ACR (Automatic Content Recognition)

Automatic Content Recognition (ACR) is technology that gathers data from a user of an internet-enabled TV, or Smart TV, to help in identifying and gathering TV viewership data

 This data is gathered automatically without any user-based opt-in or input, which offers greater depth and accuracy than user-offered data. ACR gathers such data as geolocation, viewing history and user pathways.

These TVs usually choose to share this aggregated viewership data with demand-side platforms (DSPs), who use this information to serve ads to viewers most likely to view, engage, and convert into customers with a purchase.

ACR is a technology that was first created in 2011 when it was applied to TV content by Shazam, a music recognition service. Today, ACR data is harnessed by both advertisers and data-aggregation companies alike, who use it to develop their 

 targets. Thanks to ACR, we can now track real-time TV audience measurement metrics and adjust ad strategy with greater precision and efficiency.


In some cases, ACR is sent back to the original client, which they then use to offer the user direct content recommendations within the video service. For example, in 

, a streaming video platform may use ACR to suggest similar shows to watch after the user finishes a crime series to maintain user engagement in and continued use of the platform.

There is an option on almost every device for the user to disable the ACR feature and opt-out of offering their data, though it is the default setting to be opted-in. Some original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) who utilize ACR technology include Samsung, Vizio, and LG.

For advertisers to be able to not only target audiences but also measure the performance and pickup of their TV advertisements, they typically partner with a DSP to run campaign reports on user data. The DSP, in turn, works with a trusted and well-known data provider, who is host to myriad Smart TV providers’ data, gathered originally through automatic content recognition (ACR) technology.

As the leader in cross-channel TV planning, buying and measurement, 

 include both ad technology providers who license their own ACR data, such as Vizio’s Inscape panel – which  offer a footprint of roughly 14 million monthly active devices – as well as companies who license their own ACR data from data providers. The aggregate of this offering provides advertisers with a clear overview of who is watching your ad and when. Providers like Kantar Media, Tivo, and Nielsen lift household-level 

 data to draw up reports reflecting demographic data, behavioral viewing patterns, and to track the user pathway from browsing, selection, viewing and beyond.

Armed with this information, advertisers can weigh who they targeted for an advertisement, versus who actually sat through and watched – and for how long. This is especially useful when taking the campaign to scale, whether increasing in frequency or reach.

Overall, ACR can gather granular, real-time user information that is key to informing future decision making. Whether it’s retargeting, changing creative, shifting budget or widening audience reach, ACR is an advertiser’s behind-the-scenes ally.

Addressable TV Advertising

Addressable TV advertising involves the use of new technologies to enable advertisers to show different ads to different households watching the same 

 (CTV) content. Specific ad messages can be sent to specific 

 targets based on consumer traits and demographic information such as geographic location, income or behavioral attributes, to name a few examples. Addressable TV advertising allows for very specific strategizing and targeted tactics to yield what an advertiser can predict as the best likelihood of the highest conversion rate.

Advertisers can look to data providers and panel-based research, such as that provided by the Nielsen TV audience measurement Ratings system, to understand customer sentiment. These data providers can track factors that directly affect the advertiser’s bottom line, such as engagement with an ad – i.e. whether they opt out or watch the ad to completion – and depth of engagement – i.e. if they go to then lookup the product on a search engine, click on the product page, and click through to purchase. A company usually hires a TV buying platform or 

 to gather these reports and report back on the success of a campaign, or to predict a campaign’s outcome based on past data.

All in all, the emergence of addressable TV advertising has allowed advertisers to gain real-time, granular insight into campaign performance, and to even tweak campaign targets midway through, allowing for opportunity to pivot and optimize to improve outcomes.

 that can place ads tailored to specific households from segmented target audiences – one of few TV buying platforms who do so. While traditional advertising may target based on the programming, prioritizing your target audience allows the brand to focus on maximizing their reach regardless of context. With emphasis on the ‘who’ in the equation, brands can ensure they don’t leave any potential customer behind.The footprint of addressable TV advertising is 60% of the size of linear TV. We specialize in both non-addressable linear and addressable CTV advertising.

Through our TV+® platform for cross-channel TV planning and buying, we have direct integrations to over 250 linear and CTV networks and publishers. Our partnerships include over a dozen data providers that power data-driven TV viewership data, audience planning, segmentation and targeting, and cross-channel consumer behavior. Together, the dual benefit of a broad network reach and granular 

, tracking and measuring ensures a combined addressable CTV and non-addressable linear TV advertising experience that makes the most of any ad budget.

Audiences

, any TV advertisement can fall on deaf ears. Defining and reaching the correct audiences can make or break the success of your strategy.

In the TV universe, audiences are defined as any group of viewers that have been segmented by a set of characteristics, such as geographic location, purchasing history, or annual household income, for example. These audiences are TV consumers who are targeted based on a single or several identifiers that place them as ideal candidates for engagement with and conversion from an advertisement.

