Connected TV Ads on the Rise: 7 Trends & Changes Marketers Need to Know

Key Points:

• Connected TV offers advanced audience targeting and real-time performance tracking, making it easier to reach high-intent viewers and measure campaign success accurately.
• Lower entry costs and flexible programmatic buying allow marketers to quickly scale or adjust campaigns, removing barriers traditionally associated with TV advertising.
• Ad-supported streaming platforms like Netflix and Disney+ have expanded premium inventory access, giving smaller brands the chance to advertise alongside top-tier content.

Audiences have transformed their viewing habits. According to research from Leichtman Research Group, nearly 88% of U.S. households now own a Connected TV (CTV) device, whether it’s a smart TV, streaming stick or gaming console. Daily viewership is soaring too, with almost half of adults regularly watching content via CTV.

For marketers, this means new and powerful advertising opportunities are opening up beyond traditional TV. Whether you’ve experimented with Connected TV ads in the past or passed up the opportunity due to factors like cost and inventory, keep reading to understand why this may be a valuable option for your brand.

CTV has transformed TV advertising from a broad-reach approach to precise targeting. With CTV, advertisers can use rich data – such as consumer interests, purchase behaviors, demographics and even location – to reach your target audience.

Especially helpful for companies with tighter budgets, ad dollars can be spent more efficiently by focusing only on the audience segments most likely to convert.

One of the frustrations with traditional TV advertising has always been measurement and attribution. With CTV, this frustration is becoming a thing of the past.

Advertisers can track detailed metrics like ad views, frequency and engagement in real-time. CTV platforms also now offer attribution models that clearly link ad views to business outcomes, from online conversions to store visits. This shift is huge, providing marketers with clear evidence of campaign success.

CTV also solves another challenge marketers have long faced with traditional TV: cost and flexibility. Historically, TV ad buys required significant upfront investments and commitments – but not with CTV.

Marketers can now launch campaigns quickly, pause and adjust ad spend in real time and scale budgets up or down as needed. The entry cost is lower too, which means TV-quality advertising is now accessible even to marketers with smaller budgets.

Programmatic buying – automating ad purchases via software – has been a game-changer for digital advertising, and CTV is no exception. Marketers can now tap into programmatic CTV to efficiently scale campaigns, optimizing on the fly using real-time data. It streamlines the media buying process, giving you control, transparency and flexibility.

Perhaps the most exciting trend in CTV is the rapid growth of ad-supported streaming platforms. With giants like Netflix and Disney+ now offering ad-supported tiers, inventory has expanded dramatically, making premium placements accessible for brands of all sizes.

This means there are more opportunities for smaller brands to place ads within high-quality content previously available only to big-budget advertisers.

Ads on CTV generally appear on large, high-definition screens, providing a premium, engaging experience for viewers. As a marketer, leveraging this premium environment can boost your brand’s credibility and perceived value.

With nearly universal household reach, superior targeting, measurable outcomes and affordable entry points, CTV ads allow marketers to compete effectively against larger brands. CTV platforms have opened doors for marketers to compete at levels that were not available before.

If you’re not already exploring CTV, now is the time. You can stay connected on the latest digital trends by subscribing to our Thoughts from the 313 newsletter.

Ryan Solecki is a senior paid media specialist at Franco. Connect with him on LinkedIn.