Advertisers can now get more granular in how they pair their ads with the precise contextual indicators within individual episodes thanks to CTV’s advanced targeting capabilities. According to a new study conducted by the Alliance for Video-Level Contextual Advertising (AVCA), an organization dedicated to funding research into the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) for contextual advertising in streaming, consumers pay nearly four times (3.9 times) more attention to ads that are hyper-relevant to the content they are watching.
The study, titled Driving Viewer Attention and Brand Metrics in CTV Ads, sought to determine how effective AI-enabled contextual targeting is at increasing ad relevance, viewer attention, and brand retention compared to current targeting methods (demo targeting and publisher-announced metadata.
“When we established the AVCA, our mission was to advance the knowledge and understanding of video-level contextual intelligence in order to deliver superior user experiences and the highest value for publishers and brands in ad-supported streaming environments,” said Rohan Castelino, CMO of IRIS.TV and Principal Member of the AVCA. “In our first study, we discovered that consumers respond better when the advertisements they see are relevant to the content they are watching.” Attention is a limited resource, and as CTV grows, advertisers must seek out deep contextual relevance to achieve a high return on ad spend.”
Contextual Segmented Ads are Recalled by Consumers AI-enabled contextually targeted ads attract and retain consumer attention, with 300% higher aided brand recall and double the unaided brand recall of ads targeted using standard demographic data and publisher-declared metadata such as keywords, genre, and rating.
The study also discovered that viewers of AI-enabled contextual targeting were less distracted, with 15% more total ad attention generated than ads targeted with demographic and publisher-declared metadata. In fact, 63% of respondents said they were more interested in AI-enabled contextually targeted ads.
As viewers were less likely to look away when programming transitioned into an ad break, nearly a quarter (22%) more AI-enabled contextually targeted ads were seen from the start.
“Hyper-relevance is critical for CTV engagement,” said Mike Renfro, Silverpush’s VP of Brand and Agency Partnerships. “When it comes to bidstream targeting, it’s all about hitting the bullseye with contextually aligned in-video moments, which is only possible with video-level pre-bid decisions.” A wealth of first-party audience data is useless if your ad goes unnoticed. AI precision ensures that your message reaches the right audience at the right time and in the right context.”
AI-enabled contextual targeting drives value for brands in CTV
Ads placed near relevant content can be a significant differentiator as brands understand the effectiveness of their campaigns and brand recognition among consumers:
- 42% of viewers said they were more interested in the brand and products
- 38% learned more about a product from AI-enabled contextually targeted ads.
“As advertisers continue shifting spend into CTV, the need for actionable, scalable video-level contextual solutions has become critical to improving transparency for buyers and increasing returns for programmers,” Amit Nigam, vice president of product at Beachfront, said. “These findings and insights from AVCA demonstrate that, when enriched with AI, contextual data is a powerful driver of key branding measures and an impactful means for capturing viewer attention.”
Poor brand fit reduces brand favorability
Despite the panel being aware that the content was mature comedy that frequently satirized serious situations, respondents expressed confusion and frustration with ad placements that they perceived as being out of line with the content, which led to favoring the negative brand. In one case, a scene in which the characters joke about a serious illness was followed by a pharmaceutical advertisement for a drug that treats serious illnesses.
“I feel like I’m almost going into my shell, pretending it didn’t happen,” said one respondent. “I think it would have more of a negative effect on how I would perceive the brand just because I don’t like to feel uncomfortable.”
When investigating how brand fit affects CTV viewers’ attention and perception:
- More than half of respondents (54%) were less interested in the brand and products featured in contextually misaligned advertisements.
- When an ad was placed in an inappropriate environment, more than one-third of viewers disliked the brand and paid less attention to it.
According to respondents, the generic nature of ads in those media was the least engaging and least inspiring. Respondents’ reactions to these ads were similar to those described as having poor brand fit, as they were likely to cause the ads to be turned off and rejected.
“Brands need to be more vigilant than ever about avoiding streaming content that could negatively impact their audience,” said Pixability CMO Matt Duffy. “At best, viewers don’t come out and money is wasted; at worst, half of them don’t like the brand.” The good news is that AI solutions now allow us to target and filter for nuanced brand fit, enabling brands to reach the right audience at the right time.”
“In CTV, contextual relevance is the biggest driver of viewer attention and brand perception, revealing that it’s more important for consumers to be ‘in the mood’ for a brand’s ads than actually being ‘in the market’ for their products,” concluded Castelino . . Brands need to integrate deeper content data sets into their targeting strategies to engage consumers in streaming.”