Understanding Biddable Media
“With an experience of 5 years in performance marketing one thing that I have realised is that Biddable Marketing plays a pivotal role in driving results at the cheapest possible cost with a better quality of users. As it is more intent based, the users are already aware about a brand’s offerings and we just need to give a little push to achieve the conversion.”
“Let me share with you an introduction to the world of Biddable Media:”
Biddable media is exactly what it sounds like: media that is bought through real-time bidding.
Just like any other bidding, this too takes place in a marketplace – one where advertisers bid against one another for ad space. Whoever can pay the higher bid, gets the digital space for their advertisements.
It’s one of the main ways marketers can reach their target audience online and drive conversions for their products and services. Initially, display platforms allowed advertisers to buy media at fixed rates, to be shown at fixed times, to fixed audiences – that doesn’t sound like a lot of control over marketing efforts, does it? But thanks to the introduction of Demand Site Platforms (DSPs), advertisers were soon able to control in real-time their ad exposure, costs, and ad optimization as well.
What are the top examples of Biddable Media in your opinion?
Well, the top three most popular biddable media channels in today’s digital age include:
1. Pay Per Click advertising (PPC)
Think Google. Once you search for a keyword or phrase on Google, a number of search results appear. Naturally, your first instinct is to click on the first few links you see – but remember, the order of the results you see is far from random. Google ranks this based on several factors with the primary goal of placing the most relevant link for the search at the top of the list. In fact, you may notice a little “AD” next to the topmost result – these are pay-per-click (PPC) ads which mean that the advertiser pays a specific amount to Google (or any search engine) every time someone clicks on that ad.
But wait a minute – there are thousands of websites and ads that will show for any keyword people might search for, so how does Google determine what shows right at the top? Although a highly complex algorithm is at play, in simple terms we can say that those who have bid the highest amount for the keywords will get their ads placed on the top of the search results. Even though companies have to pay for every click, their opportunity to make a sale with that click remains high thus resulting in profits. The key to success is to research and pick keywords carefully – know what the target audience will be searching for, and make sure the website and ad show up at the right time.
2. Social Media PPC
Facebook and Instagram, to name a few, are some of the top social media networks to offer advertisers similar biddable options to reach their target audiences. People can be targeted via their demographics (age, gender, location), psychographics (interests, lifestyle) and online behaviours (website visits, device usage, shopping tendencies) for example. Unlike text ads, social media ads can be created in more varied formats – ranging from images, videos, GIFS and more! Allowing advertisers immense creative freedom, social media advertising can also allow campaign optimization, narrowed segmentation, and high levels of ROI.
3. Youtube PPC/CPV
As an avid Youtube content consumer, you might be tired of the ads you see before or during your videos – but for advertisers, this is another highly profitable biddable media channel to reach their target audience. Also owned by Google, it’s no wonder that Youtube is the “second largest search engine in the world” with an approximate of one billion hours of video content being consumed daily! Bidding may be on a Pay Per Click or Cost Per View basis, with ads being shown before, during, or alongside videos.
Other media
Apart from the most popular channels listed above, advertisers can also bid for media in other ways such as remarketing, sponsored posts, display advertising and social endorsements.
What are your tips for marketers looking to drive results with Biddable Media?
The main thing to consider is simply knowing where your target audience is most reachable, and how to create content that will motivate them to ‘click’ through to your website or product/service. With high levels of competition for keywords and ad space, advertisements need to be creative, engaging and easy to consume. By putting themselves into the shoes of their target audience and understanding what copy or visuals or CTAs might push one to convert, advertisers can effectively use biddable media to get the highest return on their investment.
So there you have it – Biddable Media 101!
