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Each month, Basis Technologies’ Programmatic 101 series tackles a different facet of programmatic advertising—from best practices for buyers, to competitors in the space, to trends you should know.
Thanks to consumer demand for both privacy in advertising and relevant and personalized ad messaging, contextual targeting is having a moment. With 61% of advertisers expecting to see an increase in buy-side budgeting for contextual-based campaigns, it's important for marketers to understand how this targeting method works, as well as the benefits it offers.
Ready to get clear on all things contextual? Let's dive in:
Contextual targeting is a tactic that allows advertisers to target according to the content of a webpage, instead of according to user IDs or behavioral data. Contextual segments are categorized based on the keywords found in the digital spaces where consumers spend time, or the topics that characterize those spaces. For example, if you’re served an ad about paint products while reading an article about the best way to paint smooth walls, you were served a contextual ad.
Contextual targeting can be utilized for a full funnel strategy: It's often leveraged to drive awareness of a new brand or product, increase creative engagement, and drive traffic to an advertiser’s website.
When an advertiser uses contextual targeting, the content of the ad aligns with the content of the website. In contrast, behavioral targeting leverages a web user's past browsing behavior to serve relevant ads.
For example, if you Googled "holiday gifts for my dog," and were later shown an ad for puppy pajamas, that ad was served to you via behavioral targeting.
Let's dig into some of the top benefits of contextual targeting:
Unlike other types of targeting that prioritize user behavior or past website actions, contextual targeting focuses on content, which allows advertisers greater control over where their ads show up—and more importantly, where they don’t show up.
Consumers are more comfortable with contextual than other forms of targeting, as it's easy to understand how the ads are served, and feels like less of a privacy violation as a result. As marketers prepare for the eventual demise of third-party cookies, contextual targeting offers a tried-and-tested, cookie-free solution that brands can (and should!) start testing and refining now.
Contextual targeting is more cost-efficient than behavioral targeting when it comes to cost-per-click (CPC), cost-per-viewable impression (vCPM), and cost per thousand impressions (CPM). This targeting tactic can also offset the higher data fees that come with first- and third-party data.
Contextual targeting is a fantastic solution for advertisers trying to reach audience segments that are unique or hard to define based on website actions. For example, if you're a hot dog brand trying to find relish enthusiasts or a cannabis brand who wants to reach indie festival attendees, contextual targeting allows the granularity needed to build these custom segments.
As a result of more and more advertisers tapping into this tactic, contextual is evolving. Publishers are using technology to decipher the context of both images and videos in order to add additional scale for advertisers, and advertising platforms are leveraging AI to understand the sentiment of online articles to further help brands decide where they should run their display and video ads.
The takeaway for advertisers? This targeting tactic isn't going anywhere—and it will continue to develop and mature as we move towards a more privacy-friendly world.
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Want to become even more of a contextual targeting expert? Get certified with AdTech Academy's contextual targeting certification!
The financial services industry is undergoing massive disruption.
The growing presence of innovative fintech and big tech companies, rising consumer demand for more efficient ways to manage finances, and tightening regulatory attitudes—not to mention inflation and rising interest rates—are all impacting how media buyers can operate in the finserv landscape. To chart a path through the current fog of uncertainty and position for a bright future, financial marketers should lean on smarter operational efficiency and focus on regulatory compliance.
Here are two trends to watch for:
The advancement of targeting and measurement mechanisms will impact channel planning within the prospect ecosystem in a big way. Take connected TV (CTV), for example—a channel that has historically been used for awareness and enhancing brand perception. Now, as we move into 2023, financial institutions that can pair sound data utilization infrastructure with advanced measurement capabilities will set themselves up to bifurcate CTV strategies in a way that delivers both awareness and acquisition. And this can just be a starting point—it is an approach that can easily expand into programmatic, video, social, and other addressable media vehicles.
Another significant area of interest in financial services is the intensifying scrutiny on targeting mechanisms within digital media. This comes on the back of a recent Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ruling that holds digital advertisers and service providers liable when digital media targeting may violate practices outlined in the Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA). It highlights the need for finserv companies to be in lockstep with their agencies to ensure they are reviewing and approving audience targeting strategies with the same rigor as communications and messaging.
So, what should finserv advertisers be thinking about heading into 2023? In short: by harnessing the right measurement technology and taking a customer-obsessed approach to targeting, financial institutions can maneuver to gain a competitive advantage and win consumer trust.
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Want to learn about some of the macro trends affecting digital marketing more generally? Check out our 2023 Trends Report to stay ahead of the curve as you plan for the year ahead.
There’s no getting away from it: the restaurant and dining industry has a tough road ahead.
