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Stop the Scroll with Social 3D: The Future of Social Media Marketing

Wednesday, May 24, 2023

By Drue Moxley, Copywriter

Social media marketing has grown tremendously over the last decade, with ads accounting for as much as 25% of content viewers see on their socials, and peak ad saturation on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn going beyond 42%.

However, the one consistent issue marketers face is "stopping the scroll," or preventing viewers from swiping past your ads. Social 3D, the convergence of social media ads and 3D advertising, is the solution.

The challenges of social media ads

On average, social media users spend two and a half hours daily immersed in their feeds. With such extensive exposure, it’s no surprise they’ve developed a sense of immunity to most of the ads they see (or don’t, for that matter).  

As marketers in an industry familiar with paid social tactics like static images, videos, stories, and reels, it’s time to incorporate fresh formats to enhance our strategy, break through the ad clutter, and hook viewers like never before. 

“In a social media landscape dominated by short-form videos, image ads must find innovative ways to capture user attention.”

- Shalyn Mulholland, Vice President of Sales

How can advertisers grab viewer attention?

Think big, think captivating, think...3D advertising!

3D advertising incorporates height, width, and depth into a single unit, offering a multidimensional format that captivates audiences, driving them to engage with your brand. 3D ads have proven to spark curiosity, as they create a more memorable experience over 2D social formats.

Introducing Social 3D

Social 3D, Division-D's newest ad format, overlays 3D animations on social ads that are bound to stop the scroll by capturing viewer attention. This powerful approach gives brands the ability to create a dynamic scene that tells a story in a way that traditional ads cannot.    

With the combination of visually stunning animations, almost four times the average engagement rate, and viewer excitement, Social 3D is guaranteed to make your brand stand out in a crowded market.

“At Division-D, we are always looking for innovative ways to help our clients achieve their performance goals. Social 3D is the latest addition to our suite of social media solutions, and we couldn’t be more thrilled for our clients to experience the increase in audience engagement and ad performance with this format!”

- Michelle Slinkard, Chief Business Development Officer

How it works

Division-D's Social 3D ads require a static image or video as the foundation of the ad that we can resize to meet specific social platform guidelines. These base ads can be provided by the advertiser or designed for free by our in-house creative team. From there, select from our 1,000+ 3D animations and split-test various creatives across eight leading social platforms through our fully-managed media buying service.

Social 3D works for a variety of industries and products. We have the 3D animation for you; all you need to do is ask!

“The impact of Social 3D can be seen in its potential to increase click-through rates (CTR) and conversion rates, resulting in a higher return on investment (ROI) for advertisers.”

- Tessie Ho, Social Media Strategist

Looking to enhance your paid social campaigns? Try Social 3D. Reach out to [email protected] for a custom proposal today!

READ OUR LAST ARTICLE: The Power of Mentorship

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The Power of Mentorship

April 24, 2023

By Drue Moxley, Copywriter  

If you’ve ever been thrown into a new job with zero direction, then you’re probably familiar with the overwhelming feeling of stress that comes along with it. On top of feeling like the ‘new kid,’ you’re left to fend for yourself in an industry you might not have experience in. It’s not enjoyable, is it?

Eventually, you either figure things out on your own (kudos to you) or become so frustrated that you start looking elsewhere – without the assurance that it won’t happen again.

So, what’s the problem?  

You didn’t have a mentor to lead you in the right direction!  

Whether you’re just entering the workforce, transitioning to a new position, or completely altering your career path, having an experienced team member’s guidance is always in your best interest.  

Training is one thing, but the advice you’ll receive on navigating situations and minimizing challenges from someone who’s been in the game longer than you is essential to your professional development.

“Digital Advertising is a constantly growing industry with much to cram into your brain at one time, and that can be overwhelming, so I strive to be a mentor that helps make learning it all a little easier.”

- Taylor Coleman, Mentor

How do mentors help?  

They’ve been in your shoes, dealt with pressure as a newbie, moved through imposter syndrome, established their sense of purpose, and eventually became successful and confident enough to let you in on their tricks of the trade.  

Becoming a mentor is a process, but rest assured, if you’re assigned a mentor, you’re in good hands.

A mentor is like a professional older sibling. Think about it; they’re more developed, acclimated to office culture and day-to-day expectations, and eager to help you achieve your goals.

“Throughout the entire learning process, my mentor helped encourage me, allowed me to make mistakes and learn from them, and proved to me that I had the skills I needed to truly be successful in a sales role.”

- Lauren Faulkner, Mentee 

At Division-D, mentorship is a fundamental part of our company culture.

When you join our team, our priority is to make you feel comfortable, supported, and ready to take on any task.  

Fostering incredible dynamics is an aspect of Division-D's culture we take pride in. Our leadership team, including mentors, is here to encourage you until you find your workload balance.  