Do you want your audience to see an advertisement for baby food, for example, and then buy that product? You’ll need to make sure your advertising agency defines which audiences are most likely to need the product, and act on their desire to follow-through with a purchase. TV attribution is used to identify these conversion pathways.

How do advertisers measure the audience reach of television?

 advertising, connecting with a media server, such as an IP (internet protocol), extracts audience information which advertisers can then collect for targeting and reporting purposes.

In linear TV advertising, advertisers connect with national networks to gather audience information. The more national networks an advertiser has access to, the greater the chance the ad has of reaching the largest number of households and targeting with more precision and clarity.

 should have partnerships with top-of-the-line data partners who can extract this audience information with ease and efficiency. One industry leader is Nielsen, who uses proprietary electronic measuring devices and software to capture what advertisements viewers are exposed to across devices.

Audiences who view an advertisement are measured in relation to the entire viewership of linear TV or 

 in any given time frame. Audience measurement is typically further segmented by media markets, which are defined by the size of a metropolitan area.

 or target rating points (TRPs) are the standard unit of measurement. A data-driven and automated workflow from your TV buying platform is crucial for speedy measurement reporting. With accurate and timely reports, re-targeting audiences, expanding reach, and increasing frequency is exponentially simpler when you’re looking to scale your campaign.

Every TV advertising campaign should be run with a set target audience, which can be built out, re-built as lookalike audiences, and re-targeted as the campaign’s success is measured and goes to scale.

Here at Simulmedia, we partner with audience data providers to build out these target audiences using high quality first and third party data sets based on observed behavior captured by 

automatic content recognition technology (ACR)

. Our expansive list of data partners offer a 360-degree view of user data, so your audience is based on a wide panel of data, leaving no room for gaps or guesswork in getting granular with your targeting. The larger the panel of data, the more accurate your targeting can be.

 considers audience behaviors and inventory-supply parameters across CTV and linear like budget, timeframe and network restrictions to recommend the most optimized plan for your goals. The platform then provides real-time cross channel reporting at a granular level, by network/publisher, program, depart and day of the week. Our data partnerships enable complete transparency into key performance metrics, such as how your advertising is driving web visits, app installs, and more essential KPIs.

Working with a Simulmedia account manager, we can identify a strategy that either prioritizes reach or frequency in targeting the households that match your model buyer personas, increasing the likelihood of converting viewers in buyers and therefore a profitable return on investment from your ad campaign.

CPM (Cost Per Thousand)

Cost per thousand, or Cost per Mille (as it’s officially known), is a term to indicate the price of 1,000 advertisement 

, one impression would refer to one individual slot and time in which a single user was exposed to an advertisement, and each subsequent exposure is a new, additional impression. The advertising cost is the total budget spent on a given campaign. So, the CPM can be calculated with a simple formula:

Advertising cost / Impressions generated = CPM

CPM measurement considers impressions by the thousand as a shorthand given the sizable reach of most television campaigns. CPM is considered an advertising measurement benchmark that is standardized across the industry.

Brands use TV CPM trends to measure the effectiveness of advertising campaigns and various stages of deployment, and to compare success against previous campaigns. Since impressions are the precedent to conversion and revenue, measuring impressions can serve as an indicator of generating sales. Different advertisers have different predictions for how CPM should reflect revenue. Their predictions could be based on myriad factors, such as product type, the market, their target 

 makeup and company sales goals against previous quarters.

Typically, CPMs tend to be higher in CTV ad campaigns, because the inventory is more limited than with linear TV, and thus competition for slots is more aggressive. A bigger portion of the ad budget may go to any given ad slot, driving the CPM up for the same number of viewers reached.

At Simulmedia, our research with hundreds of clients has indicated that, for most brands, reaching an untouched prospect with a first impression is much more cost-efficient than reaching an existing prospect multiple times with increased frequency. The CPM value of reaching 1,000 new prospects, while often higher than when increasing frequency, is more rich than any other measurement. With strong creative, precise targeting and intentional timing, a campaign that reaches 1,000 new prospects could be attributable to numerous new, paying, loyal customers, making a higher CPM worth the investment.

One way to offset the risk of getting a high CPM when targeting new prospects is to make sure you have clearly defined your target audience. 

 takes a data-first approach to gathering audience reach information that goes beyond the minimalistic basics of sex, age, location attributes. By looking at more and more specific identifiers, advertisers can create defined target audiences, and from there increase reach by building look-alike audiences, which are audiences with similar potential to engage. That way, when you take your campaign to scale, you won’t have to settle for simply increasing frequency and potentially numbing users to your ads.

CPRP (Cost Per Reach Point)

The cost-per-reach point (CPRP) is the cost of achieving a 1% gross rating point (GRP), or 1% of all households with access to television. The gross rating point formula is a simple calculation of the cost of the advertisement, divided by the GRP percentage number. CPRP is a standard measurement of a linear TV ad campaign performance, and helps advertisers evaluate whether the ad slot purchase was cost-effective or not. This evaluation can be helpful information for networks at the 

, who use high CPRP results from previous season’s ad campaigns as leverage in price negotiations for the next season’s ad slots.

