As more and more households make the shift over to digital streaming from traditional TV, AVOD (advertising-based video on demand) services are crucial for advertisers when it comes to reaching target audiences on the most premium household device, the connected TV (CTV).
As the global coronavirus pandemic relegates people to their homes, there is an overall increase in media consumption and in particular, consumption of streaming content. This creates more opportunity for agencies and media buyers to get in front of their target audience, especially with AVOD, as consumers develop subscription fatigue.
After all, why remain constrained to a single-channel, committed membership with pay-wall managed content when there are countless options and alternatives available for free? This logic holds true and is reflected in the sharp increase in AVOD streaming ad revenue seen in the second quarter of 2020.
How many different acronyms are there to keep track of? We get it. There’s a lot. But we have to throw a few more at you. Not to be confused with SVOD (subscription-based video on demand such as Netflix or HBOMax) or MVPD (multichannel video programming distributors such SlingTV, Hulu Live, Peacock ), AVOD refers to streaming services that require viewers to watch advertisements as part of the viewing experience. In other words, the content is not locked behind a paid paywall (or it might be a hybrid AVOD/SVOD, where there is a cheaper subscription cost that includes ads). As a result, the tradeoff accepted by consumers is advertising within episodes and between shows in exchange for free or discounted content.
If you have difficulty remembering the different acronyms, try to think of AVOD as “A for Available / Accessible” without monthly commitment. SVOD and MVPDs on the other hand generally have a subscription fee associated.
There are countless AVOD services available, but like all other inventory offered up to advertisers, some will be more desirable than others. The following are the services that Strategus has access to and stand behind as premium inventory. This list is not exhaustive and it will continue to grow into the future as the space matures.
If you’re confused by some of the names on this list, it’s important to emphasize that AVOD refers to the version that includes advertising as part of the viewing experience, this may still include a subscription fee or not. For example, Hulu offers a low-cost subscription version ($5.99 a month) that is not ad-free. Vudu on the other hand is a popular video streaming platform with an extensive library of content that is “free with ads” or you can buy/rent on a one-off basis. This is known as TVOD or transactional video on demand.
You may want to take a seat for this one. In terms of AVOD, programmatic OTT advertising is heaven-sent for marketers. Think about campaign planning–remember the days where you had to appeal to a wide audience just to try to have a chance at gaining the “eyeballs” of all the diverse consumers of your business? Or maybe you’ve lamented not being able to filter out the “noise” in the audience demographic when launching an ad campaign.
What if we told you that not only can we give you access to your exact, desired audience, but you are able to deliver your ads to only that audience? Read that slowly. Then read it again. Sounds nice right? Programmatic in terms of AVOD is a game changer; it’s fiber versus dial-up, it’s super-car versus horse and buggy It’s Oculus versus Atari… Well that may not make sense because Atari is pretty darn fun… Anyways, this advantage not only saves budget, but helps increase overall ROI and conversion. Let’s break this down a bit further:
Let’s talk about device inventory for a moment. In the current day and age, it is possible to stream content from a wide host of devices. When thinking about AVOD advertising, we have to emphasize that not all devices are equal. As a matter of fact, there is one device that reigns supreme over all others–the Connected TV. Commonly referred to as CTVs, these are the absolute premium device in the AVOD spectrum for a few key reasons;
Now that we know CTV is the crème de la crème of device options for AVOD advertising, a crucial item to keep in mind is ensuring the ads are both attributable and actionable. While it is great that ads are non-skippable on CTV, the downside is that they are not clickable, and therefore, not actionable.
Last, but not least, one of the most exciting aspects about AVOD advertising is the ability to hyper-target your audience. If you are not already doing this, you are losing out on one of the best technological perks that come with AVOD advertising. Think of AVOD as a turbocharged engine packed with features–it would be a real shame to let those unique tools go to waste!
We discussed having access to your exact, desired audience. The question is whether you’ve taken the time to narrow that audience down. Here are a few ways to truly refine your target viewers:
Given the economic uncertainty, there are a lot of consumers who are opting to save costs where they can by eliminating monthly subscriptions. But similarly, under the New Normal, consumers are also spending more time than ever before streaming content. AVOD is one of those bright spots during this time that marketers should be focusing on for their advertising strategy. If you are confused or have any questions about how to approach advertising on AVOD services, feel free to contact us today! We’d love to help with your next campaign.