So – what does the process look like?  

The mentor-to-mentee dynamic at Division-D includes one-on-one weekly check-ins where questions are answered and concerns are addressed. Mentors also oversee mentee tasks, approve work once complete, and provide guidance where needed.

“My mentor has been such a huge help when it comes to answering questions that my clients have, guiding me through tasks I haven’t done before, checking over my work, and providing helpful and detailed feedback.”  

- Mackenzie Helms – Mentee 

Mentorship is a powerful tool in the workplace.  

Take advantage of every moment, meeting, piece of advice, correction, and then some, and watch your confidence grow and reflect in the work you’re putting out. Who knows, you might even become a mentor yourself!  

Ready to find a company that’s enthusiastic about mentorship? We’re hiring! See here to apply.

READ OUR LAST ARTICLE: How to Forecast and Calculate the ROI of SEO [With Template]

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How To Forecast and Calculate the ROI of SEO (With Template)

March 22, 2023

By: Dan Ansaldo, SEO Specialist

With the continued rise of AI and ChatGPT, constant algorithm updates, and the never-ending goal of beating the competition, understanding the ROI (return on investment) of SEO has arguably never been more important.

How do you know if your SEO is effective? How can you determine if it’s going to create positive ROI? Is it even possible to forecast like other marketing channels?

These are critical questions to ask and answer. Let’s dive in!

What is the ROI of SEO?

Return on Investment (ROI) is the monetary gain you receive from investing in Search Engine Optimization (SEO). The goal of SEO — and all marketing efforts for that matter — is to earn you (or your client) more money than what you spend.

When you receive more website traffic, conversions, and ultimately leads and sales from your SEO efforts, that’s the positive return coming into effect.

While SEO is very effective, and arguably the most effective digital marketing channel long term, it’s complicated to understand — especially when calculating SEO ROI or forecasting potential ROI.

So can it be done? Yes, but it can be a bit cumbersome at times.

Why It’s Important To Determine the ROI of SEO

Like any other business investment, it's crucial to determine the impact of your SEO campaigns. Understanding the effect is key to making the most of your SEO efforts. If left in the wrong hands, SEO can become nothing more than an expensive housekeeping service for your website.

But when in the right hands, a thorough SEO strategy can be a powerful tool that sets you (or your client) up as an authority in the industry and attracts invaluable, converting website traffic. Being cognizant of the cost and conversions stemming from SEO helps you better understand the impact SEO is having.

How To Calculate The ROI Of SEO

Calculating the ROI of SEO for Ecommerce sites is different from lead generation sites. No matter what kind of business you operate, this process starts with conversion tracking and a solid look at your Google Analytics account, so have that handy before moving on.

Identify Your SEO Expenditures

First, you need to identify your SEO expenditures. If you hired a freelancer or an agency to do your SEO for you, this is simple. Your SEO cost is the price you pay the freelancer/agency each month.

If you’re doing SEO in-house, you need to take all of the following into consideration:

Software/tools: Whether it be cloud-based or downloaded on your computer, every successful SEO needs their tools. Moz, Semrush, Surfer, Screaming Frog, ContentKing…the list goes on and on.

Content Production: If you have a copywriter in-house, calculate the time (and cost) it takes them to write each article. If you outsource, how much do you pay for your content?

Editing and Plagiarism: Do you use Grammarly or Hemmingway to edit your articles? How about running through CopyScape to check for plagiarism? These may be small costs, but they all add up.  

Graphics: If you use graphic or image software like Canva, Adobe, or iStock, you’ll want to account for these.

Misc: There are other SEO-related costs that can come up (speed optimizations, citation building, etc.), so make sure you track them all to make your ROI calculations as accurate as possible.

Set Up Conversions for Ecommerce Sites

The first thing you need to do for your Ecommerce site is set up conversions in Google Analytics. This allows you to capture the conversions occurring on your site. Once Ecommerce tracking is set up, you can see the overview of your sales data by going to the Conversions tab on the left navigation panel, then Ecommerce, then Overview if you still have Universal Analytics.

This is what that looks like:

Remember, Google is putting Universal Analytics to rest for good, so switch to GA4 as soon as possible if you have not done so.

If you are using GA4, then you would go to Reports, then Monetization, and finally Ecommerce purchases. Below is an example of Google’s online store. The chart and data will automatically sort by items viewed, largest to smallest, but you can select items purchased to see the items that have been purchased the most for the time frame.

Now, in GA4, click on the plus sign at the top next to “Item name” to add a filter, and filter to include Session source/medium. Then click google/organic (click apply) to see conversions coming from organic search or at least partially attributed to organic search.

