OTT and CTV

Reach audiences on popular streaming services

Households in the US are increasingly cutting the cord and forgoing traditional cable TV services, making OTT/CTV one of the fastest-growing digital channels. Streaming services are accessed on TVs, laptops, tablets, and smartphones. For a deep dive into the history and future of over-the-top (OTT) and connected TV (CTV), check out our blog post here.

This trend toward streaming services creates an affordable opportunity to reach highly targeted audiences on streaming services. To do this, you’ll need video clips of about 15 – 30 seconds in duration. LNP’s team of digital experts can guide you through the choices related to this new marketing channel, and our video team can create the polished, high-impact videos you’ll need.

Connected TV Ad Spending in the US 2019-2024

What are OTT and CTV?

OTT

OTT is a service that goes ‘over-the-top’ of traditional TV providers (such as cable or satellite) by receiving content from the internet. OTT is a blended product that includes less expensive non-TV inventory. This is best when you want lower cost and higher ad frequency. CTV is one type of OTT, but OTT also includes less expensive web viewership on mobile, tablets, laptops, or computers.

CTV

A “connected TV” accesses the internet via a device such as Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire Stick, and game consoles, or through a built-in Smart TV interface (Sony, LG, Samsung, etc.). CTV is a premium product because campaigns include unskippable ads, live inventory, and episodic content.

CTV has advanced targeting, dynamic ad insertion, enhanced audience analysis, IAB standards and digital measurement. CTV ads are displayed on services such as FOX News, CNN, Pluto, HGTV, Lifetime, NBC and local apps and TV stations.

CTV does NOT include viewership on mobile, tablets, laptops, or computers.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of OTT and CTV?

CTV advantages:

  • Reaches people who have stopped their cable or satellite services
  • Unskippable ads
  • Viewers are engaged in an immersive watching experience

CTV disadvantages:

  • Ads can’t be clicked
  • Higher price ($40-$50 CPM)

OTT advantages:

  • Reaches people who have stopped their cable or satellite services
  • Clickable ads
  • People spend more time on their phones than on their CTV devices
  • More affordable than CTV ($25-$30 CPM)

OTT disadvantages:

  • Ads can be skipped
  • Viewers are engaged in a non-immersive (briefer) experience on average

What are the advantages and disadvantages of OTT and CTV?

CTV advantages:

  • Reaches people who have stopped their cable or satellite services.
  • Unskippable ads
  • Viewers are engaged in an immersive watching experience

OTT advantages:

  • Reaches people who have stopped their cable or satellite services.
  • Clickable ads
  • People spend more time on their phones than on their CTV devices
  • More affordable than CTV ($25-$30 CPM)

CTV disadvantages:

  • Ads can’t be clicked
  • Higher price ($40-$50 CPM)

OTT disadvantages:

  • Ads can be skipped
  • Viewers are engaged in a non-immersive (briefer) experience on average.

Important considerations

Targeting

Your LNP Media Group digital expert will work with you to determine the best targeting for your campaign. Targeting options include geography, day part, interests and demographics. Unfortunately, you cannot target based on the name of an actual show or series. Remember, you are buying access to an audience, wherever they may be watching.

Cost

If OTT and CTV are more than you want to spend, you can still test the waters with a campaign that blends some OTT with lower-cost pre-roll or geovideo advertising. Pre-roll has an average CPM of $10-$20, while geovideo has an average CPM of $16-$22. Our digital experts can help you determine the right mix for your budget.

Transparency

LNP Media Group’s digital experts will provide you with a full breakdown of the sites or apps where your videos will be shown. If your campaign was only intended to run on CTV, there will only be TV apps listed, not websites, and you will see zero clicks.

Reporting

We will provide you with detailed analytics for CTV and OTT campaigns. For OTT, the critical measure is clicks. For CTV, the critical measure is completes, and you should expect to see a complete rate of over 90% (the only ads that would not complete are those where the channel was changed or the TV was turned off).

Retargeting

Retargeting ads are a cost-effective way to extend the reach of your OTT campaign. Retargeting means that users who interacted with your ads will be shown your ads again, based on their behavior. This type of ad reinforces your brand message and keeps your products and services top-of-mind with consumers.

Why LNP Media Group?

LNP Media Group has the expertise and experience to take your website’s visibility to the next level. Our Google Certified team is committed to working with your business to provide hands-on attention every step of the way. When you partner with us, you’re ensured a transparent experience from a trustworthy company—if you succeed, so do we.

We’re a comprehensive marketing agency with strong local ties and an established presence. We help businesses of any size grow with our wide array of digital, video, and print marketing services. We offer a broad array of digital marketing services that can help you precision target exactly the right audience, from paid search marketing (PPC or pay-per-click) to email marketing and social media.

 

RESULTS MATTER

You want to be sure that you’re investing with a company that is knowledgeable and has a history of success. Our results speak for themselves; our clients love their experience with LNP Media Group. Check out our case studies for more examples of our clients’ successes.

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