This document provides best practices for digital video advertising. It discusses defining objectives for video campaigns such as branding, direct response, or reach. It also covers optimizing campaigns for different platforms and screens, including mobile, connected TVs, and tablets. The document emphasizes the importance of metrics like viewability and shareability for measuring success. It also notes that programmatic buying is a growing trend but still lacks premium video inventory.

1. © 2015 eMarketer Inc.
Best Practices in Digital Video
Advertising
Paul Verna
Senior Analyst
February 26, 2015
Made possible by

2. © 2015 eMarketer Inc.
15. Define your objective

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15. Define your objective
 Branding - sweet spot for video ads
 Direct response - works in a growing number of scenarios
 Reach - TV still rules, but more video platforms now offer
comparable scale
 Frequency - digital platforms are well suited for this, but
beware of too much frequency
 Opt in - great for trying to drive a specific outcome with a
captive audience (i.e., gamers)
 App installs - video ads are effective in driving downloads

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15. Define your objective: takeaway
 In most cases, your decision will be an open-and-shut
case for a branding play, but don’t overlook the other
possibilities that digital video advertising now offers,
particularly direct response through interactivity.

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14. Pick your spot

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14. Pick your spot

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14. Pick your spot: takeaway
 Use any option that makes sense for your campaign, but
resist the temptation to create an ad for every use case.

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13. Pick your venue

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13. Pick your venue
“ Demand a full list of placements, not
just an anecdotal one. You have to
best define exactly where you
want your video ads to run.”
—Bettina Hein, founder and CEO of
Pixability

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13. Pick your venue
“ With almost all of our clients, a
stronger sales correlation exists for
targeted buys on premium TV-like
digital sites. And I am comparing this
to tonnage—Tier 2 or Tier 3 digital
inventory. The rub is that with
premium TV inventory, CPM is
significantly higher than with
the tonnage media.”
—Megan Tweed, VP of media at Razorfish

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13. Pick your venue

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13. Pick your venue: takeaway
 Decide whether you want your ad to run in a premium or a
remnant-type environment, and then clearly spell out the
specific venues.

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12. Pick your pricing plan

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12. Pick your pricing plan
 CPM - still the leading way to buy, but is it right for you?
 CPC - not always best for video, but worth considering
 CPE - how do you and the publisher define engagement?
 CPV - if a tree falls in the forest …
 CPA - like CPC, worth considering if sharing is a goal
 PPP - you don’t pay unless your ad performs, but how do
you define performance?
 Fixed Cost – for when you really believe in the platform

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12. Pick your pricing plan: takeaway
 Align your pricing plan with your objectives, ad types and
venues. The bigger your campaign, the greater the
likelihood you’ll want to use multiple approaches.

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11. Know your audience

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11. Know your audience
 73% of US millennial
internet users watched
digital TV in 2014
 Nearly half of them
watched more than 4
hours per week
 45% of US Gen X and
boomer internet users
watched digital video
 The tables were turned
when it came to linear TV

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11. Know your audience
 13% of millennial US
internet users watched
TV content via digital
only, compared with 5%
among the 35-to-54 group
 Older users were more
likely to watch TV
content exclusively via
traditional TV

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11. Know your audience: takeaway
 True to stereotype, millennials are voracious consumers
of digital TV content and advertising. Older generations
gravitate toward traditional screens but still spend lots of
time on digital video. Use these and other demographics
insights to your advantage.

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10. Use the right targeting
parameters

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10. Use the right targeting parameters
“We care about the context of
the video and where the
player is housed. We’re also
doing demo targeting by age, gender
and ethnicity. We’re doing contextual
with channels and keywords. We’re
doing location by the [designated
market area].”
—Megan Tweed, VP of media at Razorfish

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10. Use the right targeting parameters:
takeaway
 Pay attention to the context of your ad and tailor your
targeting parameters to your audience characteristics.

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9. Zero in on metrics that
make sense

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 There is a huge
difference of
opinion between
US ad buyers
and sellers on
whether
viewability
standards are
adequate.
9. Zero in on metrics that make sense: viewability

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9. Zero in on metrics that make sense: viewability
“Viewability has very quickly
bubbled up as a key targeting
component for a transaction on the
programmatic side. Forget about who
you’re trying to reach. Was the video
player even on the screen to begin
with?”
—Todd Pasternack, VP of digital innovation
and product strategy at PointRoll

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9. Zero in on metrics that make sense: shareability
“ Completion and shareability are
strongly correlated. You don’t
share what you’ve not seen
entirely.”
—Benoit Radenne, global digital media
manager at Evian Danone

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9. Zero in on metrics that make sense: internal
data
“ We’re looking for silver bullets, one
overall measurement—like television
has GRPs [gross rating points] that
everyone subscribes to. Don’t wait.
Your data are your internal
measurements, and those can
be extended into media
measurements. If you go down
that road, it won’t be easy, but they’ll
be happy discoveries.”
—Matt Timothy, president of VINDICO

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9. Zero in on metrics that make sense: tracking
“If the campaign is
underdelivering, [publishers
and DSPs] don’t want an
advertiser to know that during
the course of the campaign.
They’re trying to adjust for it and they
don’t want advertisers to have total
visibility.”
—Mark Marvel, director of video and mobile
sales strategy at Time.com

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9. Zero in on metrics that make sense:
takeaways
 Measure anything that’s relevant to your campaign using
internal and third-party toolsets. Take a “trust but verify”
approach toward publishers and DSPs when it comes to
ad visibility.

