Over the past few years, big data has finally entered the big marketing game. Data now can be called an engine of progress, because thanks to high-quality insights, you can find the right person at the right time under optimal conditions. But as soon as analysts and marketers started talking about big data, it became clear that the most valuable thing in this whole story was not so much the user data itself as the algorithms and methods for analyzing it that help to draw the right conclusions. It’s a good idea to understand what advantages programmatic marketing brings to business and why it is becoming an increasingly popular type of interaction.
Algorithmic purchase of advertising, or in other words, programmatic advertising, helps the business to directly interact with its client. How does this happen? It’s less complicated than it might seem at first glance. Programmatic is an automated mechanism for the implementation, purchase, and optimization of online advertising. Therefore, it is an opportunity to show interested people the right offer at the right time. ⅘ of all paid media advertising is carried out through programmatic means.
According to eMarketer, by the end of 2019, worldwide spending on programmatic advertising will have reached $48 billion. By 2020, US advertisers will be spending $69 billion on programmatic advertising in the United States, representing 86.3% of total digital advertising. Previously, only large media agencies with large budgets could afford marketing programs, but now, due to the rapid development of service tools, small brands have the opportunity to compete with larger ones on equal terms without going through intermediaries.
Leaving “digital footprints” when browsing various sites and downloading files, a person shows their interest in a particular product. For example, someone who visited a website for purchasing airline tickets can automatically be attributed to the travel lovers category. Programmatic marketing values bundles of data that also include offline information (purchases in retail stores, gas stations, visits to restaurants and public places).
Since the whole process is automatic, the buyer of the advertising does not have to worry about signing contracts or discussing the cost. After a request for targeting, artificial intelligence independently optimizes impressions, collects data about them, analyzes and targets with even greater accuracy. Programmatic allows advertisers to simultaneously contact customers through smartphones, tablets, PCs, and even television. This kind of digital marketing across multiple devices identifies the channels where users are more responsive to advertising. Forecasts for 2020 are already saying that two-thirds of programmatic advertising will be concentrated on phones exclusively.
Of course, there are skeptics who speak negatively about programmatic buying in general, but it is without reason. According to European and American experts, about 85% of display advertising will very soon become fully programmatic. Previously, programmatic was not considered the main advertising tool, but rather an additional mechanism. But today the situation is different: more and more leading publishers are providing their inventory on programmatic platforms. That is why open and honest platforms are now characterized by high-quality impressions. The programmatic system works according to money investments and conversion expectations for each impression, thus minimizing the cost. A business needs to introduce programmatic into its marketing strategy because this will lead to better targeting and help avoid unnecessary expenses, save time on monitoring advertising campaigns, and increase profit on invested capital.