Anna Vintsevska
Karolina BendrykConnected TV (CTV) is a valuable force in digital advertising. However, simply running ads is not enough. Companies need to boost engagement in order to be competitive. Nowadays, we are witnessing a growing trend for programmatic CTV ad interactivity. Such advertisements go beyond traditional commercials. They allow viewers to interact, shop, and take action directly from their screens.
This article explores the concept of interactive CTV ads. Here you will find insights on how such ads can boost customer engagement and drive conversion. Keep reading to discover different interactive CTV ad formats and understand the future of CTV advertising. After all, it is time to turn passive viewers into active customers.
What is interactive CTV?
To begin with, let's define interactive CTV. This concept refers to a cutting-edge advertising format that transforms traditional Connected TV (CTV) ads into engaging, two-way experiences. Such an approach replaces passing viewing by providing audiences with an opportunity to interact with ads. Usually, interactive CTV includes clickable elements, QR codes, surveys, or remote controls.
These aspects of such an approach are enhanced user engagement, higher conversion rates, and valuable real-time data on the audience. Interactive CTV ads efficiently bridge the gap between TV and digital interactivity to offer a more immersive, measurable, and effective way to connect with consumers.
How is interactive CTV different from interactive video?
At first glance, we can recognize many similarities between interactive CTV and interactive video. While these concepts have many similar points, they serve different purposes and platforms. Understanding the differences between interactive CTV and interactive videos is essential for advertisers who want to maximize engagement and conversion.
To understand this difference better, it is essential to define interactive video. It is a broad category of digital content that allows users to engage with video elements, such as product scrolls, maps, or form fills. Interactive videos can be used across a variety of formats, including:
mobile
desktop
tablet devices.
The key point is that interactive videos allow users to tap, click, or type responses directly within the video ad. Interactive videos are often used for e-commerce, lead generation, and brand storytelling. Such ads can provide users with greater control over their ad experience.
The main aspect that distinguishes interactive CTV from interactive videos is that the former is designed exclusively for connected TV (CTV) devices like smart TVs, streaming sticks, and gaming consoles. As has been already mentioned, CTV ads engage viewers through features such as QR codes, remote-control navigation, voice commands, etc. A very important distinction between the two approaches is the difference in user experience. Interactive video ads enable direct engagement within the video. Meanwhile, interactive CTV provides seamless and non-disruptive engagement tailored for a TV viewing environment.
If it goes about interactive video ads, such advertisements allow users to fill out the form within the ad by clicking on the fields. Meanwhile, a CTV version of such an advertisement may include a QR code. The users may scan it with their phone to access and fill in the given form.
There is also a crucial difference in terms of ad placement. Interactive CTV ads are typically served as in-stream or in-break ads. They appear during natural content breaks in TV shows, movies, or live streams. In CTV ads, an ad with a QR code can appear during a commercial break. The key point is to make such advertisements non-intrusive. This means keeping the audience engaged without irritating them.
Benefits of interactive CTV
Connected TV advertising combines storytelling with engaging features allowing companies to create a personalized, immersive experience that keeps viewers actively involved. Among all interactive ad formats, interactive video advertising achieves the highest engagement rates. Let's explore the benefits of CTV advertising in more detail.
Enhanced campaign outreach
With interactive CTV ads, marketers can target vast audiences across various TV platforms. The list of such platforms includes smart TVs, streaming devices, and gaming consoles. This broad reach is particularly important as traditional linear TV viewership continues to decline. To illustrate the growing importance of CTV ads, we can mention a notable increase in spending on such campaigns. In particular, CTV ad spending increased from $17.30 billion in 2021 to $25.09 billion in 2023.
Such a number shows that advertisers recognize the growing dominance of connected TV. As a result, they are shifting many of their marketing strategies to this domain. With its excellent opportunities for user engagement, interactive ads take a dominant position in CTV marketing.
Positive brand lift
People tend to be more interested in brands that provide immersive and memorable experiences. That is why interactive CTV ads can enhance brand perception. Numerous studies reveal that interactive ad formats are more likely to drive positive brand lift, especially compared to non-interactive video ads.
Overall, ad interactivity can help marketers boost:
Brand awareness
Ad recall
Favorability
Purchase consideration.
Customer engagement is the key that allows companies to transform their campaigns from ordinary to extraordinary.