A perfect storm of labor shortages, rising costs, and supply chain issues has created an extremely difficult operating environment. Brands will need to be careful when addressing these challenges, doing so in ways that avoid dampening what valuable consumer demand there is.
In such an unpredictable landscape, how can (and should) restaurant and dining advertisers plan ahead? Here are three places to start:
Thoughts differ on whether inflation will affect the restaurant category in 2023. While some research shows consumers want to cut back on dining out, other sources, including consumer surveys, indicate the opposite. This suggests that consumers may trade down from more expensive, “fine dining” establishments and instead turn to lower-priced options like quick-serve restaurants (QSRs) and fast-casual outlets. As a result, getting people in the door will cost a bit more, but once they’ve come through, you should invest in retargeting and retention strategies to get them back and increase frequency.
In 2020, many consumers embraced food and grocery app adoption for the first time out of sheer necessity. Now, two-to-three years on, it’s an ingrained behavior. To take full advantage of this, advertisers should put a spotlight on their apps—give them some dedicated attention—and ensure they are meeting consumers’ in-app needs and expectations. In doing so, diners will be more likely to download it, use it, and, over time, develop brand loyalty.
Moving forward, balancing in-store versus online will be increasingly important. Digital ordering campaigns are currently experiencing higher average order values (AOVs), meaning you’re getting more bang for your buck when you invest in advertising strategies designed to get consumers to order online. Both restaurants and consumers are expected to continue to rely upon digital ordering in 2023, so it would be prudent to have online-first strategies in place across the board.
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Want to learn about some of the macro trends affecting digital marketing more generally? Check out our 2023 Trends Report to stay ahead of the curve as you plan for the year ahead.
It’s plane plain to see: Travel is taking flight once again!
As other verticals are reconsidering their ad spending, travel is maintaining its momentum, with brands upping their digital ad budgets by 22.5% in 2022 and expected to increase them by another 20.0% in 2023 (and then a further 15.3% through 2024). Although this growth is obviously pegged against a dramatic Covid-fueled collapse in 2020-2021, no other industry is projected to amplify its advertising investment comparatively to travel over the next two years.
The reason? Brands are continuing to tap into pent-up travel demand. Last year, travel-related movement around the US only partially returned to normal with the Delta and Omicron variants disrupting many vacation plans and preventing travel’s full circle rebound. Today, though, digital travel sales are back to where they were pre-pandemic.
Still, there are plenty of obstacles that may yet rear their heads—including rising gas prices, inflation, and economic uncertainty—so it’s important for travel advertisers to stay aware of macro factors and be ready to pivot accordingly.
When it comes to trends to know for the year ahead, there are three standouts:
It’s no secret that green initiatives are a hot topic in travel. Seven in 10 consumers have avoided a travel destination or transportation option due to skepticism around its commitment to sustainable practices. With such high stakes, supporting and actively engaging in eco-friendly and ethical practices can no longer be an afterthought for travel brands. Those that make bold moves now and then market their activities in a way that is thoughtful and genuine (i.e. no greenwashing) have the potential to become leaders in this niche—but extremely important—subset of the travel industry.
Travel advertisers should also look to prioritize digital promotions, influencer campaigns, and loyalty programs to keep consumers engaged during key windows of opportunity. The latter will be especially critical in response to increasing cost of living pressures. Brands have an opportunity to show empathy by acknowledging economic stressors affecting spending behaviors and demonstrating how they can add value in different ways. And, as a bonus, this will help foster long-term brand loyalty among price-conscious consumers.
The travel industry has traditionally been a non-conformist when it comes to its spending distribution across ad channels and formats, and that trend will continue into 2023. Indeed, less than 40% of all digital ad spending in the US will go to search ads in 2023, yet for the travel industry, that share is projected to sit at 55.2%. Travel’s emphasis on search is a logical consequence of how consumers plan their trips—typically doing so through multiple phases of research incorporating dozens of websites. Media buyers will need to maintain a strong search presence in order to capture audience attention as they poke around, and they should emphasize video placements on those platforms to help reignite people’s wanderlust.
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Want to learn about some of the macro trends affecting digital marketing more generally? Check out our 2023 Trends Report to stay ahead of the curve as you plan for the year ahead.
B2B marketing has been going through a digital transformation for over a decade now. But during the pandemic, digital platforms became nothing less than critical to the survival of businesses, allowing them to continue connecting with buyers and consumers.