Cost per rating point is inherently based in the calculation of gross rating points (GRPs). GRPs are sticky and weighted, ultimately measured with consideration for how long an ad was watched. In order to achieve a full point, the ad needs to be watched to near completion by 1% of households.

CPRP is, like many of the standard measurement systems in TV advertising, an estimate. While CPRP evaluates the exact cost of exposure, exposure itself is based on a household-by-household basis and not on individuals. Therefore, while a household may view an ad, there could be, for example, a football viewing party in the household, which means the ad actually engaged 10 sets of eyeballs. The exact individual impressions – whether it is watching on a connected TV (CTV) or a more traditional one – is impossible to pinpoint, but exposure by household or account is a close metric for the industry.

Because CPRP is calculated based on all households with access to television, it is often useful to also look at 

 demographic information. It is valuable information for advertisers to consider how their target audience aligns – or misaligns – with who actually opts to watch their ad.'

For example: Was there an age group who was not targeted who actually tends to tune in during the ad’s run time? If people aged 65+ were not targeted during a 7a.m.- 8a.m. ad slot, yet many households in that age group in fact tuned in during that slot, how much exposure was missed? When running a second campaign to increase 

, or to scale, including that demographic in the target audience can snag more gross rating points, and thus a higher CPRP.

In any advertising campaign, the cost per reach is paramount to measuring success. However, advertisers cannot be remiss to forget the qualitative value of each household who is reached by an ad. Anyone looking to run a TV advertisement needs a trusted audience target development partner to ensure that their ad dollars are going towards the prospects most likely to convert into customers, not just happenstance viewers.


Without a defined audience, and with disregard for who makes a valuable customer, many ads may reach households who aren’t interested in the product, and serve them campaign-over-campaign simply because it’s airing on a hot network or a prime-time slot.


 has a solution for that. TV+ runs all the possibilities through its algorithm to consider demographic factors and viewing behaviors that match the model customer, while also considering less top-of-mind time slots and networks where those model customers may be found. This eliminates the possibility that a mismatched household will be served an ad; that a mismatched household will receive the same ad repetitively, as is the case with campaigns with aimless frequency; and, finally, that ad dollars aren’t spent through the lifecycle of a campaign without consideration for how it is performing along the way.


Ultimately, the cost-per-impression measured by our technology allows for the most cost-effective solution to linear TV and 

. While the cost per reach point (CPRP) does offer a view of the ad’s exposure, it does little to predict how those exposures may lead to direct sales in the way that audience targeting and campaign pivoting can provide.

CTV (Connected TV)

Connected TV (CTV) involves a device that is connected to or embedded in a Smart TV that supports video streaming platforms, such as Hulu, Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney+ or many others. These devices have pre-loaded and ready-to-watch 

, that requires no download time on the part of the viewer. Today, there are more than 200 video-streaming services that are accessible through CTV.

This differs from linear TV, where a viewer tunes in to a TV program that is scheduled to air at a specific time and is broadcast by the original network, such as Showtime or CNN. Whereas with CTV, the viewing time is flexible and at the discretion of the viewer, often with a full season of a TV series pre-loaded.

CTV includes both streaming video and the digital advertisements that appear between or during these programs. Many video streaming platforms provide the option to pay a higher premium to access content uninterrupted by ads. According to a 2021 Deloitte digital media trends survey, 65% of respondents said they’re comfortable watching ads to eliminate extra subscription costs.

For advertisers, CTV poses a unique opportunity to target 

 that complement or overlap with linear TV demographics. Because CTV is connected to 

 technology, brands looking to advertise on streaming platforms can enjoy ACR’s robust data collection, which they can gather by employing a trusted ad technology partner, such as a demand-side platform (DSP). This DSP gathers this data to inform your precise audience targeting goals. From this detailed audience data, you can expect increased conversion for your ad campaign, including when taking the campaign to scale.

The connected TV landscape presents a new opportunity in the world of advertising, as streaming becomes part of the regular video consumption mix for households nationally. According to a Statista survey assessing internet-connected TV penetration rates in the US spanning 7 years, by midway through 2021, 82% of US households owned a CTV device – up from 50% in 2014. This astronomical rate of growth only means more opportunity for advertisers to invest their dollars into the CTV space and monetize on this trend.

How can Simulmedia help you facilitate CTV advertising placements?

 allows advertisers to craft target audiences and run personalized ad experiences that are also measurable, so every household receives a unique, tailored experience of your brand or product. Plus, our proprietary Cross Channel Insights Dashboard provides detailed information as to how your target audience is distributed across both 

, including the overlap of those audiences; viewing behaviors of each household; intel as to which networks, programs, and dayparts the user is most engaged with; and more.

Armed with this information, no prospect from your target audience will be left unreached through the use of advertising technology that allows you to confidently execute media buys across the entire linear and CTV landscape.