Stronger purchase consideration
By applying interactive CTV ads, you can drive consumers down the sales funnel. The point is that such an approach allows you to encourage immediate action. By motivating users to interact with your ad, you already capture their attention, which may motivate them to continue engaging with your brand. This can result in:
More add-to-carts
Higher purchase rates
Greater interest in “send me more” product information.
All such activities can and should be reviewed during the analytical stage. Advertisers often measure success through Video Completion Rate (VCR) and post-view attribution.
Increased conversion rates
Interactive CTV ads allow you to turn passive viewers into active participants. The impact may be staggering, as, from our experience, interactive content can generate over twice as much conversion than passive content. As has been mentioned before, interactivity brings conversion. And this conversion is, basically, the ideal outcome for any advertising campaign.
Longer user engagement
Another important goal of digital marketing is to keep the users' attention as long as possible. Interactive ads can help brands excel in this aspect. For example, a study reveals that interactive video ads increase time spent with a marketing message by 47% compared to standard video ads. By exposing the audience to your messages for a longer period of time, you can deliver deeper storytelling. Here it goes about engaging the audience with more product details, a memorable brand story, or a strong call to action. All such aspects are vital for increasing ad conversion.
Interactive CTV formats
There are different formats of interactive CTV ads. Each such approach is designed to enhance viewer engagement and drive conversions. These formats offer great tools for creating interactive experiences that go beyond traditional TV advertising. Let's take a look at the most effective types of interactive CTV ad formats.
QR code ads
QR code ads present a scannable code within the ad presented on CTV devices. Such advertisements allow viewers to take immediate action. For example, after scanning the QR code, the viewers can be immediately redirected to a website, redeem a special offer, or start downloading an app.
For example, an interactive CTV ad that promotes a concert can automatically redirect the audience to the page that can be used for purchasing concert tickets.
Dynamic overlays
With dynamic overlays, users get real-time, interactive elements that appear on top of a video ad. Examples of such elements include buttons, product information, or social media links.
For example, a streaming service can promote a new TV series with an overlay. This TV series will allow viewers to add the show to the watchlist directly from the ad.
Shoppable CTV ads
Shoppable CTV ads allow viewers to browse and purchase products directly from TV screens. Such an ad introduces a carousel-style display of clickable elements that are paired with smart remote controls.
An example of such an ad is a sports apparel brand that displays a new line of sports shoes. This allows viewers to explore product details and purchase them with their TV remote or mobile device.
Countdown ads
These are dynamic interactive ads that create a sense of urgency by displaying a countdown timer. They present limited-time offers, sales, or product launches. Such interactive video ad campaigns are often viewed as efficient means to enhance user engagement by creating time limits.
For example, an airline company can advertise a flash sale on flights with a countdown timer. This timer shows how long the deal should remain available.
Polls and surveys
CTV ads often include interactive polls or surveys that encourage viewers to participate by selecting their preferences with a remote device. Such strategies allow businesses to collect valuable data about audience's preferences, interests, and concerns.
An example of such an ad is an advertising present during a sports stream. A viewer can see an interactive ad asking them their predictions on the winner of an upcoming game. Later, the streaming service can tailor ads based on their response.
Gamified ads
Some interactive ads can include gamification elements, such as mini-games or challenges. Such advertisements provide an engaging and memorable experience to the users. This, in turn, can enhance brand recognition.
For example, a brand that sells apparel for soccer can let a user play a small soccer-based mini-game. A user can try to score a goal from a free-kick. If he or she succeeds, the winner will receive a discount code.
Voice-activated ads
The audience can use smart TV voice assistants to interact with an advertisement. In particular, users can apply speaking commands, such as "Learn More" or "Buy Now." Such advertisements can be challenging to implement. However, they are very convenient to the users and can enhance brand reputation.
As an example, a food delivery service can prompt the viewers to say "Order Pizza" during the ad. This command will trigger a discount offer.
Consider TeqBlaze your trusted partner
Interactive CTV ads may be challenging to implement, but they have vast potential in terms of digital marketing. To create and manage such advertising strategies, you may need to partner with an experienced adtech team. Teqblaze is ready to provide you with such a team. We are leading experts in CTV ad solutions. Our company has an extensive portfolio of successful CTV projects, and we provide tools allowing our clients to craft and manage the most sophisticated adtech campaigns.
