Harnessing the Power of Video Display Ads, OTT, and Streaming Audio: A Strategic Guide for Businesses

As we navigate through the digital age, businesses are constantly seeking innovative ways to reach their target audience. Enter video display ads, over-the-top (OTT) advertising, and streaming audio platforms like Spotify. These mediums offer a plethora of opportunities for advertisers to create awareness, spark interest, and drive engagement.

Let's dive in.

The Advertisers' Goal and Success Metrics

Our journey begins at the top of the marketing funnel: Awareness. This is where video display and streaming audio shine. They create awareness around your offerings for those unfamiliar with your brand. Key tactics at this stage include advanced custom display, social media advertising, and of course, video display and streaming audio.

Next is Consideration. Here, we aim to generate interest among prospective customers, nudging them to consider engaging with your brand. The same tactics used in the Awareness stage work well here too.

Moving down the funnel, we arrive at Engagement. This stage is all about fostering interaction between the customer and your brand. Think Facebook and YouTube, People Based Display / DNA Digital, and Local Video Display.

Finally, we reach the most crucial step: Conversion. This is where we want the customer to take a defined action. Tactics that excel here are Facebook Lead Generation (PPC) and Google Ad Words (PPC).

The Power of Local Video

Local Video is akin to display advertising, but with a video twist. These ads appear on websites and mobile apps outside of YouTube, playing short segments before a website's content video - known as "pre-roll videos". They are available on all devices and can be targeted to your audience. By keeping these videos short and engaging, users can interact in a more dynamic way than regular Display.

The Rise of OTT

OTT advertising represents a new frontier in marketing. These television-style ads are shown to people who use online programs such as CBS All Access or Sling instead of traditional TV. The beauty of OTT ads is that viewers cannot skip them, and they show up on all devices. Moreover, you can target viewers based on demographics, location, and interests.

Blended OTT: The Best of Both Worlds

Blended OTT combines the benefits of Video Display and OTT, maximizing reach while driving traffic to your website. They are served on websites, mobile apps, and streaming TV services, appearing on all devices.

So why do we typically use Blended OTT? It offers a lower CPM rate, giving the client more value for their money. Additionally, it provides click-through and pixel opportunities unavailable with Pure OTT due to the integration of mobile/desktop targeting.

Navigating the OTT Landscape

It's essential to note that not all platforms are part of OTT Video Offering. Subscription-based platforms like Netflix, HBO Max (now Max), Disney +, and Amazon Prime do not have these offerings. Media companies also cannot sell inventory on Hulu and YouTube TV.

YouTube TrueView: Capturing Attention in Seconds

With over 2.7 billion people watching videos on YouTube every month, YouTube TrueView presents a golden opportunity. Your ad, which can range from 5 seconds to 1 minute, can appear in different places on the website, keeping your message front and center.

YouTube allows for precise targeting with 15 or 30-second clickable ads. You can reach the YouTube audience and Google audience, and also track website activity.

The Precision of Targeting

In the world of digital advertising, precision is key. Let's compare some targeting options:

Local Video Display: Think of Local Video like Display advertising with a video. These video ads show up on websites and mobile apps that aren’t YouTube. They play in short segments before a websites content video - called a “pre-roll video”.

Local video ads show up on all devices.

Local video display allows for 15 or 30-second clickable ads. You can target based on various parameters such as geofencing, zip code, city, state, metro, age, gender, income, and 3rd party segments. You can also track foot traffic (walk-in traffic) or web activity.

Pure OTT: These are?television style?ads that are shown to people who aren’t subscribed to cable or satellite TV and instead use?online programs?such as CBS All Access or Sling.

Pure OTT offers 15 or 30-second ads that are not clickable as they're on TV. But you can still target with addressable geofencing, zipcode, city, state, metro, and place ads through platforms like Sling and Pluto.

OTT ads show up on all devices.

Blended OTT: Blended OTT combines the best of both worlds. Along with all the features of Local Video Display and Pure OTT, you can also track website activity and walk-in traffic, making it a comprehensive solution.

Digital Video Best Practices

When it comes to digital video, here are some best practices to follow:

• Shorter is Sweeter: Attention spans are short, and 15-second ads tend to outperform 30’s and 45’s. A/B testing creatives is also recommended.
• Focus On Branding: Make sure viewers remember you, even if they don't watch the whole video. Get your branding in the first 5 seconds.
• Use Closed Captioning For Any Dialogue: Captions make the videos ADA-compliant for deaf, hard-of-hearing, and blind users.
• Support The Video With Other Tactics: Cross-platform targeting will always lead to stronger performance.

Why Video Diversity?

If the client’s budget allows, a multi-channel deployment can be beneficial. Ideal coverage would be Blended OTT + YouTube + Facebook, ensuring your advertisers are present wherever the audience goes.

The Rise of Streaming Audio

Streaming audio continues its upward trajectory, proving its resilience even during a pandemic. The audience for online audio tends to skew younger than 55, and more Americans are listening to online audio in their cars than ever before.

Cumulus Digital offers a variety of tactics to reach this growing audience:

Tier 1: Station Streaming: Reach listeners as they play local radio stations on their devices and smart speakers.

?15-second pre-roll and :15, :30 and :60-second?in-stream opportunities.

?Impression or spot-based.

Tier 2: Home Market Reach: Reach a streaming audience in your home market as they listen beyond your local station streams through a geo-targeted streaming campaign.

