Today’s video advertising space is growing rapidly, offering a variety of exciting opportunities for publishers. In fact, according to eMarketer, the US digital video advertising industry will increase by double-digit percentages annually between 2018 and 2021—eventually topping $22 billion.
Interested in staking a claim in the world of digital ads? You’re in luck! I pulled together some tips, tricks, and best practices below.
Getting started
When developing your video advertising strategy, you’ll need to take the following basic steps:
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Know your audience: In order to keep viewers engaged, you need to understand their interests, their location, and the types of devices they’re using.
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Create engaging video content: It’s important to remember that your content must be compelling enough that your audience is willing to sit through a 15- to 30-second ad break.
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Establish an ad operations team: Whether your team is in-house or outsourced, ensure you have the right people in place to oversee technical implementation and manage monetization efforts.
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Choose the right ad server: This is a really important decision for publishers, as an ad server can make or break your ad strategy. You have many options, including Google Ad Manager , FreeWheel , SpotX , and SpringServe . When making your choice, consider factors such as the ad server’s revenue model , support, ease of use, and unique capabilities.
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Choose direct or programmatic advertising: Most publishers use a combination of direct and programmatic ads , but you have to think about what will work best for your business.
Best practices
Viewability is critical in the video advertising space. In fact, advertisers gauge the success of their ads based on viewability metrics provided by MOAT, IAS, and other solutions. For instance, the MRC requires 60 percent of an ad to be in view on a screen for two seconds to be considered viewable. You can ensure better viewability by pausing the player when it’s not in view or making the player “float” when the user scrolls past it.
Another best practice is to ensure you understand which platforms your viewers are using so that you can keep any associated restrictions in mind. For instance, an ad that plays perfectly on a desktop might fail to work in an in-app environment. You need to develop your strategy accordingly.
Finally, make sure you understand common video ad errors, what causes them, and how to address them. For instance, Error 303 means that an empty VAST response has been returned. This is an expected error that’s usually the result of a specific business decision. Publishers should protect themselves by making sure they have set up DFP Fallbacks and Passbacks.
Interested in learning more about the digital advertising space? Check out the recording of our recent webinar, Jumpstart Your Video Advertising Strategy .