Threading the needle for advertising heading into 2024
Aaron Goldman at Mediaocean outlines the trends for marketing that he sees, as we head into the autumn
It doesn’t seem long ago that we were making advertising industry predictions for 2023, with the rapid advancements in generative AI and the arrival of ChatGPT promising to irrevocably alter the state of play.
Indeed, the groundswell around artificial intelligence certainly hasn’t been artificial and, going into the second half of the year, our research found that 59% of marketers cited AI as a critical consumer trend.
But, as we look ahead to 2024, there are a number of other innovations for brands to consider and stitch together as part of an omnichannel approach. (Note: this survey was conducted before the launch of Threads in July.)
Threads weaves itself into the social ecosystem
There was much fanfare at the end of last year about how ChatGPT became the fastest app to hit 100 million users, taking just 2 months to hit that mark, and smashing the record of 9 months held by TikTok.
But, when Meta launched Threads, it took just 1 week to reach that milestone – and the number soared to 150 million by week 2. To be sure, the growth has halted but Threads has been a breath of fresh air for Meta and the social media space at large.
With other platforms in the relentless pursuit of video-first, algorithmically-driven feeds, similar to that of TikTok, Threads caters to a different part of the social media ecosystem: short-form, text-focused posts organized around followers and interests (typically ported over from Instagram).
As Threads launches a web-based version, brands have been flocking to the platform to engage with consumers and prepare for the inevitable launch of advertising. Beyond the sheer number of people on Threads, it benefits from the data that Meta has from Instagram and Facebook, which can be used for targeting purposes.
There’s still much to be seen here but, at this point, it’s safe to assume that Threads will have a place in the annual marketing budget for 2024.
All eyes on video
Another eye-popper from our research is that 57% of marketers cited TikTok and social video as a significant trend. From Snap to Meta to Pinterest to X, video is all over the feeds. And it’s not just short vertical videos of kids dancing. Social media platforms have become a destination for long-form, premium video, especially when you consider YouTube as part of the mix.
Speaking of high-calibre content, Connected TV (CTV) and streaming ranked next on the trend list, with 48% of marketers calling it out. Additionally, our survey showed 60% plan to increase their CTV ad budgets before the year is out.
With Netflix and Disney+ now boasting ad-supported tiers and Amazon Prime Video next in line, it’s clear the future of TV will include commercials. But the picture is hardly perfect – our data revealed a 40% increase in concern over managing reach and frequency for CTV and other digital channels.
Marketers need to use advanced tools for planning, delivery, and measurement to ensure audiences are not saturated. From there, creative personalization is the key to build a sequential brand story that meets consumers in the moment with relevant messaging.
E-commerce everywhere
The fourth biggest breakout uncovered in our research is the rise of retail media networks. 35% of marketers pointed to e-commerce as a key consumer trend and 32% said they plan to increase advertising budgets for that channel in the back half of the year.
Mobile maven Eric Seufert has proclaimed that everything is an ad network and nowhere is that more evident that in the e-commerce arena. Retailers have awakened to the incrementality – and margin-boost – afforded by advertising and the deprecation of third-party cookies means that companies that control checkout have massively valuable signals.
The imperative for marketers is connecting identity and measurement through a combination of deterministic and probabilistic methodologies. In plain English, brands can use both what they know for certain about people based on their shopping purchases with what they can guess about them based on other activity to build a full picture of who these audiences are and what they’re interested in.
Beyond the the advertising industry, there’s no shortage of macro-economic and socio-political headwinds creating challenges for marketers at the moment. From the cost-of-living crisis, to the war in Ukraine, to the impact of climate change, the only sure-thing is that things won’t stay the same.
By embracing agile methodologies and taking a test-and-learn approach with the latest technology innovations for the coming year, brands can truly reap what they sew.
Aaron Goldman is CMO, Mediaocean
Main image courtesy of iStockPhoto.com
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