Why the “Converged TV Disconnect” Is Amplified for Larger Advertisers

In this era of doing more with less, converged TV advertisers are searching for new ways to improve campaign efficiency and performance across linear, connected TV, and digital video. This reality is even more challenging for advertisers spending more than $5 million a year, according to a recent survey conducted by Innovid.

These days, converged TV advertising—especially via connected TV and digital video—offers brand and agency professionals an unparalleled opportunity to quickly measure and understand their campaign performance. 

But measurement of campaign reach and performance is where the capabilities of most platforms end. Optimizing campaigns, where advertisers double down on the most effective creative and media platforms, typically requires another platform. As a result, too many advertisers spend more time measuring campaigns and less time optimizing them.  

We call this phenomenon the “converged TV disconnect.” 

More Money, Higher Stakes

Innovid’s recent survey of more than 250 brand and agency professionals highlighted this gap between campaign measurement and optimization. This gap is a problem worth bridging, because advertisers are investing increasing amounts in converged TV advertising. 

This gap poses an even bigger problem for larger advertisers, who are more likely to boost their spending in 2024. Our survey found that 63.7% of advertisers spending $5 million or more annually plan to increase ad spending next year. By comparison, just 60.7% of advertisers spending less than $5 million expect a budget increase in 2024.

Connected TV is a big driver of this spending: eMarketer projects that CTV spending will continue its rise, jumping from $25.1 billion in 2023 to $40.9 billion by 2027.

Advertisers are Investing Time, Too

In addition to budget, advertisers are investing significant time in converged TV advertising. Our survey found that 55.7% of brand and agency professionals spend more than half of their time optimizing converged TV ad performance. 

Larger advertisers spend even more time optimizing their campaigns. Of these larger advertisers, 71.3% spend more than half of their time optimizing performance, which is almost 16 percentage points higher than the survey’s average. 

Is All that Time and Money Paying Off?  

Are brand and agency professionals pleased with the outcome of their optimization efforts? Our data indicates they’re not. 

Fewer than four in 10 ad professionals (39.7%) believe their converged TV ad optimization practices are “very good.” That means that more than 60% of ad professionals say their optimization efforts fall short. Larger advertisers are even more likely to be disappointed in their TV ad optimization, with 37.9% saying their efforts fall short. 

The Gap between Measurement and Optimization

Today, the fast-approaching world of 100% digital TV is upon us. This leap forward in TV provides advertisers with powerful capabilities to measure campaigns—essentially in real time. Advertisers have access to traditional metrics like reach and frequency but also to outcomes such as app downloads, website visits, and even sales, all directly tied to their campaigns.

More than measurement, converged TV advertisers also have the tools to optimize campaigns based on these metrics, so they can boost the frequency of the creative executions and the media placements delivering the greatest ROI. 

However, advertisers too often are measuring but not quickly turning those insights into action and optimizing campaigns. More than two-thirds (68.1%) of advertising professionals are measuring the performance of their converged TV ad campaigns at least once a week. At the same time, just 57.6% of advertising professionals say they’re implementing media optimizations for their converged TV campaigns at the same frequency. 

Once again, that’s the converged TV disconnect. 

The Crux of the Problem 

Part of the reason for this converged TV disconnect is simple: too many advertisers are measuring on one platform and optimizing on another.

Almost two-thirds (62.6%) of advertising professionals say they use separate measurement and ad delivery partners. For large advertisers, this practice is even more prevalent, with 72.7% of $5 million-plus advertisers using separate platforms for measurement and ad set-up/delivery. They’re not setting themselves up for efficiency.   

Solutions Exist, Right Now 

On the surface, the choice to use separate platforms to measure and optimize may seem innocuous, but this lack of integration leads to inefficiencies in optimization. Fully integrated platforms exist—today—that can connect converged TV ad measurement with the ability to instantly optimize to drive results. From controlling frequency to reducing waste to allocating dollars against the best-performing creative to drive performance, advertisers can deploy Innovid to take full advantage of converged TV’s capabilities today. 

Learn more about how Innovid and its new Instant Optimization feature can help you bridge the converged TV disconnect.