?:15-second pre-roll and :15, :30 and :60-second?in-stream opportunities.

?Impression-based.

Tier 3: The Cumulus Streaming Network - Broadening Your Audio Reach In the digital audio landscape, scale and reach are crucial. As advertisers, we're always seeking new avenues to connect with our audience and make a lasting impact. That's where the Cumulus Streaming Network comes in.

?In-stream: 15, :30 and :60 second opportunities.

?Impression-based.

Beyond the Stations - Cumulus Streaming Network

The Cumulus Streaming Network is an exciting partnership between CUMULUS MEDIA and additional audio providers. This alliance allows us to offer scale beyond their owned stations, broadening your advertising reach significantly.

This network delivers premium digital audio content that spans all genres of streaming audio. Whether your audience prefers music, podcasts, talk shows, or audiobooks, they've got you covered. This diversity ensures that your message reaches your desired audience, regardless of their listening preferences.

Tier 4: Precision Targeting Capabilities With the Cumulus Streaming Network, you can leverage their advanced targeting capabilities to reach your ideal customers. You can target listeners based on their device type – whether they're tuning in from their smartphone, tablet, computer, or smart speaker.

Additionally, you can use geo-targeting to reach listeners in specific geographical areas. Whether you want to focus on a local community, a particular city or state, or even nationwide, their network enables you to reach your desired audience precisely where they are.

?In-stream: 15 & 30-second opportunities.

In-Stream Opportunities

When it comes to delivering your message, they offer in-stream advertising opportunities. These are audio ads that play during a break in the streaming content, ensuring your message is heard loud and clear.

You can choose from 15, 30, or 60-second ad slots, giving you the flexibility to craft a message that resonates with your audience without feeling rushed. Whether you're sharing a quick promotional offer or telling a compelling brand story, there's a slot that fits your needs.

A Deep Dive into Tier 4

As we delve further into the world of digital advertising, let's explore the next level of targeting – Precision-Targeted Audio. This distinctive approach allows advertisers to target specific audiences with precision, based on interests, locations, and demographic preferences.

The Art of Precision Audio

Precision Audio, as the name suggests, is all about precision targeting. Here's how it works:

• Select Your Audience: Choose from over 250 US consumer segments to tailor your audience based on location, demographics, and interests.
• In-stream Opportunities: With 15 & 30-second in-stream ad slots, you can deliver your message at the right time to the right people.
• DNA List w/ Matchback: We can even include matchback reports for applicable audiences, adding another layer of precision to your campaign.
• Choose Your Creative Length: Depending on your message and strategy, choose between 15 or 30-second ad lengths.
• Schedule Your Flight Dates: Plan your campaign effectively by scheduling your flight dates in advance.

Spotify: A Platform with Massive Reach

With 515 million monthly active users globally, Spotify offers an incredible platform to reach a broad audience. Interestingly, 317 million of these users do not have subscriptions, providing an excellent opportunity for ad placements. With 44% of users listening to Spotify daily, your ads have a high chance of being heard.

What's more, Spotify users have one persistent identity across devices, ensuring seamless ad experiences. Plus, the average user spends 25 hours per month streaming audio, offering ample opportunities for your ads to make an impact.

Spotify Audience Targeting

Spotify's targeting capabilities are robust. You can reach people based on their Designated Market Area (DMA), age, gender, and interests. From books and business to comedy, culture, gaming, fitness, and more, you can ensure your ads find the right ears.

The Power of Audio Ads

Audio ads are served between songs when there are no distractions, and listeners are focused. Furthermore, you can complement your audio ad with a clickable link, allowing listeners to tap and visit your website, app, or online destination directly.

Ad Requirements

Audio

For your audio ads to be effective, they must meet certain requirements:

Length:?Maximum 30 seconds

File Type:?WAV, MP3

Max File Size:?1 MB

Volume:

?WAV - 16-bit 44.1 kHz

?MP3 - at least 192 kbps

?Normalized to -14 dB LUFS integrated

?All peaks should stay below -1 dB TP, to avoid extra distortion when transcoding

Text:

Provides an advertiser name and CTA to replace a song's title and artist's name.

Advertiser: 45 characters maximum

• CTA options:

IMAGES

Image Dimensions:?640x640

File Type:?JPG

Max File Size:?200 KB

3rd Party Tracking:

?Click command and 1x1 tracking pixel only.

?All third-party tags and tracking URLs need to be in https format.

?Audio and companion display unit are tracked together (clicks and impressions)

Clickthrough URL:

?Must provide clickthrough URL (only 1 destination URL can be used).

?URLs should direct to https destinations only.

As we continue to navigate the evolving landscape of digital advertising, remember that multi-channel campaigns always outperform single-platform ones. Let's use these tools to hit our target audience together!

An Impression-Based Approach

At the Cumulus Streaming Network, they operate on an impression-based approach. This means that you only pay for the number of times your ad is served to listeners, ensuring you get the most value for your advertising spend. It's a cost-effective way to reach a large audience and increase brand awareness.

In conclusion, the potential of video display ads, OTT, and streaming audio is vast. By strategically harnessing these mediums, businesses can effectively navigate the marketing funnel, creating awareness, consideration, engagement, and ultimately, conversion.

Credit to Ryan McCarty for his insightful research and resources.

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