41% of Canadian Agencies Expect To Allocate 50%+ Ad Budget To Programmatic Buying In 2013 [Report]

BY: 

Dave Forde
June 7, 2013

For the third year in a row, BrightRoll has partnered with IAB Canada for their “Canada Video Ad Report” (2012 findings are here), which looks at online video and advertising spending.  Key findings for 2013 include:

  • 69 percent of respondents find video equally or more effective than TV, while 86 percent prefer video to display
  • Advertisers are accelerating spending towards digital video (up 42 percent from 2012) to meet growing demands from clients looking to reach audiences across screens
  • 41 percent of Canadian agencies expect to allocate half or more of their ad spend to programmatic buying in 2013
  • GRP/TRP is the best metric to measure audience reach, according to 30 percent of respondents, while advanced iGRP techniques allow advertisers to get more precise readings

More than 300 advertising executives at top agencies across Canada were surveyed for this year’s results.  In 2012, you may recall 65% of advertisers said online video delivers better results than TV which makes a slight increase this year by 4%.

While video continues to be an increasing popular area for advertisers there obviously is still quite a bit of work to be done for advertising dollars to shift to digital. According to comScore, 92 percent of Canadian Internet users watch videos online, and in the past year, the number of consumers watching videos on smartphones has more than doubled.

“As Canada’s appetite for online and mobile video continues to grow, advertisers have a unique opportunity to reach more consumers through the power of sight, sound and motion,” said David Bellemare, Managing Director, BrightRoll Canada. “This year’s survey confirms advertisers are more confident in digital video as an advertising platform, and thanks to technological advancements in ad buying and measurement, they are able to demonstrate campaign effectiveness and ROI.”

 

Not only is digital video the preferred ad format – 69 percent of respondents find video equally or more effective than TV, while 86 percent prefer video to display – advertisers no longer question its effectiveness. This year’s report also confirms Canadian advertisers are shifting towards programmatic technology, including real-time bidding (RTB), to buy video. Forty-one percent of Canadian agencies expect to allocate half or more of their ad spend to programmatic buying in 2013, citing pricing efficiency as the key benefit.

Technological advances in ad buying, serving and measurement are all contributing to the rapid growth of digital video in Canada. Data-driven targeting capabilities enable advertisers to reach precise, highly engaged audiences, while advanced measurement provides a deeper understanding of a campaign’s effectiveness and reach. According to agency respondents, completed views are seen as the most important success metric for video campaigns (a 92 percent increase from 2012). While industry standards for viewability are still being defined, 67 percent of respondents seek to validate the viewability of their video ad campaigns. Thirty percent of Canadian advertisers would like to better understand how GRP audience measurement can be applied to digital video to improve campaigns and complement TV ad buys.

Additional key findings from the report include:

  • When asked what aspect of digital video advertisers find most valuable, 39 percent cite video’s targeting capabilities, while 24 percent cite reach.
  • Fifty percent of respondents confirm that half or more of their RFPs in the last year included a digital video component – a 22 percent increase from 2010.
  • One third of agency respondents believe that online or mobile video will see the highest growth in media spending in 2013. By contrast, TV and connected TV will experience the least growth.
  • Thirty percent of respondents say that GRP/TRP is the best metric to measure audience reach, while advanced iGRP techniques allow advertisers to get a more precise reading.
  • As Canadian advertisers move toward programmatic buying platforms, 41 percent of respondents are likely or somewhat likely to consolidate video ad buys onto a single platform solution.

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Dave Forde


Dave “The Connector” Forde has been involved in the marketing, public relations and technology industry across Canada for over 20 years in various sales and marketing roles, he launched The Connected One network of business sites which connects buyers to the right sellers. Profectio and PR In Canada covers news about the marketing and public relations industry each day helping professionals advance their career and businesses. He also serves as an advisor to a number of businesses across the country. Find Dave on LinkedIn and Twitter.


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