It is quite likely that you’ve spent a lot of time online glued to a device over the past year, and that is perfectly understandable. Many of us have turned to technology to cope with the isolation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, leading us to explore new forms of media as a result. Connected television (TV), which enables smart TVs and other devices to stream digital content, is one media format that has accordingly exploded in popularity.

CTV’s captive audience is continuing to grow exponentially as the changes brought about by the pandemic become increasingly permanent. This means that a huge advertising pool is to be found on couches and settees the world over, and thanks to the increased blurring of the work/home line, this audience is more susceptible to advertising targeted at businesses, not just customers. This represents an incredible advertisement opportunity, signalling that it is past time for B2B brands to reach out and find their audience via CTV advertising.

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The revolution will be televised on multiple devices

Conventional TV advertising is characterised by a broad approach, painting the intended target audience in large strokes rather than with fine points. Marketers who want to place adverts are limited by more than just their budget: they have to consider selecting an exact time slot for their content, and this offers very little in the way of potential reward relative to the time and cost required. One may as well cast a small fishing line into a rather large lake, as the effect is roughly the same.

For CTV advertising, the inverse is true, as it allows marketers to exercise greater freedom than previously possible in selecting key parameters like time slots, advert length, age visibility and others. This freedom allows B2B advertisers to really hone in on their targets and create niche, high quality content. In fact, the precision targeting offered by CTV represents a way to beam creatives to the exact target audience you’re looking for, making it more cost-effective without losing granularity on key demographic groups.

As CTV has a much wider demographic audience than other forms of media consumption, conventional advertising approaches can be ineffective. On paper, you may not think that high-income individuals, millennials, and media decision-makers would have much in common, but their high uptake of CTV unites them all. These are all key demographics involved in business decision making, as a B2B business can you afford to miss out on the opportunity to target them outside of the office?

Work screens, home screens, we’re all cross-platform

The other great advantage of CTV based targeted advertising is that it is truly cross-platform. Conventional TV ads would be placed on one of several possible channels, and that was it. You could choose a time slot, and stipulate you would not want your content to be viewed by children for example, but there wasn’t much else in the way of targeting.

CTV has removed this limitation as adverts can now be placed on conventional TVs, smartphones, tablets, laptops, or any other internet-connect device you can think of.The list is intensive and expanding with alacrity. This also opens up opportunities for retargeting ads, meaning you have several opportunities to land a potential customer and further reinforce your brand’s message. You can push forward ad content to potential customers and their businesses at all times of the day and night, whenever they interact with CTV-delivered content.

The old linear model of advertising does not apply to CTV ad content, and B2B marketers have ever increasing options to analyse how effective their content is. Whereas conventional TV ads were ‘fire and forget’, with CTV you can actively monitor how your ads are performing, tweak them accordingly, and improve them in real time. This makes identifying your key targets and potential new audiences much easier.

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Sometimes size really doesn’t matter

Traditional TV advertising occupies a premium space on the market and for many marketers it operates as something of a gold standard. Despite its age and limitations, linear TV marketing remains a high-cost affair.  CTV-based ads, on the other hand, are not only more cost-effective, they are more affordable too.

One of the most attractive benefits for B2B advertisers is that CTV is a relatively new platform, making it inexpensive despite the premium opportunity it offers. Even a small company can secure a decent placement for its advertising in a premium environment, and this, combined with the highly detailed targeting you’re able to achieve on CTV, makes advertising on this platform for B2B businesses highly desirable, and indeed, essential.

Thanks to the pandemic, the line between business and personal has blurred – allowing B2B marketers to advertise their products to a much greater extent. If you have decided that you want your business to join the CTV advertising revolution then we recommend you work with BidMind by Fiksu. The company is a leader in programmatic media buying and has dedicated support for B2B advertising on CTV.

BidMind is a media buying system combining high quality reporting and machine learning algorithms designed to maximize ad placement. It includes high level security, transparent reporting and committed customer support to provide a B2B advertising experience on CTV that’s efficient and profitable. Good luck on your CTV venture!

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