In the world of digital video, everything is going OTT. What is OTT? It stands for over-the-top television, and implies video distribution by means of Internet connection, unlike linear TV. Millions of viewers are "cutting the cord" and switching to online video platforms and connected TV devices. As a result, OTT advertising is gaining momentum and becoming the most effective way of generating revenue from an ad strategy and expanding a target audience. Demand-side platforms play an important part in this process and are helping advertisers achieve better results with fewer resources.
Demand-side platform as a key OTT marketing tool
A demand-side platform is a solution that makes OTT video advertising simple for brands and marketers by allowing the purchasing of advertising inventory directly from publishers, safely and transparently. It is a software system with the help of which advertisers not only buy and manage ads using a single interface but also optimize their performance in terms of KPIs like Cost Per Click and Cost Per Mile. Moreover, in terms of OTT digital advertising, demand-side platforms provide advertisers with lots of freedom - they can obtain inventory from many different publishers while monitoring and controlling every option, e.g. impression rates, bids, etc.
The principles of DSP operation
With demand-side platforms, advertisers can access inventory supplied by publishers. Most up-to-date DSPs not only make the process of ad exchange easier but provide cross-channel buying as well. e.g. advertisers can get media for OTT platform, social networks, web, and in-app content, etc.
What does the process of media buying look like? On one side there are advertisers who have a demand, on the other side there are publishers who provide the supply. The main principle DSPs work on is bidding, particularly, programmatic real-time bidding using intelligent software that automatically bids on inventory through auctions. In such a way, the buying and selling of ads becomes not only more cost-effective but reliable as well. The sources advertisers get access to are trustworthy ones, and the chances of fraud can be minimized depending on the platform.
Types of DSPs
There are two main types of demand-side platforms: self-serve and full-service. Self-serve solutions give advertisers full control over ad campaign management and are less expensive. However, advertisers take responsibility for targeting, bids placement, campaign optimization, and budget issues. If you feel you don’t have enough time and skills to cope with inventory buying and management and need professional assistance, a full-service demand-side platform would be a better solution. You simply entrust the whole process – including bidding, targeting, and budget planning – to managers who do all the work for you, and all you need to do is to pay them a fee.
Advantages of using demand-side platforms
If you use a DSP, you may expect more viewers to see your ads and that these viewers would be your target audience. It means that you have every chance to maximize your return. You also can monitor the way your ads convert and adjust the campaign on-the-fly if necessary, getting rid of the cruft and paying more attention to what works. Thanks to the automation of the process, bidding is fast, easily saving time compared to manual management. Apart from that, DPSs provide advertisers with detailed reports and analytics for them to measure the ad campaigns’ success and implement the necessary changes quickly.
Takeaways
Demand-side platforms appear to be an excellent solution when you need to maximize revenue from an advertising campaign, attract more viewers, and adjust marketing strategy in real-time with the help of detailed analytics. Precise targeting and bidding are crucial for OTT video marketing and it is always better to make use of a trustworthy automated system than to manage every option manually.
