Media Monday

Netflix Ad Inventory is Now Available Programmatically

By Diego Diaz, Media Buying Supervisor

Netflix’s upfront announcement labeling 2024 the Year of Growth and Momentum included advertising growth and allowing more advertisers access to their ad inventory has come to fruition. Their ad-supported offering, which now has upwards of 40 million global monthly active users, is up from 5 million a year ago. They report that over 40% of signups now come from the ads plan. Starting this month, advertisers can now reach that growing group of Netflix fans.

With Magnite as their key global partner supply-side platform (SSP), this valuable Connected Television (CTV) inventory is available on The Trade Desk and Display & Video 360, the leading global advertising demand-side platforms (DSP). The Netflix ad inventory has flight and budget requirements to activate via private marketplace (PMP) first-party deals for delivery. These deals include valuable genre targeting - Action, Comedy, and Romance to highlight a few - allowing advertisers to craft unique content strategies. In the US, they’ll include more nuanced genre targeting of content that features demographics such as Black, Latinx, LGBTQ+, and Women’s stories.

This excellent news allows us to double down on our Audience-First targeting using The Trade Desk as our guide to finding the consumer on whatever CTV inventory they may prefer. Netflix now joins Situation’s preferred roster of premium CTV agency PMP deals which includes access to Hulu, Disney+, Paramount+, NBC Peacock, ESPN, and MAX, to name a few.?

The constant expansion and evolution of CTV inventory will make for even more robust media plans that include TV reach, to supplement and potentially replace the more traditional, linear strategies. When there is frequency control in addition to incredibly valuable audience targeting capabilities available, including path to conversion analysis, the balance of TV advertising spend is clear: CTV far surpasses linear investments for data-driven advertisers.

A New Way To Search

By Jacqueline Mott, Senior Media Planner

TikTok users are now able to seek out content based on their interests with search terms. Using keywords expected to have strong search volume and relevancy to ad content, advertisers are able to target users when they are most engaged. Utilizing an extensive list of keywords with a variety of match types, ads will populate in the highest volume of searches to keep brands top of mind. Search campaign algorithms will gather learnings from top performing keywords to help guide insights and optimizations.?

TikToks recommends beginning campaigns with a 20:1 daily budget to bid price ratio to allow the platform the opportunity to test and gather learnings. It is highly encouraged to include negative keywords within campaign settings to ensure brand safety and elevate performance.?

With enough evidence outlining that Gen Z is more likely to use social platforms for their search needs, we should look to invest heavily in the feature specifically when trying to reach a younger audience. Forbes cited a March 2024 survey by SOCi, finding 62% of 18 to 24 year olds use TikTok for their search needs.

Third-Party Cookies Are Here To Stay!

By Noelle Khan, Digital Media Planner

Google has recently announced that it will abandon its plan to gradually phase out third-party cookies in Chrome by the end of 2024. This initial decision was driven by growing privacy concerns, prompting advertisers to explore alternatives such as first-party data, as well as contextual and behavioral targeting. The value of third-party cookies lies in their ability to gather insights on browsing habits and user preferences, which are essential for remarketing. They also enable advertisers to tailor their creative strategies and messaging to specific audiences more effectively.?

Google states that this decision is based on their evaluation of how the transition to a cookieless browser could negatively impact publishers and advertisers. The Vice President of Google's The Privacy Sandbox initiative explained that the new alternative plan will feature "[introducing] a new experience in Chrome that allows users to make informed choices that apply across their web browsing." Despite Google's commitment to introducing a new set of solutions that prioritize user privacy controls, the UK's data protection authority remains dissatisfied with the tech giant’s ultimate shift away from a cookieless future. In addition to concerns about consumer privacy, there is growing apprehension regarding the potential impact on the media landscape, with this shift potentially distorting competition, resulting in advertising spending becoming increasingly concentrated within Google's ecosystem.