Shelter-in-place mandates and people staying in their homes has put many organizations in a challenging position in regard to their marketing efforts.
If you were already advertising – do you continue the campaigns you have running, shift gears or hold off?
If you were in the planning stages – should you still spend the money, where should you spend your money, is your message still relevant?
Forbes gave two important reasons for brands to continue advertising through challenging times – projecting the image of corporate stability and the competitive advantage to be gained when competitors cut back on their ad spend. And while people may not be “in the market” for your product or service right now, getting your brand out in front of them will help increase awareness of your business for the future.
So, how do you market to people that are spending the majority of their times in their homes? Given that they are also spending more time on devices and screens, there are two very effective digital marketing tactics that come to mind: OTT and Online Audio.
What is OTT?
OTT, or Over The Top, is video programming transmitted via the Internet, not traditional cable or broadcast. A :15 or :30 ad (think TV commercial) runs within the video programming the person is streaming, which can be viewed on any type of connected device – Roku, a Connected or Smart TV, Fire TV Sticks, PlayStation, Apple TV, Chromecast are just some examples. These devices bypass cable and instead go “over” a cable box to give the user access to streaming TV content. This is how you reach those “cord cutters” we hear so much about.
What is Online Audio?
Online Audio serves ads to online listeners who are consuming audio content across all types of devices. A :15 or :30 audio ad (think Radio commercial) plays in online content that users listen to such as music, podcasts and sporting events (when they return – insert crying emoji face here). Ads run across major streaming services – Spotify, Triton, iHeart, Tune In, SoundCloud are just some examples.
Who Will See or Hear My Ads?
We start by choosing a geographic area you want to reach (an entire city, specific zip codes, a 5-mile radius around your business, for example) and then we use a combination of Behavioral Targeting and Artificial Intelligence to reach the right consumers for your business.
Behavioral Targeting shows your ad to people most likely to want your product or service by allowing you to target all “types” of people based on their online behaviors – people interested in restaurants and dining, people of a certain education level, parents of teenagers – there are literally thousands of categories – both B2C and B2B.
AI (Artificial Intelligence) Targeting uses machine learning to help you reach your target audience. Data about who is engaging with your ad through clicks, conversions, device, ad creative and more is collected and analyzed every minute. Once it determines the “types” of people engaging with your ad the most, it goes out and finds other people just like that to serve your ad to. The “machine” just keeps finding more and more people most likely to be prospective buyers of your product or service.
It’s no secret that people are spending more time in their homes and more time in front of their devices – phones, computers, tablets, TVs, voice assistants. You can reach them, give them something to think about or research and drive results that can be measured in real-time. Daily life has a way of marching on and when things turn around, and they will, make sure it’s your brand they’re remembering.
If you’re interesting in learning more about Digital Marketing, OTT or Online Audio, let’s talk.