Our expertise goes beyond the mere development of adtech ads. Instead, we can provide our customers with complete adtech ecosystems. For example, our specialists helped a dynamic startup that specializes in programmatic solutions while focusing on customer privacy. We offered the customer a demand-side platform (DSP) + supply-side platform (SSP) bundle that helps them manage their ecosystem more efficiently. With this solution, the customer enhances their ROI and can securely store vast amounts of customer data. The latter is especially relevant in the context of interactive ads that can provide solid portions of viewer data.
Our supply-side platform (SSP) + Ad exchange platform also helped a U.S.-based company that specializes in targeting connected TV audiences. Our solution helped the client embrace a data-driven approach. It combines an adaptable reporting and analytics platform, which offers quick and effective analytics across numerous metrics and dimensions.
We can help you enhance your interactive CTV advertising campaigns with our vast range of services, ranging from providing off-the-shelf solutions to developing custom adtech platforms. Therefore, if you’re looking to make CTV advertising truly interactive and performance-driven, Teqblaze is your go-to partner.
Future of interactive CTV
Streaming platforms continue to dominate the entertainment industry. This means that the future of interactive CTV advertising is bright. With significant advances in data analytics, the ability to collect valuable customer insights will make a difference. Therefore interactivity is shaping a new era of personalized and immersive ad experiences.
The question of personalization of advertising campaigns deserves more attention. AI-driven algorithms and the integration of first-party data will allow advertisers to serve hyper-relevant ads tailored to individual viewer preferences, behaviors, and past interactions. Personalization will, in turn, drive higher user engagement rates and improved conversion outcomes.
Moreover, interactive ads are expected to evolve themselves. Interactivity is expected to evolve beyond QR codes and simple overlays. We may expect the dominance of voice commands, remote-based interactions, augmented reality (AR) elements, and other innovative technologies to allow users to interact with the ads.
Shoppable CTV ads are also expected to become more sophisticated. We have already mentioned the possibility of one-click purchases directly from the TV screen. However, in the future, such advertising techniques are likely to become even more common. As e-commerce and CTV continue to merge, retailers will have new opportunities to convert passive viewers into active shoppers in real time.
It is also important to mention real-time data and contextual advertising. In particular, interactive CTV ads will increasingly adapt to external factors in real time. The list of such factors may be very extensive. Some examples of such factors include weather, time of day, trending topics, etc. For example, a sportswear brand will serve ads for rain jackets when it’s raining in the viewer’s location or promote energy drinks during a major sporting event.
Another major trend is the growing importance of programmatic advertising ecosystems. Many companies are already using DSPs and SSPs to ensure the highest quality of advertising content and secure the best placements for their ads. Over time, such tools are merging into complex ecosystems that allow both advertisers and publishers to manage their workflows with a unified toolset. The outcomes are better personalization and scaling of interactive campaigns.
Some major technology trends, such as the growing 5G adoption, also affect the domain of CTV advertising. With the increasing speed of Internet connection, advertisers can achieve faster load times and seamless user interactions. This will make it easier for brands to create highly engaging experiences that don’t disrupt content consumption but instead add value to the viewer.
The future of interactive connected television is one of innovation, personalization, and seamless engagement. As brands continue to explore the full potential of this advertising medium, Interactive CTV will play a crucial role in shaping the future of digital marketing, bridging the gap between entertainment and commerce in unprecedented ways.
Overall, the evolution of Interactive CTV is set to redefine digital marketing through innovation, tailored experiences, and effortless audience engagement. Advertisers constantly unlock new possibilities within this medium. Therefore, interactive advertising will become a key driver in merging entertainment with commerce like never before.
Final word
CTV advertising is evolving, and we are currently witnessing a shift in how brands engage consumers. As businesses recognize the benefits of interactivity, interactive CTV advertising has taken a solid place in the domain of digital marketing. With interactive CTV ads, audiences can interact, explore, and even make purchases directly from their screens. This leads to deeper engagement and higher conversion rates.
In addition, the rise of AI-driven personalization and data analytics allows companies to use different interactive ad formats, ranging from regular overlay advertisements to gamified elements, to collect user data. Interactivity also boosts brand recognition. By leveraging innovative formats such as shoppable ads, voice-activated commands, and gamified experiences, companies can create seamless and memorable brand interactions.
Overall, the future of digital advertising belongs to interactivity. If you want to create real value with your interactive ads and gain complete control over your campaigns, rely on the industry's leading specialists. Contact TeqBlaze and let's start your journey to successful digital advertising now!
