Programmatic advertising has been buzzing in the media world for quite sometime now. A warranted frenzy, given that programmatic advertising has reshaped the way digital advertising is bought and used. While originally receiving market traction with direct response geared campaigns, programmatic has evolved to include technology-driven brand awareness campaigns.
For those reading who aren’t media planners and buyers, the process behind programmatic may seem more complicated than it actually is. Essentially, programmatic advertising uses technology to determine when an impression should be served across multi-screen online display, video and social placements. The technology behind programmatic allows ads to be optimized in real-time to serve advertisements to only the most responsive audiences with highly relevant messaging. Programmatic technology achieves this by creating a “lookalike” audience based on previous users who have converted to the campaign goal. It also guarantees that users who have not converted to campaign goals are being withdrawn from the impression pool so that impressions and budget are not wasted on uninterested users, allowing for a more efficient and cost-effective digital media buy.
Programmatic technology has also transformed the way media buyers work with media companies. Instead of talking to sales representatives, digital media buyers are working directly with media companies’ programmatic platforms online. Fundamentally this means using self serve online platforms to purchase advertisement placements directly—a foreign concept to many media buyers. This year programmatic advertising is projected to make up 67% of digital display advertising, with that number expected to grow to a staggering 72% in 2017. Given its efficiency, the programmatic format of media buying is already making its way into other media types, including television, outdoor and print.
All of the attention surrounding programmatic advertising has not been without concern—the most pressing of which have been centered around potential fraud and ad misplacement. While this does draw strong caution to the media planning process, the overall benefits of programmatic advertising most certainly outweigh the negatives. This technology is not only cost and time efficient, but it allows for greater and more targeted audience reach. CHIEF’s in-house media planning team has been on the frontlines of the programmatic magic and is excited about future advancements in the world of media planning and buying.
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