As an auto dealer, you are always on the lookout for the best bang for your buck, especially when it comes to ad spend. Connected TV devices like Apple TV and Roku have become the entertainment hub for millions of households. If you’re aiming to reach the maximum number of eyeballs in your market, look no further.
CTV is popular because users have control over what they watch and how they watch it. Instead of having to rely on broadcasts or run streaming networks on their computers, they’re able to put it all on their TV and control their experience from a single platform. Viewers enjoy on-demand content from a growing list of providers, giving them the means to design their own programming schedule.
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According to Leichtman Research, as of last year, nearly 75% of all US households had some type of CTV set up in their homes — a 6% jump from 2017. CTV advertising is gaining a lot of traction because most people use it to run monthly subscription services, such as Netflix, Hulu, and HBO Go. These premium audiences have the means and motivation to demand more from their viewing experience — they’re willing to pay for it.
TV or CTV?
Automotive dealers are increasingly opting out of traditional TV ads for several reasons: It’s expensive, it’s top of funnel, and you can’t measure performance. They are running more digital campaigns, for which the results can be attributed based on form fill-outs and walk-ins.
CTV brings the sophistication in targeting and tracking of digital and adds the reach and audience quality of TV. It also offers the geotargeting and household targeting inherent to digital marketing — and takes location-based targeting a notch higher.
Audiences are shifting their attention from one device to another all the time — from TV to phones and tablets.
Connected TV ads can be far more specific to the viewer than traditional marketing. Auto dealers can use first- and third-party data to target ads to interested audiences, retarget ads to prospective buyers, and market products and services across multiple devices. Advertisers can also access their metrics in real time, allowing them to quickly adjust campaigns that aren’t working.
These are the exact capabilities you need to reach car buyers in your locality.
Market Across Devices
CTV is starting to become the hub on which cross-device marketing is set to establish and build upon. Audiences are shifting their attention from one device to another all the time — from TV to phones and tablets.
So it only makes sense to market across devices, then track data from the whole network, rather than just one device. You need the full picture to get meaningful analytics.
CTV may seem like unfamiliar territory, and without a sound strategy, it can be tricky. But dealers who invest in CTV are finding success with targeted ads and measurable results. And most of them have the same technology at home.
Mike Machado is the co-founder and CRO of Demand Local Inc. and a 15-year dealership digital marketing veteran.
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