BY Adam Ambro
You’ve probably heard of the term ‘OTT,’ but do you know what it is? More importantly, can you explain to a SMB what it is? According to a survey by Borrell Associates, a whopping 50% of SMBs said they “do not know” what OTT is. That’s clearly a problem, but the bigger issue is clearly defining what OTT means to SMBs and from there, determining who their best target audience would be when you sell them the format.
What does OTT mean?
Google “OTT” you’ll get a result along the lines of “over-the-top media service is a media service offered directly to viewers via the Internet.” That would include services like Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, etc. On the surface, it’s clear and makes sense. However, Corey Elliot, Executive Vice President of Local Market Intelligence at Borrell Associates, explains that while many in the advertising industry may have their own definitions and understanding of what OTT is, SMBs are struggling to wrap their heads around it.
When asked if any of the SMBs had bought OTT, the breakdown was drastic:
- 75% said NO
- 22% said YES
- 3% said DID NOT KNOW
Elliot believes that many “NO” answers were actually “YES” answers, but because of the nebulous nature of the term OTT, respondents were confused. If it’s not clearly defined, then what one advertiser purchased that they thought was OTT, might not have been, or vice versa. So, as the sales rep, that’s going to be your biggest hurdle.
No, really, what does it mean?
Setting a clear understanding of what the term OTT is for your client is going to be your number one priority. Elliot says that the best way to sell OTT to an advertiser is to explain it in a very straightforward way. That way there will be no confusion as to what you’re selling or where it’s going to be placed.
From there, the advertiser is going to want to know how to get their message in front of the most people possible. This goal never changes for the advertiser, regardless of the media they’re buying. That’s the second hurdle for you, finding who to target and what the best platform to reach them on would be. That’s where AdMall, powered by SalesFuel, comes in.
Using the AudienceSCAN reports in AdMall, you can use any number of our 1,400 audience types that could be used to target OTT advertising. Everything from their internet and social media usage to the tech devices they use the most and what their distinct purchase motivators are can be found in this report.
Starting with the most straightforward example of an audience you could target, ‘OTT TV Viewers.’ A sample response from the survey result brings up some interesting statistics:
- 56% of the OTT TV Viewers audience is female
- 26.7% of the audience is between the age 25–34
- 24% of the audience’s income is between $25,000-$49,000
So, off the bat, you know that the audience is trending younger. From there, you could look at any number of AdMall’s reports on younger Millennials or Gen Z. Those audiences are only growing and have become the prime targets for advertisers looking to market on OTT platforms.
Photo by August de Richelieu from Pexels