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8. Have realistic
expectations

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8. Have realistic expectations
“ Be flexible with online video. You can’t do it
as a TV buy, but you can’t hold it as
accountable as you would other online
display. Video is at a disadvantage, [but]
because it’s an online buy it must be held
accountable. And yet, how do you truly
measure the impact on people’s
perceptions when being exposed to
a pre-roll video?”
—Matthew Waghorn, communications planning
director at Huge

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8. Have realistic expectations
“ For a national brand message, brand
safety is really important in aligning
with premium content. So having that
level of control is important for us.”
—Carrie Murray, manager of digital media at Audi

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8. Have realistic expectations: takeaways
 Digital video is somewhere between TV and other forms
of digital. Video won’t deliver the mass reach of TV or the
detailed metrics of display. Accept this limitation, but
don’t let it steer you away from video.

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7. Go native

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7. Go native: more than 75% of US publishers’
native advertising offerings include video
 This highlights the
importance of
video in the native
ad space

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7. Go native: social media

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7. Go native: video sharing, news, entertainment

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7. Go native: format grew partly out frustrations
with pre-roll and display ads
“ Marketers are interested in a new
opportunity to distribute video beyond
pre-roll and display. Pre-roll is
interruptive and display just wasn’t
getting the attention or engagement,
so native evolved out of that
need for a new format.”
—Chris Schreiber, VP of marketing and
communications at Sharethrough

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7. Go native: takeaways
 The train is leaving the station. You can still jump on
board, but if you don’t move quickly you’ll be left behind.

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6. Embrace emerging
video ad platforms

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6. Embrace emerging video ad platforms: social

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6. Embrace emerging video ad platforms: media

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6. Embrace emerging video ad platforms: devices

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6. Embrace emerging video ad platforms:
takeaways
 You don’t need to be on every software platform, app or
device that carries video advertising. Be selective and
use the same criteria that guided your decisions about
objectives, ad types, venues and pricing plans.

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5. Get with the
program(matic)

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 US programmatic video
ad spending will grow by
more than 200% this year
and over 75% next year
 By 2016, programmatic
will account for 40% of
US digital video ad
spending
5. Get with the program(matic)

47. © 2015 eMarketer Inc.
5. Get with the program(matic)
 In 2015,
programmatic
video will
experience more
growth than any
other ad type

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5. Get with the program(matic): quality matters
“The buy side is getting more
sophisticated when it comes
to traffic quality and
viewability. To the extent that the
exchanges don’t make similar
investments in their own quality,
they’re going to find there’s less and
less demand out there. Ultimately,
they’ll find themselves priced out of
market.”
—John Murphy, VP of marketplace quality
at OpenX

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5. Get with the program(matic): OTT before TV
“ This year, we’ll see real
auctions running inside of many of
the apps that sit inside your Roku,
your Amazon Fire or your Apple TV.”
—Jeff Green, CEO of The Trade Desk

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5. Get with the program(matic): caveats
 Interest is high, but inventory remains small
 Most programmatic video inventory is in the exchanges
and isn’t premium stuff
 Premium inventory remains with sellers who are
reluctant to put it into the programmatic marketplace
 Those who get premium video inventory often go through
programmatic direct and private marketplace deals
 Programmatic will make up 40% of US video spending in
2016, but video will be less than 20% of programmatic

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5. Get with the program(matic): takeaways
 Programmatic is a growing trend in digital video
advertising, thus something marketers should consider.
But there are caveats, including lack of quality inventory.

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4. Make every screen
count

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4. Make every screen count: TV + digital video
“ As a cross-media planner, if you’re
able to sequence [TV and video]
together, you can have them
working in unison—one for
reach, one for frequency. TV
advertising typically raises the profile
and creates a lot of impact. Then it’s
supplemented by high frequency,
much cheaper inventory bought
through video networks.”
—Matthew Waghorn, communications
planning director at Huge

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4. Make every screen count: a nuanced approach
“ There’s a lot of attention right now on
a holistic approach to video, but there
are individual purposes each screen
can serve. Rather than having broad
strokes, where you collect the same
data from every single platform, you
need to have nuanced
measurement, too—an idea of
how you see each platform
playing out in your mix.”
—Megan Tweed, VP of media at Razorfish

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 Connected TV
households are
on a steep
growth track
 By 2018, over
75% of US
households
will have a
connected TV
4. Make every screen count: connected TV

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 Growth in US
tablet video
viewers will level
off, but still rise
by double digits
this year
 By 2019,
two-thirds of US
tablet users will
watch video on
those devices
4. Make every screen count: tablets

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 In the US,
smartphone
video viewers
are more
numerous and
growing faster
than tablet
video viewers
4. Make every screen count: smartphones

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4. Make every screen count: takeaways
 Sometimes a holistic approach to TV + digital makes
sense; other times looking at each screen on a granular
level is best. Either way, usage of most digital screens
continues to grow.

