Creating a better consumer experience is a top priority for advertisers. But it is also a major challenge, driven by shifting media consumption habits and privacy concerns.
In Xandr’s latest Relevance Report, it found that while 80% of U.S. advertising and agency executives say creating a relevant campaign starts with reaching the right audience, only 21% believe they’re doing this effectively. The survey found similar results elsewhere in the world, as 60% of global respondents from the U.S., France, Germany, the U.K., Brazil and Australia report being only moderately satisfied with their targeting precision.
Looking to the future, Xandr’s research shows that advertisers consistently point to data as an essential asset needed to improve the consumer experience.
Reaching the right audience
The application of first-party data is important to reaching the right audience. Advertisers are marrying first- and third-party data sets to accomplish this, leading them to prioritize investments in effective data partnerships and talent. Within the last 12 months alone, 79% of U.S. advertisers and 97% of U.K. advertisers made an investment in data.
Further, advertisers realize they need partners that can help them integrate data effectively and compliantly across content and media types. This is heavily contributing to advertisers’ decisions across markets to partner with open ecosystems, rather than walled gardens. Ultimately, they favor the flexibility that an open ecosystem affords over the turnkey solutions of a walled garden.
Prioritizing consumer privacy
Advertisers around the world recognize that data can help them deliver relevant campaigns, but the changing privacy landscape makes this more complex. The real challenge is figuring out how to leverage data in an effective and compliant way—especially for U.S. advertisers. Almost two-thirds of U.S. advertisers (64%) think that consumers are at least moderately familiar with current and upcoming data privacy regulations, more than any other region. As a result, 41% of U.S. advertisers say ensuring data compliance and identifying audiences across screens are their top challenges. This sentiment is echoed globally with similar responses in Australia (60%), Brazil (59%), Germany (51%), U.K. (48%) and France (44%).
Optimizing campaign performance
Advertisers also want access to back-end results and audience insights that can drive more effective campaign optimization. Across markets, 60% of advertisers ensure relevance by using data for campaign optimization. However, few feel very satisfied with their ability to optimize campaigns successfully, and they consider the data sources presently available for in-flight campaign optimization to be less than excellent. This is especially true in France, where 58% of advertisers say access to reporting data for optimization is a key concern with their video inventory supply path.
Building an identity solution
As third-party cookies become a tool of the past, advertisers say they will increasingly rely on contextual data to ensure an ad is suitable for the content it appears on. Notably, at least 25% say their video platform partners must offer advanced contextual targeting, but less than half of advertisers across all regions indicated they will build their own effective identity solution. Collaboration will be critical, as over two-thirds of U.S. advertisers agree that the development of in-house proprietary data solutions is less important than industry-wide standards.
Standardizing measurement
The increasing pressure to justify ad spend, coupled with rigid reporting metrics and a convoluted supply chain, has caused advertisers to struggle to prove marketing impact on business outcomes, and they are not satisfied with their measurement solutions. This is true in the U.S. more than any other region, with only 20% of U.S. advertisers stating they are very satisfied with their end-of-campaign measurement data. Two-thirds of U.S. advertisers are looking for data that ties to lower-funnel metrics and trusted consumer identity data to draw deeper insights.
When it comes to creating a more relevant consumer experience, today’s advertisers are learning that there are many different factors to consider. At the core, however, is taking a data-driven approach. While there are various challenges that come with it, advertisers need access to brand-safe, premium inventory and contextual placements that make sense. Increased visibility and transparency into the inventory path are invaluable for advertisers, and they understand the overall value and efficiency of finding technological synergies. By creating strategic partnerships and making smart investments in data, advertising will be more effective for brands, media owners and consumers.