Set Up Conversions for Lead Generation Sites

If you don’t sell items directly on your site, it can be a bit more challenging to know how much money comes from your site. The first step you need to do is create events in your Google Analytics account and then mark them as conversions. You also need to assign a value to each conversion. Here’s how you do that:

Identify your top conversion events (form submission, “call us today” button, “get a free quote” button, etc.)

Count how many of those conversion events/leads become paying customers

Calculate the average amount of money your customers spend

Divide the total revenue by the total number of conversions to get a value per conversion.

For example, let's say 100 people clicked on your “call us today” button in a given month. If you have that selected as a converting event, you get 100 conversions.

Of those 100 people that clicked, 10 became customers and spent $6000 collectively. That means on average, each “call us today” conversion was worth $60 ($6000 total revenue/ 100 conversions).

Now you can mark the “call us today” button with a $60 value. Repeat this process for the other conversions. When you’re done, you’ll have a nice list of conversions set.

If you don’t know how many conversions you get from each event (and thus can’t calculate the value of each conversion type), you’ll have to gather data for a couple months.

From this point on, you’ll be able to see how many conversions were attributed to organic search by going to the Advertising tab.

Calculate Your ROI!

Once you have all of the above information at your fingertips, it’s time to calculate! This is by far the easiest step. Here’s how you calculate your ROI:

SEO ROI = (Revenue From Organic Conversions - Cost of SEO Investment) / Cost of SEO Investment

Time for another hypothetical. Let’s say your revenue from organic conversions in one quarter was $80K and you spent $15K on SEO services. This would be your calculation:

($80K - $15K) / $15K = 4.33

Multiple 4.33 by 100 to get your percent, and your ROI from your SEO for that quarter was 433%. Not bad at all!

How To Forecast Potential ROI from SEO

Perhaps you are not investing in SEO at the moment (you probably should though) and you’re curious about what the potential ROI could be. Or, you need to calculate it for a potential client, here’s how you would go about forecasting potential ROI.

Disclaimer: This is a forecast, not a guarantee. Since there are many moving parts to the equation, the final ROI can be different from what you calculate.

Identify the Keyword Search Volume

The first step is to go to your favorite SEO tool (like Semrush) and look at the search volume for your target keyword. If you wanted to rank for “San Francisco SEO Company,” you’d plug that into Semrush and see that it is searched about 210 times per month.

Now, multiply that number by 0.276 because that’s the average click-through rate (CTR) of the number one organic ranking position in Google. That gives us 58 (rounding up).

That means if you rank #1 for that keyword on Google, you can assume you’ll get about 58 people coming to your website from that term each month.

Multiply 58 by your average conversion rate for all of your conversion events. Remember those from earlier? To get your average conversion rate, divide the number of paying customers by the number of leads/converting events.

Using the lead generation example from earlier, if 100 people total clicked on a converting event (form submission, “call us today” button, “get a free quote" button, etc.) in one month and 7 of those became paying customers, your conversation rate is 7% (7/100 = 0.07 x 100 = 7%).

If we multiply 58 (the number of monthly assumed visitors from the keyword “San Francisco SEO Company,”) by .07 or 7% (your average website conversion rate) you get 4.06. This is the average number of MONTHLY purchasers you can expect to gain from ranking #1 on Google.

Finally, multiply 4 (round down to the whole number) by your average order value (AOV) to get the potential income from that keyword on a monthly basis. For instance, if your average customer spends $5K monthly (not too bad for an SEO company) then your potential monthly revenue if you rank #1 for “San Francisco SEO Company” is about $20K (4 x $5K).

Annually that would be over $243,000 from a single keyword. Now do you see why SEO is so valuable?

Here is the ROI forecasting spreadsheet you can use to calculate the potential SEO ROI

Need Help With SEO?

If you need help with your SEO — as a business owner or an agency — shoot us a message. Whether you’re an Ecommerce business or a lead generation business, we can help you (or your client) gain visibility in the SERPs and take advantage of the compounding power of SEO.

READ OUR LAST ARTICLE: 5 Tips For Your Next Influencer Campaign

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5 Tips for Your Next Influencer Campaign

February 15th, 2023

By: Stefanie Epler, Copywriter

We shared a survey with over 200 influencer partners, asking questions about their preferred social platforms, their experience with cross-posting content, the time needed to produce content, and other aspects of working with advertisers.  

We received plenty of insightful answers, but some of the best feedback came from open-ended questions we posed about what creators think advertisers should know about their experience as content creators.

Based on this feedback, we’ve put together five tips for your next influencer marketing campaign.

1. Find a balance between creative guidance and creative freedom.

Creators spend a lot of time crafting content that resonates with their audience. So, going into a campaign expecting to tell an influencer exactly what to post may not yield the best results.  

“I wish more advertisers would give creators more creative freedom when crafting the ads,” said one influencer. “Sometimes the rules and requirements are so restrictive the audience does not respond because it's not personal.”