Data-driven Linear

What is data-driven linear TV advertising?

The latest development in data-driven linear TV advertising is the ability to collect 

 data on linear TV ad campaigns through data enabled TV. This means TV viewership data can now be tied to consumer action, creating a direct link between audience ad exposure and actual business performance. The ability to see attribution between ad viewing and action across platforms, and make the connection from viewing on linear to purchasing in any environment, has offered linear TV advertising a greater power over ad measurement.

For example, AMC Networks has made efforts to scale its addressable TV offerings, including harnessing linear media data to deliver nationally targeted audiences – an upgrade from advertising’s historical ability to only reach at the local level. The benefit of using data to scale to reach a larger audience in this way is that one single campaign can reach an entire nationally targeted audience base, follow them across platforms, and ultimately reduce confusion around tracking business KPI’s.

As of 2021, the typical US household subscribes to up to 200 networks per year. This means their attention is diluted across the TV landscape. Data and access are key to enabling an ad to maximize audience reach and cover broad ground, wherever target audiences watch.


Data-gathering tools have only grown in their precision and depth over recent years. Today, brands can use these tools to gather minute details about their target audiences, and strategize their ad planning on linear TV channels in a way that wasn’t possible with traditional television advertising 25 years ago. Data-driven linear tv advertising is a growing and ever-evolving industry built on the evolving software of any given TV buying platform

, Simulmedia takes a data-driven approach to buying linear TV ads (as well as connected TV). We partner with several data partners to ensure that every touch point in the buying process is driven by data and offers predictability and opportunities to optimize. From developing a target audience based on first- and third-party data, to placing ads based on who is watching, and where, to assessing creative messaging and reporting effectiveness, to attributing in-person and digital purchasing to TV ad exposure — data is at the heart of how we plan.

 make this data-driven decision making process possible. Our partner AppsFlyer uses data sets to attribute app installs to TV ad spend; Dynata uses data sets to understand the awareness lift of a campaign, and to measure and report how creative resonates within a market; and Google Analytics leverages existing site data to gather intelligence on how TV ad exposure drives site activity. These are just a few of our several partners who help make possible our data-driven linear TV advertising approach.

GRP (Gross Rating Point)

A gross rating point (GRP) is a standardized measurement of a TV advertisement’s success that tracks how much exposure an ad has received above all else. One GRP is equal to an ad being exposed to 1% of the total possible TV 

, or any household with a television. A GRP reflects the number of exposures an ad gets, and includes frequency as an additional point – 5 GRPs can mean that 5% of the audience viewed the ad once, or 1% of the audience viewed the ad five times. In this way, the GRP system is inclusive of all ad views weighted equally, and can be used to account for both 

 and frequency when measuring the effectiveness of a television campaign.

Predicting GRP is an especially important tactic used by networks during the 

 in negotiations for selling time slots to advertisers. If a previous season of a popular television show garnered a 30% GRP the previous year, this can serve as the basis for predictions of the second season’s popularity. Networks can leverage this data to sell short ad slots during season two’s run for millions of dollars, pitching to the advertisers that there will be high engagement and therefore a high return on investment. Ultimately, the price of achieving a GRP against the cost of the ad slot purchase is calculated as the 

However, the GRP does not guarantee high conversion rates from viewers to customers. It should be held lightly as a predictor of success, as increased reach and frequency tend to be predictors of high return on investment. An advertiser can work with a trusted TV buying platform or demand-side platform (DSP) to facilitate the 

 process. The platform can then work with its data providers to gather a report that evaluates the link between GRP and conversion, and then outline next steps for taking your campaign to scale


At Simulmedia, we believe the industry is 

due for a change to the gross rating point system

 with a more advanced TV targeting system. For decades, advertisers found that blunt, vague, and undefined targeting based in simple age and sex demographics does not serve the brand or the audiences well. When these broad categories serve as the primary metrics for planning, buying and measuring TV ad campaigns, the picture of who is really getting served an ad and how it serves them comes out opaque. Such a tight strategic audience, based on these variables, means your attribution rate is going to be very low – you’ll waste ad dollars on prospects unlikely to convert. Simulmedia’s data-driven approach and TV+® planning and buying platform can help solve this problem.

future of media measurement is going to change

. Nielsen is currently working on implementing a new TV ad panel that considers 

 metrics for buying, planning and measurement, to be implemented in 2022. In addition, other major data providers are taking a more granular cross-channel audience measurement approach.

Our partnerships with data providers such as Nielsen, Experian, Inscape and others offer insights that look beyond the basics and get to the nitty-gritty of user data, so your ad has a more impactful reach to tailored, curated audiences, with more value than the gross rating point system measures.

Impression

An impression is a metric that advertisers use to quantify the number of views an ad has achieved when being served to a target audience in a TV ad spot. Depending on the number of impressions a piece of ad content has achieved, the TV 

 trends (cost-per-impression) may be higher or lower, indicating the performance of the ad. The more impressions an ad achieves, the greater bang for your buck from the ad sale. This is used as an indicator, in ad metrics, of profitability from a campaign, whose dollars spent stretch further the more eyes are on the ad.

