Amazon is a powerhouse in the ecommerce industry, but did you know they are taking on the advertising world as well?
What is Amazon OTT?
Amazon has an advertising platform called “OTT” which stands for “over the top,” and refers to content that is delivered through streaming services like Netflix or Hulu.
With consumer behavior shifting to streaming media services, OTT video advertising by Amazon provides an opportunity for brands to reach their target audiences where they are spending more and more of their time.
Imagine getting your ads directly into viewers’ homes and in front of today’s consumers.
Sounds enticing, isn’t it?
This is the future of ads and a huge opportunity for your Amazon business.
In this blog post, I will discuss what Amazon OTT advertising is, how it works, and what benefits it has in store for you.
And to cap it off, I’ll guide you through using the ad platform for your business – so make sure you read to the end of the article!.
What is Amazon OTT Advertising?
OTT advertising refers to “over-the-top” media, which is any kind of content that is streamed over the internet without going through a traditional cable or satellite TV provider.
This includes popular streaming services like Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime Video.
Amazon OTT advertising lets brands place ads within the content that viewers are watching, similar to how commercials are placed on traditional television.
Amazon over the top advertising is growing quickly.
In fact, by 2019, advertising revenue on this massive online marketplace surpassed almost $10 billion in the United States, accounting for almost 8% of the digital advertising market.
This is why brands should explore the ad platform if they want to stay ahead of their competition and reach their target audiences in new and innovative ways.
How Do Amazon OTT Advertisements Work?
Amazon OTT uses its own demand-side platform (DSP) to distribute video ads programmatically across Amazon’s extensive modern digital media network.
IMDb TV, Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Fire Tv, and other compatible ad-supported Amazon apps, are all part of this network.
Advertisers can buy video ad placements in these streaming media platforms.
However, there are a few key differences that make this form of advertising unique.
First, because Amazon is both a marketplace and a content platform, they have first-party data insights about what users are searching for and what they’re buying.
This allows them to target ads more effectively than other platforms that don’t have access to this data.
Amazon OTT ads can be targeted to specific devices, making them more effective than ads that are shown on multiple platforms.
For example, an ad for a new flatscreen tv can be targeted to users who own a smart TV.
Second, Amazon OTT media ads are non-skippable.
This means that viewers have to watch the ad before they can continue watching their video.
This gives advertisers a captive audience and helps to ensure that the message gets across.
Lastly, because these aren’t clickable ads, the ad metrics can’t be determined by direct conversions or click-through rates.
It is instead measured in terms of ad impressions.
Unlike Sponsored Ad Campaigns, advertisements on OTT channels are paid per thousand impressions.
What are the Benefits of OTT Advertising?
If you’re looking for a way to reach cord-cutters and other streaming audiences, OTT advertising is a great option.
It provides a number of other benefits, including:
You can reach a targeted audience
OTT platforms like Amazon’s Fire TV allow you to target your ads based on demographics, interests, and even viewing habits.
Your brand can engage with audiences that are more relevant, which can lead to higher conversion rates.
Speaking of conversion rates, this is an important metric that lets you know whether you’re achieving your goals as a seller.
If you want to know how to increase your product’s visibility and sales, and widen your profit margin, read our article on conversion rates.
Amazon has three segments for behavioral audience targeting:
- Lifestyle targeting : Reaches customers that fall within an interest group.
- In-market targeting: Reaches customers who have looked for products in your category on Amazon.
- Retargeting: Reaches customers who looked at your products on Amazon or your brand’s website but didn’t buy it.
You can gain consumer insights
OTT platforms collect data on viewers’ habits and preferences.
With Amazon’s first-party data insights, you can understand consumer behavior such as product and brand searches, and use this information to improve your ad campaigns.
For example, if you notice that a particular ad is performing well with a certain audience segment, you can adjust your targeting accordingly.
For example, if you notice that your ad for a tablet device is performing well with younger people in their twenties, you can adjust your ads to appear more often at a time slot when this age bracket often watch on Amazon Fire Tv.
You get to reach a wider audience
According to a report from eMarketer, nearly 31.2 million US households have shifted to Amazon Fire TV, a number that is expected to rise to 46.6 million by the year 2024.
This means that brands using OTT advertising can reach a wider audience than ever before.
What’s more, since Amazon is the world’s largest ecommerce platform, its audience is constantly expanding.
This provides brands with more opportunities to reach their target audiences.
You can cut costs on ad spend
Amazon over-the-top advertising is a cost-effective way to reach your target audience.
In fact, it’s one of the most affordable ad spending options available.
This is because you only pay when someone views your ad, so you don’t have to worry about wasting money on ads that no one sees.
It is actually less costly compared to using traditional TV advertising, making OTT advertisements more feasible for small and mid-size businesses.
You can build brand awareness both on and off Amazon
While Amazon OTT advertising is a great way to reach your target audience, it’s also an opportunity to build your brand both on and off Amazon.
This is because your ads will be accessible to audiences both on Amazon-owned properties as well as third-party applications within Amazon’s network.
When you create ads that are targeted to relevant audiences, you can improve your brand awareness and recall.
This can lead to more customers searching for your products on Amazon, which can in turn lead to more sales.
How to Get Started with Amazon OTT?
This advertising opportunity is available to all businesses, big and small.