This need was, and continues to be, reflected in the shifting patterns of ad spending. In 2019, 71.0% of B2B advertising investments went to traditional media outlets. By 2024, however, that share will drop to 51.0%, and trend lines suggest this number will slip below 50% for the first time ever in 2025. Even as staples of pre-pandemic B2B activity have returned—think trade shows, conferences, speaking engagements, etc.—budgets for digital have still been steadily increasing.
Here’s how those industry shifts translate into B2B advertising trends in 2023:
Workers are returning to US offices at the highest rate since they were temporarily shuttered in 2020—a movement playing out against a backdrop of falling infection rates and intensifying “back-to-office” efforts from business leaders. There are geographic nuances to this, though, and corporate policies vary considerably. Case in point: East Coast professionals are returning at higher rates than their West Coast counterparts—research shows traffic to offices in downtown Manhattan increased by 53% over the 12-month period ending July 2022, while offices in downtown Los Angeles only saw a 21% visitation growth in that time.
What does this mean for advertising? In short, targeted audience strategies and an omnichannel media presence will be key to reaching business decision-makers wherever they’re working.
With digital channels like video, connected TV, and podcasts now seeing mass adoption, how can B2B advertisers continue to innovate? One way is to focus on new ways to distribute branded content at scale. LinkedIn Document Ads, for example, allow advertisers to promote long-form content directly in their audience’s LinkedIn feeds (and they’re compatible with lead generation forms). Savvy B2B advertisers should also keep a watchful (but far off) eye on emerging technologies—are there opportunities to experiment with your B2B products and services in extended reality or the metaverse? Use cases there could include virtual events and conferences, remote assistance, and immersive training.
With an economic slowdown in the forecast, spending plans should account for growth while focusing on optimization and resilience. B2B media buyers should look to invest in more relevant and reliable customer data to help sharpen audience targeting strategies and shift budgets into higher-yielding tactics with proven value. The outlook for 2023 will ultimately demand technology that is fine-tuned for efficiency, which equates to increasing the use of machine learning and algorithmic decision-making.
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Want to learn about some of the macro trends affecting digital marketing more generally? Check out our 2023 Trends Report to stay ahead of the curve as you plan for the year ahead.
Online healthcare delivery soared in 2020, and health and pharma advertising budgets followed suit. Digital ad spend will reach $15.84 billion in 2022, and although growth is slowing down, the category is still estimated to approach nearly $20 billion in spending through 2024.
As we look to the future, one of the biggest topics in healthcare is going to continue to be—yep, you guessed it!—privacy. And while this isn't anything new, there are two sides to the privacy coin for marketers to consider.
On one side: more and more people are prioritizing their data privacy rights. This means it's critical that healthcare marketers have the framework to manage consumer privacy as demands continue to intensify. If a consumer were to come to your brand directly and ask to be removed from your marketing lists, do you have the processes in place to make that happen? If not, then it is critical you establish the infrastructure you’ll need to comply with these requirements—especially as privacy regulations continue to strengthen.
And, on the other side of the coin: consumers are increasingly willing to have very vulnerable, very sensitive discussions about their health and wellness on social media. Of course, this has been a common practice for a long time, yet historically these conversations have been peer-to-peer. But with growth in TikTok communities such as #medtok and #doctok, they are now also happening between peers and providers. People are using social platforms to educate themselves and engage in specific health topics, so this creates an opportunity to engage users in a very direct way. Also, it’s worth noting that this doesn't mean your brand needs to have a “cool” TikTok presence. It just means that your paid content should have an authentic and relatable voice that matches the tone of the communities themselves.
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Want to learn about some of the macro trends affecting digital marketing more generally? Check out our 2023 Trends Report to stay ahead of the curve as you plan for the year ahead.
As we head into 2023, the big topic for consumer-packaged goods (CPG) brands is retail media networks and how they are going to affect budget allocations.
Retail media is an area of advertising that is just beginning to realize its potential: After two banner years in 2021 and 2022, US digital retail media ad spending is expected to continue its meteoric ascent into 2023, growing 25.8% to $51.36 billion—accounting for more than 18% of total digital ad spend. Dozens of retail media networks have come onto the market in recent years, with virtually every leading digital marketplace, mass merchandiser, national grocery chain, category-specific retailer, and delivery provider getting into the game.
Here are three considerations CPG advertisers should make as they leverage retail media networks:
Interest in retail media is driven by the promise that brand advertisers can access their troves of first-party shopper data to better target and measure ad campaigns, all while placing messages closer to the point of sale. The question, then, is how you can utilize that valuable consensual data to better engage consumers so you can build out your own zero and first-party data collection strategies? This is a critical piece of the advertising puzzle in the cookieless future present.