On the other hand, offering an influencer zero guidance when creating their post may result in a final product that doesn’t match your vision. Specifying creative direction while allowing influencers to put their personal touch on the post will ensure your message is communicated correctly and resonates with the audience.

“It’s difficult to create content immediately,” another creator noted. “The more details that can be shared upfront, the better foot we can put forward on the first go.”

2. Trust the creator’s expertise.

Don’t forget that you’re hiring an influencer because they bring something to the table that you don’t have. They are experts in their field, so stay open-minded to feedback about what will perform well in a post and what won’t.  

“Trust that they know their audience and what performs well!” we heard from one influencer. “Oftentimes there's a reason or strategy they are implementing into their content to help it be boosted by the algorithm or by their followers.”

Brands should be willing to compromise and openly discuss the content. Creators appreciate feeling heard and may have the insight to share.

“Know that the creator typically knows their audience and what will perform best,” said one influencer, “and to be open to suggestions and feedback on content ideas to allow the posts to perform best for both parties”

3. Budget for fair compensation.

When working with an influencer, keep in mind that this is their job, whether full-time or a side hustle. Therefore, fair compensation is a huge factor in whether they agree to work with you.  

Some influencers are willing to accept products as payment but don’t go into a campaign expecting to make this trade, especially if you want the creator to put time into the post they create.  

“We understand that sometimes brands do not have a large budget,” one creator said, “but in order to create quality content, we deserve to be compensated appropriately. We are working just like someone would with a 9-to-5 job.”

4. Consider building a lasting partnership.

An influencer doesn’t have to just promote one product or one campaign. If you find someone who is a great fit for your brand, fostering that relationship, so your partnership continues will ensure great benefits for both of you.

"It’s nice when we have developed some kind of a relationship with a brand or representative that we are working with rather than just here’s your task, here’s a brief, and when it’s done, that’s a wrap,” said one influencer. “It’s nice to keep in touch a little bit.”

5. Communicate realistic deadlines.

Many content creators have chosen the profession due to its flexibility, so keep in mind that they might not work typical business hours. They may even have another day job, so working ahead of time with open communication about scheduling will prevent unwanted frustration.  

When asked how much time they preferred to have to create content, 87% of our survey responders answered between 2-3 weeks. However, be open to adjusting this deadline based on a creator’s workload.  

“It takes a lot of time and work to create good content ideas, especially with kids,” one creator said. If the content needs to utilize children or has any other specifications that might make timing difficult, try to build a little buffer room into your deadline.

We hope these tips help you run a more successful influencer marketing campaign. To start planning your next campaign, reach out to our trained influencer marketing team at [email protected]!

For more information we collected from our survey, view our The Influencer Perspective one-sheeter.

READ OUR LAST ARTICLE: 13 ½ Reasons to Choose Division-D in 2023

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13 ½ Reasons to Choose Division-D in 2023

January 24th, 2023

By: Stefanie Epler, Copywriter

One of Division-D's goals is to always improve our services for our clients. Whether that be onboarding new offerings, streamlining communication, or constantly optimizing campaigns, we want to be the best media partner we can be.

We sent a survey to our clients asking them to describe their experience working with us. We were overwhelmed by the positive responses we received. For instance, 91% of survey respondents would recommend us to a colleague or professional connection.

So why should you choose Division-D as your digital media partner in 2023? Here are 13 ½ reasons, straight from our clients.

1. Our customer service team offers lightening quick response times.

“Division-D is such an efficient team. Whenever I ask for anything, I get an immediate response and an immediate solution.” - Susan Neuhalfen, Red7e

2. We are a one-stop shop for all digital marketing needs.

“Division-D accesses almost every digital channel and offers products I can't get anywhere else. They are extremely flexible to my client's needs and show a strong performance for conversion campaigns.” - Sara Kerr, ZGM

3. We stay ahead of campaign onboarding to ensure timely launches.

“Working with Katelyn and Division D has been a pleasure. She is always providing insights on campaigns in a timely manner. She also always stays on top of launches and upcoming campaigns.” - Maddi Sacks, Media Works

4. We prioritize client deadlines and timelines.

“Working with Division D and Shalyn has really been fantastic, and I see both as valuable additions to the Radancy team for UHG. I can truly say that Division-D is one of the few vendors that I can expect quick responses and media plans from when reaching out. Particularly when working under tight timelines that happen more often than not.” - Carlos Pinon, Radancy

5. We know the digital media industry.

“Division-D has been a great partner for our organization. Our rep is very knowledgeable across multiple digital channels and always provides valued recommendations and suggestions that strengthen our digital efforts.” - Brent Wagner, Fleetcor

