With nearly the entire globe on lockdown, many are forced to stay inside and are tuning into television. What does this mean for your dealership? There are a ton of eyes that could see your dealership’s name!

When you opt to use connected TV, or over-the-top services (OTT), you can target your advertising to consumers over a set-top box or device. These are the non-skippable ads you see when you initiate a streaming program on your big screen at home, just before you watch or download a movie from places like Roku, Sling, Hulu, and Vudu. Nielsen estimates 68% of households in the U.S. have a connected smart TV or a device like a game console or Amazon Fire. These are compelling statistics that tell us that even before the outbreak, viewing habits were changing.

In the initial month of the pandemic, we saw news viewership skyrocket. Now it seems people are tired of the same depressing news content and are looking for alternative programs to watch. Streaming TV services like Netflix, Disney TV, and Hulu have experienced exponential viewership growth. As an advertiser, you can capitalize on that viewership by serving programmatic ads on any of the OTT platforms, with a hyper-targeted approach by household, demographic, and intent data. Did we mention that you can deliver your ad in a non-skippable ad format? This means viewers HAVE TO WATCH YOUR COMMERCIAL.

Advertisers with a social distancing product, like delivery services and contactless vehicle purchasing, have a real opportunity right now to ramp up their investment. Think about it. You also get your brand in front of a specific audience and can even build a retargeting plan to reach this audience in future OTT campaigns.

So how should you adapt OTT during Coronavirus? We have a few tips.

  1. Be sensitive to your message and design. You’ve heard us say it before, but now is not the time to encourage people to come into your stores and walk around your showroom. Instead, focus on the numerous ways people can reach you. You can focus on your delivery options, available remote presentations or virtual walkthroughs, and limited-contact service lanes.
  2. Work with a professional team (like JVS Marketing) to ensure you’re in control of your inventory and audience. With a variety of ages and demographics at home streaming video right now, you want to be sure you are targeting the right people at the right time.
  3. Think about your advertising schedule. When are people watching TV right now? The answer is pretty much all the time. Be sure your campaigns are running during the day, as you are no longer just reaching older consumers during that time. Viewing for 55-64 on OTT is up, indicating that they, too, are dedicating time to watch video in different formats.

Everything is changing rapidly. The longer advertisers wait, the more they risk not being at the forefront of new consumers at a critical moment. Get your message and name in front of your audience. Let us help you do this correctly by connecting traditional and digital channels in a thoughtful, targeted campaign. To learn more, contact us at 561-745-6207 or email us at info@jvsads.com.