The power and pressure of programmatic

Programmatic is practically the definition of an irresistible force. Depending on which research you prefer, some 80 to 96 per cent of advertisers already buy digital display space programmatically. Research from Magna Global says programmatic spend should reach 42 per cent of total online display advertising in 2014, rising to 48 per cent in 2015. And industry leader P&G announced earlier this year, to both applause and fear, that it aims to purchase as much as 75 per cent of its digital display advertising via programmatic means—not in three or five years’ time but by the end of this year. As a bellwether brand, where P&G goes, many follow.

That news prompted Forbes contributor Charles Warner to write a futuristic look at the media landscape. In it he forecast the death of direct-media sales all together (a parody or real prediction?).

And there are plenty of indications that the tactic is likely to outgrow desktop and mobile screens and move into other media in a relatively short time.

Two major American TV broadcast networks, NBC and ABC, announced earlier this year that they would start experimenting with programmatic ad sales. StarHub a Singapore TV provider, has introduced a system it calls smart targeting, which puts the company’s info systems (including mobile and return path data (RPD) from two-way set-top boxes) to work, allowing advertisers to segment viewers. The system means StarHub and its partners can target and re-target consumers across platforms (TV to digital, mobile and online or on TV only). It’s not exactly real-time bidding (RTB) or necessarily the same thing as programmatic buying. But it’s not altogether different either and it’s here today.

Plus, out-of-home (OOH) advertising is seeing much more digital deployment, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR), according to PwC, of near 16 per cent up over the next four years. Emerging markets are advancing at almost double that rate, with a 30 per cent CAGR. And where there’s digital there’s room for automation. Companies are already lining up to trade digital OOH inventory in a programmatic fashion.

So what?

The point is, even if your budget doesn’t flow much to online display advertising, you’ll still have to confront programmatic buying and its implications sooner than you may have planned. Learning about it today will help you prepare for implementing it in the future.

Campaign Asia-Pacific's webinar series, presented with Turn, is an easy way to ease your way into the technology. Our latest edition looks back at some of the territory we’ve covered in the past year and than focuses on how brands can work with agencies and technology providers to get the most out of programmatic buying.

On 26 November Campaign Asia-Pacific speaks with Carat’s chief digital officer for APAC, Kevin Walsh; Rupa Rajamani head of digital performance marketing & technology strategy at Standard Chartered Bank; and Turn’s Asia-Pacific managing director, Cindy Deng. Each has ample experience in and unique perspectives on implementing programmatic strategies. They’ll discuss the technology and share best practices for incorporating it into marketing plans as well as how to overcome challenges on the execution level. It’s an opportunity to learn from firsthand experiences—not just in theory. We’ll get into the details of how to make relationships between different stakeholders work.

RTB is just the tip of the iceberg. As we track industry trends, we see programmatic becoming a much larger part of marketing investments, both in terms of time and budgets. Join us live for this important discussion and take the opportunity to ask your own questions of the panel. The webinar interface gives you a direct line to get in on the conversation. It’s all the learning of a conference-style session without the costs or travel, so set aside an hour and prepare for your programmatic future.

Look here for more detail on the free webinar presented in conjunction with Turn; or here to sign up straight away

If you'd like to check out the previous webinars in the series, they are all available on-demand: 

• Part 1: Introduction
• Part 2: Branding the Programmatic, Multi-Channel Way
• Part 3: Reach your true audience: Data and programmatic strategies