6. We have access to over 200 data partners.

“Division-D provides marketing solutions.  I like that they can reach the audience I'm targeting across multiple platforms and the customer service is excellent!” - Daneen Goodwin, Disney/National Geographic

7. We provide easy-to-read, customizable reporting dashboards.

“Division D is a great partner to work with! Their Dataorama dashboard is easy to use, organized and so helpful when we need to check in on the status and performance of our campaigns!” - Jackie Garcia, ICF

8. Our account management team provides detailed insights.

“They run successful campaigns and not only provide custom dashboards, but a detailed write up regarding optimizations and notes for future campaigns.” - Lori Koepke, Firespring

9. We work like a part of your team.

“Division-D has been a great partner of our agency, and at times, has been a seamless extension of our media team. Division-D helped pull together sound media recommendation and helped drive some success for various clients in 2022.” - Scott Westergren, Falls & Co

10. We provide the best possible campaign within your budget.

“The team at Division- D includes some of the most talented digital marketers I've ever worked with. They always provide smart, sound strategies, are monitoring and optimizing our campaigns, and are excellent stewards of our budgets.” - Katie Gray, BlueByrd Strategic Sales & Marketing, LLC

11. We are accessible for small businesses.

“Division-D was a thoughtful and diligent partner for our small business. They were responsible and worked with the challenges and additional hoops we were required to jump through when tracking attribution tied to brick & mortar retail. I have recommended them to similar small businesses.” - Laura Gross, Partake

12. Our team provides clear explanations for industry lingo.

“Division D provided us with clear results and guidance when running our ad efforts. I would recommend working with them not only because they deliver great results, but because their customer service is truly unmatched.” - Joshua Moffitt, Endless West

13. We have a strong media strategy team.

“I've been in marketing/media over 20 years working with all types of media vendors and Division-D is at the top! Their proposals are strategic, well-researched and very detailed with rationale...providing me with everything I need for my clients' digital campaigns.” - Lori Koepke, Firespring

13 ½. We provide customized proposals.

Why is this a half reason? Well, we could provide another quote to demonstrate this, but what’s the fun in that?  Email [email protected] to get a customized proposal for your digital marketing needs in 2023.

READ OUR LAST ARTICLE: Giving Back: How Our Offices Served Their Communities This Holiday Season

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Giving Back: How Our Offices Served Their Communities This Holiday Season

January 6th, 2023

By: Stefanie Epler, Copywriter

Our employees were busy this holiday season finding ways to give back to their communities.

This Giving Tuesday, which takes place the Tuesday after Thanksgiving, our offices researched and chose a group to donate to. Countless organizations are deserving of donations, and although it wasn’t an easy decision, our employees voted to send this year’s donation to StandUp for Kids-National.

StandUp for Kids serves unaccompanied homeless and at-risk youth, including young parents with children of their own, up to their 25th birthday.  

On top of our Giving Tuesday donation, a few of our offices went above and beyond, participating in additional service projects this holiday season.  

Food Bank of Central & Eastern North Carolina

Our Raleigh office volunteered at the Food Bank of Central & Eastern North Carolina in December to help bag some of the fresh produce that was donated.

“Working at the food bank is extremely rewarding and gratifying because the state of North Carolina has so many areas with food insecurities,” said Jarrod Farensbach, Recruitment Manager. “The fact that we’re able to play a small role in helping many people throughout the state put food on their tables during the holiday season is extremely humbling and something we all hope we can continue to do!”

Harvesters

The Kansas City Account Management team volunteered at Harvesters--The Community Food Network, a local food bank, to sort through donations. Some of these items included canned food, boxed cereal, and other dried goods, hygiene items, and feminine products.

“It was my first time volunteering at Harvesters, and I was amazed by how organized and thoughtful the process was laid out,” said Tessie Ho, Social Media Strategist. “It was a fun and unique experience. I’d love to return next year to give back to the community! Thanks, Division-D, for the opportunity to spread the holiday cheers.”

KC Pet Project

In our Kansas City office, employees brought old t-shirts to upcycle into dog toys for the KC Pet Project. Together they cut the shirts and braided them to create sturdy toys for the dogs spending the holiday season at the shelter.

“We wanted to provide a service opportunity to employees that were able to be completed in the office due to our heavy workload during Q4,” said Madison Benda, Account Manager. “There are a lot of employees in the KC office who have volunteered and even fostered for the KC Pet Project, so we thought doing something for them would get everyone involved. It turned out to be a huge hit and super fun.”

We are so grateful for everything 2022 brought us as a company, and we hope to continue to bring you superior service in 2023 and beyond. Happy New Year!

READ OUR LAST ARTICLE: 2022 In Review

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2022 Year in Review

December 15th, 2022

By: Stefanie Epler, Copywriter

As 2022 comes to a close, we are taking a look back at the trends and highlights of the year. Keep reading to learn what our team thinks are the biggest pieces of industry news from 2022, what they mean for advertisers, and what action to take in 2023.