While impressions are considered a baseline metric for media measurement on ad performance, they should be viewed as only a predictor of direct sales revenue, rather than a direct measurement of it. While we cannot ensure how many eyes were on the screen when an ad aired, higher impressions increase the likelihood that more people viewed the ad, and thus increases the likelihood of more purchases. Two tactics to increase impressions include widening or expanding reach and increasing frequency.


A partnership with an advanced data provider can allow an advertiser to track the pathways of a viewer, from impression to purchase, directly relating ad effectiveness to earned revenue. Many advertisers employ a TV buying platform that has partnerships with these data providers. These platforms can then gather reports that prove the effectiveness of the ad against predictions and help the brand strategize and retarget in bringing the ad to scale.

Traditionally, delivering the same number of 

 at a lower CPM was considered the gold standard marker of a successful ad campaign. But the picture is much more complex if you’d like to make sure your ad dollars are spent wisely and with the greatest cost-efficiency as possible.

The average American household has access to over 200 linear TV channels. In addition, there are over 200 connected TV (CTV) streaming services in the market. According to a 2021 study commissioned by Comcast, 70% of U.S. households with at least one streaming subscription also still subscribe to linear (and that may not even account for the proliferation of free ad-supported streaming services, many of which can be accessed without a subscription). This means that cross-channel – linear 

 CTV – targeting is key to ensuring your target audience sees your ad spots.

But with all of the opportunity to reach households on various platforms, how does an advertiser ensure their ad doesn’t fall flat?

At Simulmedia, one answer lies in relying on reach over frequency when measuring impressions. Our research has found that while most viewers have access to several devices, platforms and channels, most people only watch a narrow set of networks and programs, which we call 

“fragmentation” in the advertising industry

 for planning, buying and measurement cross-channel TV, and our partnerships with data-driven, media measurement companies like Experian and LiveRamp, Simulmedia can pinpoint which audiences are viewing where, so your advertisement hits where the eyeballs actually are, and ensure that frequency doesn’t overwhelm any given viewer. While impressions are a key measurement in any ad campaign, eliminating unnecessary frequency and instead re-allocating those ad dollars towards increasing reach is one way to 

MVPD (Multichannel Video Programming Distributor)

Today, studies show that many viewers seek a balance between convenience and price when choosing what to watch in the dense world of video offerings. That’s where MVPDs, or Multichannel Video Programming Distributors, come in. MVPDs provide bundled offerings to give audiences access to multiple TV channels through a single service provider. Some of the first, and still most familiar, MVPD companies are Comcast and Spectrum.

 (CTV) world as well: ad supported streaming services such as Hulu TV ad YouTube TV aggregate content from hundreds or thousands of content providers, all accessible to viewers with a single login.

In exchange for access, MVPDs charge a regular, monthly subscription fee from the user. Often there are various levels of access, either providing more channels, premiere or early access, or an ad-free experience (an offering sometimes offered by CTV streaming platforms). Some linear MVPDs bundle the TV subscription service with phone and/or internet bills, as a full telecommunications service package.


 who subscribe to a linear TV MVPD overlap with the audiences who subscribe to a CTV MVPD. In one November 2021 Nielsen study, MoffettNathanson Research found that around 83.5 million U.S. TV homes have either a cable, satellite, or telco service, while the number goes up to 94 million -- 77% – when CTV is added to the mix.

One of the benefits of MVPDs in placing advertisements is their access to data.  MVPDs have access to data collection tools that give an in-depth picture of a user’s viewing habits across channels and networks, as all are accessed through a single login. This is invaluable TV audience data that can help advertisers inform their targeting strategy. This MVPD audience data, however, often comes at a price. A brand will want to use an ad-buying platform that partners with networks and MVPDs and has access to their data. Leveraging these working relationships will help to inform the brand’s strategy and pivot in a profitable way when bringing the campaign to scale.

The MVPD space offers a growing opportunity to reach audiences where they are watching. While Nielsen has been the industry standard for defining 

 since TV advertising’s inception, new, digital, data-centric and customer-first TV ad buying platforms provide new and more granular insights into who is watching, and where.

Simulmedia offers a wealth of opportunities to enter into the MVPD space. TV+®, our 

cross-channel planning and buying platform

 allows your campaign to run on linear TV, CTV or both – finding your unduplicated audience wherever they’re watching or streaming. TV+ includes direct integrations with over 250 linear and CTV networks and publishers, as well as partnerships with data providers such as Foursquare, Experian and AppsFlyer, who gather first- and third-party data sets and can track behavior and show  attribution across purchasing platforms.

For MVPD TV audience targeting, we also partner with data providers like LiveRamp, who allow us to leverage third-party audience information and ingest first-party audiences, so lookalike audiences are easy to generate for when a campaign goes to scale. As your team learns more about the trends in who engages and converts to customers from your ads, these lookalike audiences are key to finding gaps in audience targets across these subscriber bases.