Here’s a quick guide on how to get started with this form of marketing.
1. Set Goals and KPIs
As with any advertising campaign, you need to set clear goals and KPIs before getting started.
What are you hoping to achieve with your Amazon OTT campaign? How will you measure success?
2. Pinpoint Audience Segments
Again, this is similar to any other advertising campaign.
You need to identify your target audience and create segments accordingly.
Who will you be targeting with your Amazon OTT ads? What demographics are they in? What interests do they have? Amazon Audience Solutions, for example, can assist you in identifying and targeting your ideal audiences.
3. Submit Your Ad
To submit your ad, you’ll need to create an Amazon DSP account on the Amazon video ads page.
Scroll down to where you will find a Get Started icon and click on it.
Follow the steps to register with Amazon ads. You can then create your ad campaigns from your account.
4. Test and Optimize
Once you’ve launched your campaign, it’s important to continuously test and optimize.
To fine-tune your strategy, carefully test bids, segments, and creatives.
Amazon OTT Advertising Examples
If you’re looking for some inspiration for your next OTT ad campaign, check out these examples from Amazon.
Example 1 – Goal Zero
One example of a company that has leveraged OTT ads on Amazon is Goal Zero LLC, a company that provides portable power solutions.
To boost brand awareness for their latest product, the Yeti X line, the company collaborated with Buy Box Experts.
Buy Box experts utilized sponsored ads, Amazon DSP, streaming TV ads and Stores as part of their always-on strategy.
They used video and display ad campaigns to get to potential customers, as well as people who had searched for similar items or product categories on Amazon.
Ever since Goal Zero launched the streaming TV ad campaign, they’ve increased their overall brand awareness and branded search rate.
They were able to reach more than 1.8 million unique customers through streaming TV ads alone.
According to Dave Vermeulen, Director of DSP, Buy Box Experts
“It’s critical to have your listings and storefront optimized before launching advertising campaigns. Advertising provides the traffic, and the pages provide the conversion rate. Compare your pages to the pages of your competitors and ensure that you are at least a step above them in quality.”
So before jumping into OTT advertising, optimizing your listing in terms of copy, SEO and images (Main Image, gallery images and Enhanced brand content) is an unskippable step!
Example 2 – Luminous
Luminous Power Technologies is a company that offers a variety of innovative products in the areas of home electrical, power backup, and residential solar.
To publicize the durability of their inverter batteries across India, the company wanted to reach unique and relevant audiences, specifically [who].
Sachin Tendulkar, the brand’s ambassador, was featured in the 20-second video advertisement, which highlighted how Luminous inverter batteries are “Long-lasting.”
This video was streamed on third party OTT apps and sites, as well as on Amazon DSP display ads.
The OTT video content and display marketing campaign generated a 0.21 rupees cost per video completion rate and 10.7 million ad impressions, which was 30% higher than Amazon’s internal category baselines.
How to Measure Success with OTT?
Just like any other advertising campaign, you’ll want to measure the success of your OTT campaign to ensure that you’re getting a positive return on investment (ROI).
But how do you measure success with OTT advertising?
Here are a few metrics you can use:
- Reach Metrics: The first metric you’ll want to look at is reach. This will tell you how many people your ad was able to reach. You can then measure the level of impact the reach has on your overall business.
- Brand Search Metrics: This will tell you how many people are searching for your brand after seeing your ad. This is relevant because it can tell you how effective your ad is at getting people to take action.
- Brand Lift: This measures the change in awareness, consideration, and/or purchase intent after seeing your ad. This is important because it can tell you if your ad is actually influencing people’s behavior.
- New-to-Brand: This measures the percentage of people who are exposed to your ad, and then go on to purchase your product or service. This is important because it can tell you if your ad is effective at driving sales.
FAQ – Frequently Asked Questions
Are Amazon OTT ads clickable?
No, they are not clickable. Advertisers can target particular Amazon audiences with full-screen OTT video ads, which are also non-skippable.
Is Amazon an OTT?
An OTT service is a provider of streaming content that delivers video and audio over the internet without the need for a traditional connected tv or satellite television subscription.
The company does have an OTT app, Amazon Fire TV, which allows users to stream content from various providers and Amazon Video which offers streaming services for movies and TV shows. However, Amazon is not limited to only these two offerings or OTT services.
What are the disadvantages of OTT platforms?
There are a few disadvantages of OTT platforms.
First, because they are streamed over the internet, OTT platforms can be subject to buffering and lag.
Second, OTT platforms can be more expensive than traditional cable or satellite TV subscriptions.
Finally, some OTT platforms do not offer all the channels that traditional providers offer.
This is because OTT providers tend to focus on specific types of content, like movies or TV shows.
Bottom Line
If you’re looking for a way to reach a captive audience with your advertising, Amazon OTT advertising is a great option over traditional TV ads.
With its unique targeting capabilities and non-skippable tv ads, you can be sure that your message will be seen and heard.
You’ll want to keep an eye on reach metrics, brand search metrics, and brand lift to gauge the success of your campaign.
And finally, remember that Amazon is not just an OTT service—it’s also a platform for e-commerce and digital content.
This means that you have a lot of options when it comes to advertising on Amazon.
So, don’t be afraid to experiment and try out new things!