Cookie Deprecation Delay

The third-party cookie has been a topic of discussion for many years now as consumers have raised privacy concerns. Over three-quarters of US social media users say that whether a website protects their privacy or data is “extremely” or “very” impactful on whether they interact with ads on that site.

This is why Safari and Firefox have already removed third-party cookies from their browsers. Chrome had planned to follow in 2023 but has pushed that date back to late 2024. The intention of this delay is to allow time to develop technologies to replace third-party cookies that are more privacy-conscious but still allow for granular targeting and accurate measurement.  

What this means for advertisers.

There will be no significant changes in terms of targeting and measurement that occur in 2023 as initially planned. Campaigns can continue to run cookie-based targeting strategies, and other ad technologies such as frequency capping and conversion tracking will continue to work as they currently do.

Action to take in 2023.

In the coming year, advertisers should continue to test cookieless targeting strategies, or launch a split-testing campaign if they haven’t already. This will help brands understand what their campaigns will look like after cookies are deprecated and give you a jump start on figuring out what cookieless tactics perform best for your campaign. Once third-party cookies are eliminated, we are likely to see an increase in the price of audience targeting, so starting now may save money.

Testing also helps you get an idea of how performance will look after third-party cookies are no longer an option. Without third-party cookies it may be harder to track actions and conversions (depending on what new technologies are developed by then), but you may also see a change in metrics like CTR, CPC, VTR, etc. Split testing now will provide you with a direct comparison in performance and allow you to adjust KPIs for cookieless campaigns.  

Economic Uncertainties

Consumers have been hearing about and experiencing economic uncertainties throughout the year, from rising gas prices and interest rates to grocery shortages. Fear of recession can cause declines in consumer spending and decreases in advertising budgets.  

The good news is, in the advertising industry, we’re still seeing year-over-year growth in media ad spending, with a 13.2% increase expected this year.

What this means for advertisers

We are likely to see a trend of customers changing where they spend their money, meaning new considerations for marketers as they plan for 2023.  

Uncertain economic times give brands the opportunity to reach a growing number of users who are choosing to stay home to save money. These users are likely to consume more CTV, digital video, audio, and podcasts, making all of these avenues a great place to showcase your brand. Companies can use this time to tell consumers how their brand can help during these uncertain economic conditions.

Action to take in 2023

Be prepared to quickly change creative messaging in response to economic updates. Competitors may take longer to switch messaging or choose to go dark altogether, so being able to stay live with up-to-date messaging can increase your brand’s share of voice and create better brand recall among consumers.

TikTok

The industry has seen video advertising more than double since pre-pandemic days, with advertisers spending $31.86 billion in 2019, and a projected $76.51 billion in 2022. TikTok has seen a similar trend with just $170 million in ad revenue in 2019 and $5.03 billion in 2022.  

So, what has made TikTok advertising so popular and effective? TikTok ads blend in with the surrounding content, often utilizing influencers to capture audience attention and put their own spin on the ad. This keeps users engaged longer and allows the ad to come from someone they recognize and trust.

What this means for advertisers

Video content is gaining popularity, meaning a wider audience is available for video ads on various platforms. As TikTok and advertising on TikTok grow, the platform is releasing more options for targeting, placement, and measurement.

TikTok is especially beneficial to brands with a younger target audience, as 44% of TikTok’s users are under 25, and almost 70% are under 35.

Action to take in 2023

The best way to stay successful in the current social media market is to shift from image to video ads, and with its current popularity, TikTok is the perfect place to turn to. TikTok has become the third most popular platform for influencer content, following Facebook and Instagram, so if you haven’t tested your influencer content with TikTok, 2023 is the time to start.  

CTV

We continue to see more and more cord-cutters and cord-nevers as people forgo cable and satellite TV for the ever-growing streaming options. Almost 85% of US households use CTV in 2022, a steep increase over the last decade with just 22.7% in 2012.  

What this means for advertisers

There are currently over 200 streaming apps to choose from, including Hulu, HBO Max, and Pluto TV. The biggest buzz this year came from Netflix releasing their ad-supported subscription tier. This launched in November, giving consumers the option to pay a smaller subscription fee in exchange for watching about five minutes of ads per hour of television.

For now, Netflix is limiting its ad space to a select number of brands, and we’re continuing to monitor opportunities for our clients on the platform. 2023 could be the year your brand comes to Netflix!

Action to take in 2023

CTV continues to be a great avenue for brand awareness campaigns. It provides the largest screen for displaying video and aligns your brand next to premium content like movies, television shows, and sporting events. CTV is a great avenue for your 2023 branding campaigns.