OTT (Over The Top)

Over the Top, or OTT, advertising involves streaming video content over the internet. This differs from traditional video distribution channels, such as linear TV, which streams through cable or wireless carriers, among other methods.

OTT sometimes uses a box set – also known as OTT devices – that connects to a regular display. OTT devices come in several forms: they can dually serve as game consoles, such as Xbox does; they can operate using OTT boxes with specialized remotes, such as Roku TV does; or they are managed purely virtually through a Smart TV connected to the internet, such as Hulu and Netflix do. Today, there are hundreds of OTT streaming services offering entertaining video content to 

OTT advertising is now most often used to refer to premium television content available from streaming services. 

, which is sometimes used synonymously with OTT, refers to devices such as Smart TVs and gaming consoles, through which OTT content can be streamed. OTT is the method for delivering video content, while CTV is the device on which a viewer sees that content. OTT advertising & marketing has widened the scope of possibilities for brands in recent years.

, Simulmedia can help brands reach viewers across both linear and CTV with unmatched certainty, efficiency and guaranteed scale. By taking a cross-channel approach to audience segmentation, targeting, ad placement and campaign measurement, no relevant audience is left unreached. This data-driven cross-channel approach is imperative to optimizing your campaign, as CTV and OTT streaming are being used at least 80 minutes per day on average by U.S. consumers, according to a 2021 study by 

While there is significant overlap between CTV and linear TV viewers, some viewers can only be reached on CTV. CTV is growing at a quickening pace, so including it in your ad campaign plan is highly recommended for optimal results. CTV offers the promise of a rapidly expanding audience, cumulative cross-channel impressions, digital measurement and tracking, and access to emerging, younger viewers who may be unreachable elsewhere.

We work with you to predict and test your ad campaign across CTV channels, pivoting your campaign as the results roll in. Since CTV is 

-based, it does not require as big of a budget to test and learn. This provides a wealth of opportunity to enter into the CTV market at low risk. With continued commitment to breaking into this audience-rich space, your ad budget spend can increase to generate even greater clarity, accuracy and results.

Prospecting

Prospecting is a customer-acquisition tactic that involves a marketing or sales team sourcing for new, potential buyers. Leads differ from prospects in that leads are potential customers who have expressed proactive interest in a service or brand by engaging in their website, or filling out a contact form, for example, but who are not necessarily aligned with the 

To initiate prospecting, the first step is to identify personas, or 

, for your brand. These archetypes help define key characteristics of consumers that align with the need or desire for your service or product. One tactic is to create a lookalike audience, or to target individuals who clearly match your existing customers. The hope here is that there may be a gap in brand awareness that can easily be bridged through more exposure, thus quickly converting those prospects into buyers.

Most of the work of prospecting has now become streamlined through programmatic TV software. A trusted TV buying platform can quickly analyze customer or viewer data and produce lookalike targets, or match certain characteristics and add in new parameters to define a new, but somewhat similar, audience pool.

One rule of thumb for prospecting is the more data you have, the better. With more data on current customers and the strength of their sentiment towards your brand, the more accurately a new audience can be mapped that is likely to engage.

Prospecting is key to achieving a hearty return on investment. Simulmedia partners with data providers with access to thousands of first- and third-party data sets, while also partnering with inventory partners that can access nearly the entirety of U.S. households. This high level of reach and availability means advertisers have options when choosing who to include in their TV commercial target audiences. From there, working with a Simulmedia account executive, the advertiser can learn more about predictions based on data about their ad’s likelihood of converting that viewer, or prospect, into a paying customer.

This is all possible because Simulmedia is actually able to track the behavior of viewers even after they’ve switched off their TV. With our TV+® planning, buying and measurement platform, Simulmedia’s 

 (CTV) advertising campaigns can be optimized to achieve full-funnel results, across digital, web-based and in-store purchase. We also partner with data providers such as AppsFlyer and FourSquare to track the journey from ad exposure to buying in order to prove the full conversion from viewers to paying customers.

Rating

A rating is a measurement of an advertisement’s 

, recorded as a percentage of the original targeted audience. For example, if the target audience for an ad is 100 households, but only 30 households tune in for the ad, the rating percentage is 30%. A rating differs from a 

 in that it measures against all possible households – those connected to a TV, whether it is on or not – as the baseline target audience, whereas a share measures against all households that were actually watching televisions during the time an ad was aired.

Ratings effectively define how many people tuned in against expectations – a sort of ‘audience meter.’ Ratings have traditionally been used by TV networks to show advertisers the level of engagement their programming achieves, making a greater case in negotiations when selling ad slots.

