Publishing ads in a heterogeneous media platform is a complex mechanism. Programmatic solutions address this problem through automated guaranteed, unreserved fixed rate, invitation-only auctions, and open auction transactions. According to IAB, in today’s digital supply chain, automation will continue to refine buying and selling processes and shift attention to higher-value marketing and advertising functions.
Programmatic Ad Trends:
The share of programmatic advertising in digital ad trade is growing across the globe. The stake of programmatic ads is two-third of online display advertising space, according to Zenith programmatic trend projections 2019. The potential of the programmatic landscape may depend on the following digital streams.
pDOOH (Programmatic Digital out-of-home) media
pDOOH is a medium to display ads in open/publicly accessible environment like
- Roadside digital billboards
- Outdoor signage
- Apartments lift lobby
- Airports
- Public waiting rooms
- Shopping centers etc.
This medium not only reduces management cost but also influences customers with varied content. In 2019, industry revenue from billboards grew by 0.6%, which is more than $8.6 billion in revenue. pDOOH space is bright – more education and standardization with less fragmentation sets the ball rolling to long-term success. Voice Activated Advertising Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, and Apple home are now becoming an integral part of our lives. These medium guides not only potential customers in the right direction, but also serves effective tailored ads. According to the VoiceBot.AI survey, 25% of respondents said that the daily grocery orders were mostly placed through voice-assistants. By looking at all these opportunities to generate more revenue, streaming audio platforms such as Soundcloud, Spotify, and Pandora have launched their applications with ad impressions.
Also, the number of people to pitch is growing fast, with an estimated 1.8 million smart speakers sold last year and 15.1 million expected yearly sales by 2020, according to researcher strategy analytics. Advertisers are observing voice-activated advertising as the gateway to behavior-based targeted consumer engagement.
Connected TV (CTV)
Over-the-Top (OTT) or CTV is a wireless or ethernet connected TV that can stream internet content like video or audio. Advertisers are now primarily investing in connected TV (new inventory becomes available, with YouTube, Hulu, and Roku) dominating the landscape. According to the eMarketer survey, CTV advertising will surpass $10 billion by 2021.
Demand-side platforms (DSP) are building up their ability to sell ads to TV networks programmatically, and, with the increased availability of high-speed(5G) wireless networks, mobile users are increasingly watching digital videos on their phones and tablets. After COVID-19, CTV advertising may rise more steeply as focus on e-trade and digitalization is increasing.
Header Bidding
In the ad world, most ads are picked and served on a publisher, based on priority; for example, the preference is given to pre-book an ad and then to others like RTB.
Header bidding is a new technique, and this is different from priority. On a web page, the header contains page metadata and script code. To display ads, script code executes and sends auction request to all demand partners. Therefore, header bidder auction takes place in the header of the page even before the page gets loaded on the publisher. This is different from RTB, where auction occurred for those inventories which remain unsold after pre-book; therefore, if we compare quality-wise, header bidder auctions for inventories, could be considered premium as these are accessed ahead of pre-book ads.
The Road Ahead
As artificial intelligence is growing in the programmatic landscape, advertisers have now started to contemplate the future for better results in advertising through different solutions and media. All the above channels aid in reaching the targeted audience and allow surprising customers with innovation.
