After four tough years, the automotive market is finally finding a better balance between demand and supply. At first, the COVID-19 pandemic had dealerships pulling back on marketing, unsure of what the future would hold. Then came the supply chain hiccups and rising interest rates, making things even trickier.
Now, though, dealerships must get back in the game and think strategically about managing their inventory—much like they did before the pandemic. Gone are the days of just putting a car out there and hoping to sell it at a markup. It’s time to be more strategic and audience-focused.
That’s where connected TV and streaming come in. Dealerships are starting to align their creative messaging with the right audiences in the streaming space. By planning their campaigns and tailoring their messages, they’re seeing some great outcomes. More brand awareness, more leads, increased foot traffic, and even bigger market shares. It’s all about spending those marketing dollars wisely and getting more bang for their buck through effective audience engagement.
Understanding the Difference: Connected TV vs. Streaming
When we talk about streaming, we mean any digital medium that replaces traditional TV and radio. Instead of relying on airwaves or satellite dishes, content is delivered over the internet. This includes connected TV and streaming audio.
Connected TV refers to a device connected to the internet, allowing you to watch shows, movies, and sports without a cable box or satellite dish. Think of it like using a Roku to stream Netflix.
Streaming audio is the digital alternative to traditional radio, encompassing services like Spotify, Pandora, and podcasts. Both connected TV and streaming audio have ad-supported options, giving dealerships exciting new opportunities to reach their audiences as more platforms introduce ad offerings.
The Value of Connected TV and How Dealers Should Approach It
Many dealerships are still missing out on the incredible targeting options available with connected TV and streaming. Too often, dealers stick to traditional advertising approaches, like trying to sell more trucks to men by placing ads on ESPN+. But that’s not the best way to connect with potential buyers.
Instead, the key is to identify an audience that’s actively in the market for specific vehicles. As inventory levels rise and pressure mounts, it’s more important than ever for dealers to embrace smart marketing strategies. With connected TV, we can target consumers based on real-time data, reaching them across various streaming apps even if those platforms don’t seem like an obvious fit.
For example, you might wonder why financial news apps like Bloomberg show up in your targeting mix when you’re trying to sell economy sedans. The truth is, many buyers with average incomes are interested in financial news, so reaching them through these channels can actually be effective.
What’s crucial here is recognizing that advertising on connected TV is a whole different ball game compared to traditional media. The technology allows us to prioritize our audience, leading to much better results. By embracing these new capabilities, dealerships can unlock huge opportunities and create more effective advertising campaigns.
Leverage Your Existing Content to Simplify the Shift to Connected TV
Transitioning from traditional advertising to connected TV doesn’t have to be complicated.
Start with the video content you already use. This helps you maintain what works while shifting to an audience-first strategy. By targeting specific viewers based on their streaming habits, you ensure your ads reach the right audience.
From there, fine-tune your advertising by developing targeted creative assets for your ads and leveraging viewer engagement data to craft a tailored strategy for your dealership. For example, even if two dealerships are just miles apart, they may need different strategies based on factors like sales footprint and foot traffic.
With the capabilities of connected TV, you can achieve better results than traditional advertising.
How to Make Data-Driven Ad Decisions
You can’t manage what you can’t measure. This foundational advertising principle rings true for connected TV advertising.
Track your ad performance. This means evaluating how many households you reach, the actions taken, and whether those actions lead to dealership engagement.
By analyzing bid stream data, dealers gain insights into audience behavior and inventory effectiveness, to help further optimize campaigns. Attribution is crucial; it helps determine the right audience, the value of inventory, and the best times to deliver messages.
Understanding App Spoofing and Other Fraud Tactics
Once an industry reaches a certain size, scammers take notice. For example, Apple computers were once less targeted because their market share was small, but that changed as their popularity grew.
Now, with connected TV and streaming valued at around $25 billion, fraudsters are increasingly active, using tactics like app spoofing—where they misrepresent an app, like pretending to be Netflix. This type of fraud isn’t hard to execute if you know what you’re doing.
As the industry expands, being aware of these issues is crucial. It’s vital to have a systematic way to track ad performance and outcomes. Don’t just trust reports that say an ad is on Netflix—evaluate how well it actually performs. If the results are subpar, there may be underlying issues, whether it’s fraud or simply ineffective inventory.
What the Future Holds for Dealerships
It’s an exciting time for the streaming industry, with every major platform now offering an ad tier. Historically, traditional TV started with ad-supported content before moving to premium subscriptions. In contrast, streaming began with subscriptions, but consumer fatigue has led to the rapid adoption of ad tiers across platforms like Netflix, Disney+, and Amazon Prime.
This shift is creating a golden age for streaming advertising, similar to the early days of Facebook ads when supply outpaced demand. Marketers have a unique opportunity to engage in connected TV advertising as mainstream adoption grows.
In the automotive sector, while streaming started gaining traction pre-COVID, many dealerships didn’t invest heavily in marketing during the pandemic due to high demand and low supply. However, that’s changing, as dealerships increasingly recognize the need to adapt their marketing strategies to remain competitive.