and market interconnects (which represent multiple cable operators, such as the New York Interconnect and Adlink in Los Angeles). Altogether, these capabilities already are available to reach nearly 30 million cable households. Major advertisers, such as 1-800-FLOWERS.COM, Ford and United, have begun to take advantage of these targeting solutions.
Targeting
TV ad targeting simply involves the delivery of specific content to a specific audience. TV ads aired on a national basis often rely on some degree of targeting based on the program, network or day-part demographics. It also is relatively common for major advertisers to use geographic targeting to deal with market opportunities, preferences or competitive environments at the designated market area (DMA) level.
Local advertisers have long been able to buy local cable zones, which are roughly the population of a city neighborhood or small town. The good news is that solutions like Adtag and Adcopy now make it possible for larger advertisers to automate delivery of targeted commercials to individual cable zones—all with one buy. This enables more granular targeting for advertisers who want to reach all or just part of a DMA with specific messages.
Although not widely deployed, the delivery of household-level targeted TV ads already is technically feasible. As digital cable and satellite set-top boxes become increasingly widespread, deployment of household-level ad targeting will become more broadly available.
Customization
Some advertisers deal with diverse consumer segments by using multiple versions of the same commercial. For example, automotive and retail advertisers sometimes version their TV ads based on specific DMA segments and competitive requirements. But most advertisers still rely on few, if any, versions of their ads. This isn’t because it can’t be done; versions can be created for different audience demographics, product uses, day parts or DMAs in which a commercial airs. Again, the trouble is that conventional, mostly manual processes make it expensive and difficult to manage.
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