What to know: How Nielsen TV ratings work

The most well-known and widely used rating system is a legacy rating system: the Nielsen TV audience measurement system. Nielsen tracks and analyzes the viewing preferences of audiences by specific traits, presenting thousands of demographic-specific data on a very granular level, in what Nielsen refers to as ‘panels.’ They then release aggregated ratings based on geographic scope, broken down by these traits. Ultimately, advertisers use 

 based on this system to determine how effective an ad campaign was. They also use gross rating points to calculate cost per gross rating point (CPP) to determine the cost efficiency of a campaign. 

It’s important to know that the ratings are only indications of habits or patterns, and cannot with complete accuracy predict any one person’s viewing habits. One strong use-case for measuring the rating of an advertisement is if the goal of the ad campaign is to gain exposure for a new product. In this case, the target audience should be wide, in order to increase opportunities for 

 as much as possible. Rating would be an effective way to measure how far and wide an ad was served against all total households with a TV. When going to scale, re-targeting those households who did not turn on their television when the ad was originally served is one possible strategy. 

 streaming services, Nielsen tracks ratings differently and sends the results directly to the platforms. The reporting is expected to change in coming years to accommodate the need for transparency to advertisers, as these platforms become more and more a part of everyday video consumption.

While Nielsen was the first data aggregation company to measure the rating point system for television back in the early 1950’s, many new players have entered the market since – and brought valuable insights with them.

In order to adapt to the changing ways viewers consume TV and streaming, as well as compete with alternative measurement initiatives, Nielsen announced a solution called “Streaming Signals” in early 2022, which is intended to help advertisers predict who is watching a specific TV program within a household of multiple people, so that more relevant ads can be served in real time.

Meanwhile, Nielsen’s competitors are also crafting their own tools for better measuring viewership in the cross-channel landscape. Comscore, for example, has created “Comscore Everywhere,” an effort to count unduplicated audiences across various media and screens. iSpot.tv and VideoAmp are also working on new solutions, among others.

with both Nielsen and iSpot, and also works with MRI, Experian, LiveRamp and other data-first audience measurement companies who gather highly detailed first and/or third party data from television viewers to offer specific insights into who is watching an ad, and when. Combined, their capabilities offer massive reach across U.S. households and offer real-time measurement.

The benefits of Simulmedia’s partnerships with these newer audience measurement technologies is twofold. The advertiser first and foremost gets more tactical measurement capabilities, with the ability to measure across many different media channels and to observe how user behavior with ads on one platform impacts the behavior on another. This ability to track attribution from being new prospects, casual researchers of your product across devices, to paying customers – the full customer journey – revolutionizes the ad campaign planning process.

This is where the second benefit comes in. Armed with this level of detail about the customer journey, advertisers can optimize their campaigns along the way and in real-time, as these new audience data partners provide moment-to-moment measurement that allows advertisers to pivot.

Reach

Reach refers to the number of people in a target 

 that are exposed to a single ad served. The reach does not increase with subsequent exposures to the same viewer, which is instead referred to as frequency. Reach at its core does not consider the effectiveness of the ad on the consumer – it is a simple formula for measuring – and putting a number or percentage on – audience exposure. This helps quantify the range of an ad campaign.

 often refers to effective reach: intentionally targeting viewers most likely to convert into customers, who want to engage or take action. In this sense, advertisers are trying to deduce the quality of the ad campaign, but reach measurement refers to pure quantity of reach.


How to calculate reach in advertising is simple: Reach = Impressions/Frequency. It is an average of the 

 over the course of the life of an ad campaign.

Aim to expand or improve the quality of reach before investing ad dollars in frequency. As a priority, quality should precede quantity when considering how to allocate your ad budget.

It’s common to look first at demographics when mapping a target audience. But previous behavior is equally as useful information. What impact have your ads had on the user so far? The quality of impact, or level of engagement with your brand, is a key indicator of where you’ll find success.

Avoid layering multiple audience targets on-top of one another, which can greatly restrict your reach and reduce the viability that an ad will be seen by enough viewers to gain considerable feedback about success and profitability.


In 2020, Simulmedia stepped up to solve a problem in the advertising industry of how to reach audiences with precision throughout a television campaign’s lifecycle. This was resolved with our invention of a new, patented technology that allows advertisers to 

 with greater precision, granularity and timeliness.

, buying and measurement platform, Simulmedia’s proprietary software and methodology allows advertisers to select media placements from a wide range of inventory and achieve a more cost-efficient audience reach, delivering a return-on-investment and clear attribution from new prospect to converted customer.First, the TV+ platform gathers information on a brand’s TV audience targeting. It then “disaggregates” the audience, so that each individual person in that target audience is targeted in a unique fashion. From there, using historical data, the platform gives a probability rating for viewing likelihood to each individual, and for how long they will watch, allowing the advertiser to allocate their ad dollars very specifically across a reach-based campaign. 

Simulmedia’s technology runs through its algorithm all the possible combinations of the ad dollars against target audiences and across network inventory, and finds the most cost-efficient plan for execution. In addition, the campaign can be tweaked along the way, adjusting to results as they roll in.Running a reach-focused ad campaign is arguably the most effective advertising strategy for attribution and converting new prospects to customers. By taking a data-centric, addressable approach, Simulmedia measures various 

 against one another, so you can take calculated risks with confidence in allocating your ad dollars, and pivot when necessary.