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3. Optimize

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 In 2015, mobile
will make up about
one-third of US
digital video ad
spending
 By 2018, mobile’s
share will be
nearly 50%
3. Optimize: US mobile video ad spending

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3. Optimize
“ We used to think of mobile as a nice-to-
have. We’d optimize for the desktop
and if we could do something for
mobile, that was great. No more. We
have to think about mobile first. It’s
important to make sure content
is optimized for whatever device
people may be using, whether it’s a
smartphone or a tablet. It’s not a nice-
to-have anymore. It’s a requirement.”
— Laura Powers, head of global social media
marketing at Cisco

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3. Optimize: takeaways
 Mobile video advertising makes up one-third of all US
digital video advertising and will grow to nearly 50% of
the total by 2018. Mobile and desktop are on equal
footing in their importance to marketers, publishers and
consumers.

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2. To autoplay or not to
autoplay?

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2. To autoplay or not to autoplay?
“ The autoplay feature lets someone
get a little snippet of what you’re
offering, and it really brings people in.
We love it as a brand.”
—Katie Fischer, US media manager for
Beam Suntory

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2. To autoplay or not to autoplay?
 “A video impression shoved down someone’s throat
unwillingly is hardly the same as a standard in-stream ad
that is shown as part of a quid pro quo for accessing
content.” —Josh Sternberg, senior editor at Digiday Content Studio
 “It concerns me that autoplay video is evolving into the
industry norm, as it ultimately damages the brands of
publishers and marketers alike.” —Jen Sargent, CEO and co-founder
of HitFix, writing in MediaPost

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2. To autoplay or not to autoplay? Takeaways
 Autoplay has its benefits, but if consumers really dislike
the ads, your message could backfire. The verdict? Let’s
see how consumer survey data shakes out.

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1. Forget everything I said

68. © 2015 eMarketer Inc.
1. Forget everything I said
 Every best practice is subject to factors that vary from
one marketer, agency or campaign to the next.
 There is no right answer when it comes to choosing the
type of ad, the places where it runs, how it’s bought, how
it’s targeted, how it’s measured, how it’s optimized for
different screens, whether it auto-plays, or whether it
matters if it’s viewed to completion, shared or ‘liked.’
 The only thing that matters is your ability to connect with
your customer. Video is a great way to do it, and you have
more options at your disposal than ever before.

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The ‘Top 15 List’ in a nutshell
15. Define your objective
14. Pick your spot
13. Pick your venue
12. Pick your pricing plan
11. Know your audience
10. Use the right targeting
parameters (for you)
9. Zero in on metrics that
make sense (to you)
8. Be realistic
7. Go native
6. Embrace emerging video
ad platforms
5. Explore programmatic
4. Make every screen count
3. Optimize (for mobile)
2. Be careful with autoplay
1. Forget everything I said!

70. We are a programmatic
advertising company,
purpose-built for the
marketer.
MEET CHANGO

71. Better targeting
cross-device
Improved
performance
Data and insights
about target
market
Cost
efficiencies
WHY CHANGO
Source: based on the responses from 232 marketers to Brand Innovators – Chango programmatic pulse, November 2014

72. WHAT WE DO
Video
Mobile
Facebook
& Twitter
Display
AdsYour
Customers
Use data to target your audience
across their journey

73. HOW WE DO IT
1ST PARTY/CRM DATA
+11
ONLINE
PURCHASES
+2
OFFLINE
PURCHASES
-7
LTV
SCOR
E
+1
LOYALTY
PROGRAM
+0
RECENCY
+7
FREQUENCY
+10
PURCHASE
INTENT
PURCHASE DATA
+14
SOCIAL
SIGNALS
SOCIAL DATA
+14
SOCIAL
REFERRAL URL
-3
SOCIAL
SHARES
DEMOGRAPHIC DATA
-5
LIFESTYLE
+4
CITY/
DMA
-5
INCOME
-12
OCCUPATIO
N
+8
AGE/
GENDER
+15
SEARCH
KEYWORD
S
+9
BROWSING
BEHAVIOR
INTENT DATA
-9
INTENT
+9
SITE
SEARCH
+25
INFERRED
SEARCH
+20
REFERRAL
URL
-13
WEBSITE
-1
SITE
CATEGORY
-2
SITE
ACTIONS
CONTEXTUAL/BEHAVIORAL DATA
+19
BROWSING
BEHAVIOR
+21
FREQUENCY
AT LOCATION
LOCATION BASED DATA (MOBILE ONLY)
+14
CURRENT
LOCATION
-3
MOBILE WEB
OR MOBILE
APP

74. WHY CHANGO
Chango serves ads to the qualified audience
Pre-Roll Ad
15-30 seconds
Companion
Banner
300x250px
Healthy baby food
HHI
$75K+
*Illustrative example of target audience
category based on 3rd
party demo data

75. © 2015 eMarketer Inc.
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Paul Verna
Best Practices in Digital Video
Advertising
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