You wouldn’t buy a Super Bowl ad just to reach anyone with a TV. So why are you doing the digital equivalent in CTV?
88 percent of U.S. households now own at least one connected TV (CTV) device. This living room touchpoint is the most valuable real estate in advertising. Consumer packaged goods (CPG) brands have a direct line to where household buying decisions are made and a chance to influence what’s placed on the family table.
Yet, while CTV commands CPMs that run 2–5 times higher than open web display ads, many brands still treat it as a checkbox on their media plans. But relying on broad targeting, recycled audiences, and outdated metrics isn’t just ineffective; it’s financially irresponsible.
Precision: The Cost of Entry
Why does imprecision persist in such a premium channel? Because much of today’s CTV data is stale, generic or incomplete. Industry analyses consistently show that a significant share of CTV ad impressions are wasted, often over-served to the same viewers or misaligned with campaign goals. In fact, Nielsen data found that nearly 90 percent of TV ad impressions only reached half of U.S. households, underscoring how even premium environments can fail without better targeting. Without fresher, purchase-based data, CTV quickly turns from premium investment into a costly guessing game.
Marketers today must evolve from mere media buyers into strategic audience architects. CTV uniquely enables real-time testing, learning, and iteration, but only if marketers demand rigorous transparency from their data partners.
The new rules for precision in CTV for CPG are clear:
- End Wasted Reach: Stop targeting households unlikely ever to convert.
- Limit Retargeting Fatigue: Don’t overspend chasing recent buyers unless loyalty-building or replenishment is the clear goal.
- Reject ‘Spray and Pray’: Every dollar spent on guessing is a dollar wasted.
From Mass Messaging to Surgical Precision
Traditional CPG advertising thrived on large budgets and broad reach. The new era of CTV demands pinpoint accuracy. Leading brands now leverage purchase-based targeting combined with causal AI for maximum precision and effectiveness:
- Conquest Strategically: Zero-in on households that frequently switch brands based on promotions, innovation, or changing needs.
- Sidestep Loyalty Pitfalls: Avoid wasting resources on dedicated loyalists (yours or your competitors’) and target the “movable middle.”
- Time Your Impact: Engage precisely when households are most receptive and in need of replenishment.
For example, in a recent CPG campaign executed by Origin and NCSolutions, the brand used purchase-based targeting to focus on lapsed buyers, brand switchers and competitive brand customers. The results were clear: 58 percent of incremental sales came from new or lapsed buyers, with a strong return on ad spend. It’s evidence that when brands treat CTV as a precision channel, not just another checkbox, the payoff is transformative.
Outcome-Driven Measurement
Measurement must evolve beyond superficial metrics. Real success in CTV demands partners who prove incrementality, not just assert it. Does your CTV spend demonstrably shift consumer behavior? Do you have a clear, transparent view of the entire funnel, from exposure through conversion?
Brands must define what true closed-loop measurement looks like, including who controls the conversion data (brands, retailers, or third-party verifiers) and agree upon robust standards for attribution and accountability.
Premium Channel, Premium Respect
CTV is the luxury suite of digital advertising. Every impression is precious, and every wasted one is costly.
To win on CTV, marketers must:
- Leverage Real Purchase Data: Target based on actual buyer behaviors, not demographics alone.
- Deploy Causal Modeling: Move beyond “who saw it” to “why it worked.” Insist on auditable and transparent insights.
- Fine-Tune Timing & Frequency: Capture attention precisely when consumers are in-market.
- Demand Accountability: Require your partners to deliver closed-loop, sales-based measurement.
- Align Agency Incentives: Tie compensation to genuine sales impact, not superficial metrics.
Marketers who embrace precision as the foundational strategy for CTV aren’t just best-in-class, they’re the only class suited to thrive in today’s fiercely competitive marketplace.
The era of broad, unrefined media buys is behind us. To win in CTV, precision isn’t optional; it’s essential.
The author, Avi Chai Outmezguine, is CEO and Chairman at Becausal (formerly Scanbuy Data).