Remnant Advertising

Remnant advertising, or interchangeably known as remainder advertising, refers to the advertising time slots or spaces that have not been sold in advance. In advertising, time is of the essence, and where a time slot or space isn’t sold is a missed opportunity for revenue to be made.

, the biggest losers are the networks who miss a revenue opportunity, and the brands who could have advertised at a reduced price and generated lucrative sales. This brings us to our next point, which is the opportunity for a brand to snag an ad slot on sale. As with any commodity, when time is running out for the product to be sold, the rate card is discounted in order to sell off inventory.

In order for this sale to happen on short notice, brands must partner with an ad technology provider (a buying platform) who can facilitate the transaction and execute smoothly in a timely manner. They must be the gatekeepers, with access to a large inventory of remnant advertising that gives the brand the most varied opportunity to place last-minute ads.

One risk with remnant advertising is its growing popularity. As more brands see the benefit of a last-minute ad slot placement, bidding has become more competitive for these opportunities. The solution to this competition is for the advertiser to effectively plan ad-buying timelines within their budget, and also to work with a trusted ad-buying platform whose breadth of network relationships and ability to negotiate on behalf of the client gives the brand the best bang for their buck and ensured placement.

Of course, if ultimately an advertisement isn’t placed in a time slot, the time must be filled. Often a self-promotional ad (or “promo”), on behalf of the hosting network or larger corporate entity, will air instead.

Remnant advertising can make or break the success of your campaign, if done right. Taking a 360-degree, holistic view of the entire landscape of offerings is critical to weigh your options and ensure your ad is effective and resonates results.

TV+® cross-channel TV planning and buying platform

, Simulmedia’s approach is unique in its ability to make the most of your ad dollars, even on short notice. With as little as a week of leeway, Simulmedia’s proprietary, data-driven technology can choose the most cost-efficient ad slot, program, network or platform, and audience target for your ad, so no dollars are left unwasted or mindlessly spent on underperforming, underdeveloped plans.

 offerings and you’d rather take a more timely approach to placing your ad; if your ad is time-sensitive, such as based in a holiday sale, for example, and finding your target audience’s parameters and viewing habits depends on highly recent data; or if you need to pivot and re-strategize to make the most of your ad budget before the campaign ends, those ad dollars don’t have to go to waste.

Retargeting

Retargeting is the act of serving an ad to a user who has already engaged with one of your previous ads. Retargeting is the primary method of increasing frequency or achieving good frequency in scaling a campaign. Through retargeting, advertisers can nurture loyalty and improve brand sentiment, improving the longevity and quality of the user’s engagement with the brand.

. If an ad-supported (or AVOD) streaming platform, such as Hulu for example, runs an advertisement that the consumer can opt-out of viewing, but instead chooses to watch, that consumer can be added to a retargeting campaign, since they’ve shown previous interest.

Many advertisers choose to partner with a trusted TV buying platform or demand-side platform (DSP) to retarget audiences. These platforms have relationships with data providers and networks that can track and measure audience engagement ad-over-ad. Equipped with this data, retargeting lists can be programmatically defined and ads can be programmatically served to hundreds of users, moving the campaign along with efficiency and quickly pushing it to scale.

Retargeting is the primary method for increasing frequency. In addition, by looking at the demographic information of users who have engaged or repeatedly engage with an ad, an advertiser can create a lookalike audience to build out a new audience target. Thus, data gathered for retargeting is also highly useful for building out a campaign and extending reach to a wider audience, this time equipped with more insight as to who is likely to engage and, hopefully, convert.

There are endless possibilities in terms of the data that is gathered to retarget or to build a new audience from, with the right buying platform and data partner to extract this information.


Retargeting is the basis of taking a campaign to scale with an increased frequency approach. By harnessing Simulmedia’s proprietary data-aggregating technology, advertisers can look at the who, what, where, when and why of engagement with a television campaign, and retarget audiences who have proven to be highly engaged with your brand. This strengthens brand awareness and improves customer loyalty as the user begins the journey from new prospect to paying customer.


With our TV+® platform for cross-channel TV planning and buying, Simulmedia takes a holistic, 360-degree approach when retargeting customers in a way that is cost-efficient in going to scale, or beginning a new campaign. Our 

 and methodology considers every variable: from creative to TV network placement to program placement across both 

. We examine which factors contributed to the highest engagement, and with whom.

We then weigh the benefits of increasing reach versus frequency in your campaign. If your audience base consists of a select number of highly engaged customers, retargeting could be perfect for a new product release or  time-limited sale that demands immediate conversion for successful sales. By working with Simulmedia over time, historical data on campaign performance and audience engagement builds a portfolio of data that can make your next retargeting campaign more fruitful and well-informed.

Scatter Market

In advertising, the scatter market refers to all of the advertising inventory that is not bought at the 

Glossary

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