Final Thoughts on 2022

There is no way we could have recapped all of 2022’s notable updates in one post, but we hope this blog provided insights into your 2023 advertising efforts and propels you through the coming year with fierce focus, vision, and impactful results.

As always, reach out to us at [email protected] for any questions, and check out our 2022 In Review one-sheeter for an at-a-glance view of this information!

READ OUR LAST ARTICLE: OLV vs OTT vs CTV

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OLV vs OTT vs CTV

November 1st, 2022

Author: Stefanie Epler, Copywriter

Video is everywhere. Instagram is pushing Reels, families eat dinner in front of the TV, and phone games keep finding new ways to integrate rewarded video.

Ninety-three percent of marketers consider video an important part of their strategy, but with so many options, where do you start? How do advertisers tap into this market?

OLV vs OTT. What about CTV?

There are many ways a user may see a video ad. This blog discusses the differences between online video, over-the-top, and connected TV and can help you determine which option is best for your campaign.

Online Video (OLV)

Online video is a video ad seen on a website or mobile app. There are a variety of positions this ad may be found within a site’s content. Instream ads will play in the pre-roll, mid-roll, or post-roll positions, but outstream ads, typically popping up in the corner of a website, are also OLV.

This placement has two main pros: it’s clickable, and it’s cost-effective.  

“Being highly scalable, this placement also has the ability to run very granular targeting for more niche audiences,” said Shalyn Mulholland, Vice President of Sales at Division-D. This means if you have a specific audience you’re trying to reach, you might consider using OLV for your campaign.

However, this placement may also yield lower completion rates than others and doesn’t necessarily include the premium content CTV and OTT are known for.

Over-The-Top (OTT)

OTT is video content accessed “over the top” of broadcast providers. Hulu, Amazon Prime, Vudu, and other streaming apps would be included in this inventory, regardless of whether the content is viewed on a smart TV, phone, or laptop.

This placement combines some of the best parts of OLV and CTV. Some of the inventory (depending on device type) is clickable, allowing you to drive traffic to your site. It also includes premium inventory on popular streaming apps where users are often more engaged with the content.

“A huge pro to OTT is the ability for a user to click through,” said Jessie Boudreau, Account Executive at Division-D. “So many clients look to run CTV but also want in-depth reporting metrics with it. It’s hard to have any insight with non-clickable CTV placements. Including OTT in the mix, we can report back on more insights.”

Drawbacks to this placement may include the tradeoff between CTR and completion rate. You might think this placement is the best of both worlds, allowing access to long-form content while still giving users the option to click through. However, clicking on the ad results in an incomplete view, and optimizing to both metrics can be tricky.

Connected TV (CTV)

CTV is similar to OTT, except it exclusively serves on television devices. Because of this, the placement is not clickable, but the ads are also not skippable, resulting in high completion rates.

Advertisers like this placement because of the premium content and viewer experience. Because the ad is viewed on the largest screen,  it’s more prestigious to have your ad playing during a television show or movie than while someone is playing the same content on their phone.

“Serving to Smart TVs has the potential to reach several people at a time, which is unique to this video format,” said Mulholland, which is also something to keep in mind when considering CTV.

CTV’s major drawback is the cost. It is the most expensive and also the hardest to scale, meaning it is most beneficial for branding campaigns with a wide target audience.

What to consider when choosing an ad format

Some of the above pros and cons may make your decision easier (of course, I want the most cost-effective route, or I want my ad on the most premium placements), but there are lots of things to consider before making a final call on what’s best for your campaign.

Budget

As mentioned above, different video formats come at different price points. This means that $5000 will get you more impressions on an online video campaign than a CTV campaign. If it is important to you to stretch your budget as far as possible, you may consider more cost-effective placements over premium ones.

Goals

Overall campaign goals will play a huge role in which placements benefit your campaign the most. A campaign focused on brand recognition and video completion rate will want to lean more towards CTV, while OLV is more beneficial to direct response campaigns looking to drive traffic to a website.

“Completion rates can often be lower with OLV because they are skippable/clickable ads,” said Anna Milecki, Account Executive at Division-D. “Whereas with CTV, we always see high completion rates.”  

Targeting

Your target audience could also help determine what placements you to consider. If your product is more niche, it will be harder to find scale for that audience on CTV, and even if you do, the cost of those audiences may outweigh the benefit of long-form content on a larger screen.

“With a more niche targeted audience, OLV is much more scalable,” said Milecki. “For the CTV side of things, more broad audience and branding/awareness goals tend to fit best.”

Creating a well-rounded digital ad campaign

You might find it hard to decide between formats because you want to capitalize on all the pros. Luckily, a well-rounded campaign consists of multiple placements, so if your budget allows for it, we recommend testing any strategy you’re interested in.

