81 million. 

That’s the number of people consuming streaming media. Connected TVs and streaming sticks,  laptops, phones, and tablets – if it’s got an internet connection, more people are watching more video on it than ever before. 

So says Nielsen, which reported last month that for the first time, streaming viewership exceeded cable usage. That represents about 35% of total TV viewing in the U.S. It’s a massive 23% increase over last year. Expect this number to continue to increase. 

How much video consumption does it take to own such a large share of viewing? Consider that in July alone, 190.9 billion (with a B!) minutes of video were streamed…per week. 

Consumers have made their consumption preferences clear. Yet, many advertisers and brands have not embraced ad targeting on these platforms. 

Some don’t know how to get started. Others are perfectly satisfied with the returns they’re getting on other digital platforms. 

What’s clear is that the benefits of advertising on Connected TV are not yet widely appreciated by the brands and stakeholders that could benefit from it most. 

Streaming ad tides are turning

Look no further than stalwarts like Netflix for an example of how lucrative the streaming ads opportunity has become. Netflix famously (infamously, even), shunned ads for years as it pioneered streaming to the masses. They laughed off the idea of injecting ads. They said it would negatively impact the subscriber experience. And as soon as November of this year, they are poised to launch a full ad-supported tier. 

Consumers won’t just tolerate this change, they are asking for it. In virtually every other corner of their digital lives, they’re used to exchanging their attention or info for the content they want. 

So why should video be any different? 

Not only will this boost revenues for streaming services like Netflix, we may see the streaming and cable viewing gap widen even further as consumers who were previously priced out of $10+ per month offerings finally join the masses of streaming viewers. 

It goes without saying then that advertisers that are not taking advantage of this medium are increasingly missing out on a huge potential opportunity. And a huge audience they may not be reaching on other platforms. 

We are finding this is especially true for more local or regional brands that are maybe running TV spots on cable but not taking advantage of video opportunities on streaming. Or for brands that believe video-based spots are too expensive to create. The truth is, it’s never been more cost-effective to create a compelling video spot that can connect with viewers. 

Advertising on Connected TV combines the granular targeting of digital with the reach and impact of video. Remember, brand recall on Connected TV ads is also higher versus social media. 

For our customers, we’ve successfully combined our people-based approach driven by personally identifiable information (PII) data with the power of Connected TV’s reach to create a truly compelling offering we believe can no longer be ignored by brands with the resources to make the most of it. 

The proof is in the results

An online vehicle retailer we work with wanted to increase brand awareness and drive customers nationwide to an online destination via Connected TV and OTT. They had not previously taken advantage of programmatic advertising on these platforms and needed help getting started. 

Our target audience comprised consumers across the country who were Major League Baseball fans and big video streamers. Using our 100% opt-in, people-based audience, we strategically placed Connected TV ads during MLB games to people most likely to respond to the message. We combined this approach with geo-targeting and contextual targeting to reach people on Connected TVs, OTT services, Desktop, and Mobile. 

We ran a total of 24 Connected TV and OTT campaigns, delivering the retailer’s message to more than 600,000 people. The result was 200,000 website visits and a stunning video completion rate of 95.7% – fully 15% higher than what the client was expecting. 

It is still early days for Connected TV advertising but there has never been a better time to begin. How can we help you get started?