One of the big problems facing CPG brands right now is how to finance each network. Think about ways you can create mutually beneficial programs with your partners across brand, product, and sales so that funding can come from each group as opposed to straight out of the marketing budget. Another option: shifting ad dollars from channels on which you would normally do direct buys.
Evaluating whether and how to use a retail media network should depend on your brand’s needs. Do you simply need coverage at the point of sale? Are you looking to create a comprehensive omnichannel experience using the network’s audience data across display and social? What level of analysis into ROAS, SKU-level sale data, and digital shelf optimization do you need? Identifying the solutions that will create holistic campaigns across multiple channels and retailers will enable your dollars to stretch further.
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Want to learn about some of the macro trends affecting digital marketing more generally? Check out our 2023 Trends Report to stay ahead of the curve as you plan for the year ahead.
With supply chain issues delaying delivery of key parts and curbing new car manufacturing, the automotive industry slammed the metaphorical brakes on at the beginning of the pandemic. But its engines never ceased running, and now we find ourselves entering arguably the most dynamic and expansive period the vertical has ever seen, with electric mobility, new direct-to-consumer (D2C) brands, and evolving consumer behavior joining forces to make major impacts.
And so, despite near-term challenges (less affordability, rising interest rates, and tight supply), there are myriad reasons to be optimistic in 2023, all of which should trigger more advertising investment:
The question, then, is how will these industry trends shape advertising trends moving forward?
First and foremost, brands will need to make their electric cars the stars. Fifty-two percent of car buyers say they would prefer an EV for their next purchase, so advertisers will need to prioritize creating awareness for these products and educating consumers about the benefits of electric mobility as they communicate their EV story. Both brands and dealers will also need to find ways to usher in EVs without cannibalizing the traditional gas-powered vehicle buyer.
Second, robust retargeting strategies will be key. Consumer behavior is shifting rapidly in this space, with more choices leading to more cross-shopping between models and ultimately less brand loyalty. To take advantage of these movements and accelerate into a position of strength, advertisers should focus on implementing powerful, future-proof audience segmentation strategies that will empower them to target engaged consumers effectively.
And one final thought as you consider media planning for 2023: Traditional automotive in-market segments will look different than in years past—mainly due to inventory and cost factors that are extending buying cycles. The path to purchase will likely be much longer than at any time previously, and to find the right consumer, automotive brands and dealers would do well to build a first-party data stockpile that can drive better results.
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Want to learn about some of the macro trends affecting digital marketing more generally? Check out our 2023 Trends Report to stay ahead of the curve as you plan for the year ahead.
The higher education marketing landscape is changing. Why? Online learning.
People of all ages are embracing cost-friendly digital courses to learn new skills that can help them navigate today’s evolving world of work. From major colleges and universities to online education giants to newer nondegree providers, institutions of all kinds are grappling for a share of this lucrative market—packing even more players onto what was already a crowded playing field. As competition soars, education providers (both traditional and emerging) must be bolder and more innovative when looking to connect with prospective students in 2023.
And where better to start than TikTok, the social app of the moment and a favorite tool of Gen Z (a crucial audience segment for this industry)? When advertising on TikTok, keep in mind that you will want to reframe the way you think about creative—steer away from making an ad, per se, and instead craft content that feels organic to the platform. You’ll also want to tap into the value of student ambassadors. Find students at your institution who are already making great content and let them do some of the creative work for you. Once you have your content strategy in place, put a paid media campaign behind it to maximize impact and ensure it reaches the right audience.
Speaking of which: don’t forget to target parents and education-related influencers like guidance counselors and coaches. And remember to adjust your messaging for each audience—for instance, for parents, focus on value-driven factors such as career services, job placement rate at graduation, financial aid, and/or scholarship opportunities. Then in terms of recruiting graduate students, one of the biggest barriers to enrollment is the cost of tuition, so consider targeting prospective students who have built-in financial assistance. One way to do this? Geo-fence the corporations in your city that offer tuition reimbursement to their employees.
Next, think full-funnel media strategy. Paid search and Meta remain the top conversion drivers for colleges tracking form fills (i.e. campus visit registrations, application starts, etc.). But when it comes to upper funnel platforms, which drive search demand and fuel the retargeting pool, focus on Snapchat and TikTok for undergraduate programs and LinkedIn for graduate programs.
Finally, programmatic advertising is still a surefire bet. Social media platforms are slowly removing targeting options (most notably Meta), but you can make up for that by serving programmatic ads to your hyper-targeted audiences, and then retargeting the users who engage with those ads (and their lookalikes) on other platforms.
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Want to learn about some of the macro trends affecting digital marketing more generally? Check out our 2023 Trends Report to stay ahead of the curve as you plan for the year ahead.