If you’ve been hesitant about the cost of Connected TV (CTV) advertising because of the seemingly high CPMs, you’re not alone.
But, one incredibly valuable benefit of CTV advertising is often overlooked and could change how you feel about those CPMs.
Co-viewing.
It’s kind of like an unadvertised “BOGO” for CTV advertising. And, when you take it into account, CTV impressions are actually more efficient than they appear on paper.
Why?
Co-viewing is when more than one person watches content on the same screen at the same time. It’s those times you sit down with family, friends, or anyone really, to stream your favorite show. It happens pretty much every day in my house, and in millions of homes across the country.
Why does this matter for advertisers? Unlike mobile or desktop ads where impressions are strictly one-to-one, CTV often delivers to multiple viewers simultaneously. So, it could be a BOGO or even better, a BOGT!
This means your ad is reaching more eyeballs than the CPM alone suggests. So, while a $40 CPM might feel expensive compared to digital video, you could be reaching two or three people, making your CPM closer to $20 or even $13 per person.
Co-viewing can widely vary by network and is much stronger for CTV vs all OTT. A reminder: OTT can serve on mobile devices, tablets and computers, so be sure to ask what percent of your ads are delivered on TV set tops. The majority of the OTT we buy is restricted to televisions because it's more efficient.
In fact, it's become so common it now has a metric called the co-viewing factor and it’s usually between 1-2. New research from TVision reveals which networks and content types benefit the most from co-viewing.
This is a game changer for brands looking to maximize impact. Not only are you getting more value per impression, but co-viewing environments also tend to drive higher engagement because, let’s be honest, no one’s scrolling their phone in the middle of The Bear finale.
It’s time to rethink how we evaluate CTV performance as streaming continues to dominate. Looking beyond the sticker price of CPMs and factoring in co-viewing gives a clearer picture of just how cost-effective CTV advertising can be.
Check out the latest findings from TVision to see the data behind the trend. And drop us a line if you want to chat about adding CTV advertising to your media mix!