This week I was invited the Mayflower theatre in Southampton to see a performance of sorts! It was Sky’s ‘Bigger Picture’ event where, in a room full of agency and media representatives, Sky gave a detailed run through of Sky Adsmart and its latest updates that promise to revolutionise the way we engage with media.
What is Sky AdSmart?
AdSmart is Sky’s targeted TV advertising solution, delivering ads direct to Sky and Virgin Media households. Unlike traditional broadcast ads, where everyone sees the same ad at the same time, Sky AdSmart delivers different ads to different households based on targeting parameters.
“Sky Adsmart allows us to target and track with TV ads, just like with digital marketing."
"Even if you’ve never heard of Sky Adsmart, you’ve probably seen an advert served through its groundbreaking technology, with 75% of all the top 100 advertisers using the Adsmart platform.”
Here's everything you need to know about Sky Media's latest offerings.
New Formats: Enhancing Advertiser Engagement
Contextual Targeting:
Contextual targeting will allow advertisers to show their ads with precise context across thousands of hours of content. For example, someone on screen is using the latest and greatest smart phone, the actor couldn’t look cooler if he tried, you find yourself thinking, ‘I could look that cool, I just need that phone’ and BOOM! The ad appearing in front of you is for that very phone.
This is all thanks to, you guessed it, AI. Sky has apparently tagged over 5,000 pieces of video on demand (VOD) content against the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) content taxonomy, which allows for the detailed level of targeting - though it remains to be see how well this will work.
Voice Ads:
For those with Sky Q or Sky Glass you might already be familiar with talking to your tv or remote, asking questions about upcoming programming. Well, imagine Sky or advertisers talking back to you. Sky have been working on just that - creating advertising opportunities that use the voice command technology via remote or Sky Glass during ads. As an ad runs, an on-screen prompt might appear, such as ‘ask to go to our homepage’. Saying that prompt into the remote will guide users to a dedicated advertiser page, all within the Sky interface.
Key Takeouts:
There were lots of other updates, however the two highlighted above really piqued our interest, with these latest updates from AdSmart presenting a unique opportunity for both Adido and our client base to expand their advertising strategies into the world of targeted television. By embracing these cutting-edge features, we can deliver targeted, engaging, and measurable campaigns for our clients.
As a marketing agency, we are excited to harness the power of Sky AdSmart to create impactful and innovative campaigns that resonate with audiences and deliver exceptional results. So, if this is something you have thought about but never investigated further, speak to one of our experts to discover the full range of opportunities.