Don’t let the fear of a user seeing your ad in multiple places keep you from utilizing several placements. “Familiarity builds trust, which is critical to driving engagement,” said Mulholland.  

Split Testing

By testing multiple placements, audiences, ads, etc., you can evaluate performance and make a call on how to continue with future campaigns based on what produced the most desired results. This is especially helpful if you’re new to video advertising and have no idea where to start, even after reading this blog.

Sequential Messaging

Sequential messaging typically starts with an upper-funnel branding placement, like CTV, and later retargets the users who saw that ad with additional placements, like OLV or even display.  

“Not only are you exposing the user to different types of creatives and messaging, but we’re able to put your brand or product back in front of your target market in a different experience than prior,” said Boudreau. “We can serve them in a whole new environment, further driving them down the sales funnel and encouraging brand consideration.”

OLV vs OTT vs CTV: Final Thoughts

Ultimately, each format can drive great results for your brand. If you have the resources, we recommend testing any placements you’re interested in for the most comprehensive messaging.

For a more concise view of these formats, check out our Video Formats one-sheeter.

Ready to get started, or still have some questions? Reach out to [email protected] or visit our website.

READ OUR LAST ARTICLE:  9 Creative Tips to Consider for Your TikTok Marketing Strategy

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9 Creative Tips to Consider for Your TikTok Marketing Strategy

October 31st, 2022

Author: Stefanie Epler, Copywriter

TikTok exploded in popularity over the last few years, making it one of the most popular apps among Millennials and Gen Z. Advertising opportunities on the app have opened up as well, and research has found that advertising on TikTok isn’t the same as other apps.

According to TikTok’s blog, people are having more positive reactions to ads on TikTok than they do on other apps. This could be due to the nature of TikTok ads, which tend to mimic organic content and lean toward Influencer Marketing rather than traditional advertising.

TikTok is the only platform that sees an increase in self-reported brand affinity after exposure to an ad, meaning users are likely to have more positive feelings about a brand after seeing an ad on TikTok, while ads on other platforms tend to annoy users. They are also 1.6x more likely to hit the “like” button on TikTok ads vs ads on other platforms. So how do you join the ranks of well-received ads? Keep reading and find out!

How to Improve Your TikTok Marketing Strategy

We mentioned above that TikTok ads blend into the app’s organic content better than other platforms, which makes viewers feel like the ad is letting them in on a great product rather than interrupting them to ask them to buy something. But what else do you need to keep in mind to make sure your ad succeeds on TikTok?  

Here are nine quick tips for you to keep in mind when building your next TikTok ad.

1. Utilize Vertical Video  

Unlike many other social platforms, TikTok ads are a full-screen experience. Since users are often in the middle of scrolling when an ad appears, producing your ad to look similar to the rest of the content is integral. You don’t want your audience to have to flip their phone horizontally to view the ad.

TikTok notes that videos with a 9:16 aspect ratio see a 91% lift in conversions and 40% more impressions compared to those that are not full screen.  

2. Stay Concise  

TikTok users aren’t afraid to scroll to the next video if they aren’t interested in what they’re seeing. Even if you catch their attention in the beginning, videos that drag on too long might not keep their attention. TikTok isn’t the platform to pack your ad with all the great things about your product or tell a story that doesn’t get to the point until the very end.  

Stick to one concise message in your ad and let users click through to your website if they’re interested in more information. They’re likely to spend more time with your brand if they  don’t feel like your long ad is interrupting the time they wanted to spend looking at other content. If your ad appeals to them, they’ll seek out your site.  

3. Grab Attention Through a Variety of Scenes  

The nature of TikTok is that most content is quick, with many videos clocking in at less than a minute, and closer to 30 seconds for those with the most engagement. So in addition to keeping your message concise, keep viewers interested by changing up scenes in your ad.  

Not sure how to incorporate multiple scenes into your ad? Try changing camera angles to keep things interesting, adding a close-up of any products you mention, or inserting interstitial screens with additional information.

4. Test Several Creative Variations

Advertising involves testing to see what brings better results. By setting multiple creative variations live at once, you can limit the amount of time you are in the testing phase and find what works sooner.  

Once you have a few top performers, use elements of those to create more ads to test until you know exactly what makes certain ads perform better than others. Do your best-performing ads all have the same CTA? Maybe they use the same spokesperson or have similar content elements.  

5. Adhere to Creative Safe Zones  

TikTok has various icons and text placed on the screen that might block logos or other important text you might include in your ad. Keeping the save zones in mind when creating your video will allow users to view the ad without worrying about the text they might not be able to see because the TikTok description or like and comment icons are in the way.

You can read more about creative safe zones on TikTok here.

6. Avoid White Backgrounds

While white backgrounds may look clean and crisp and make other aspects of your video pop, it will make it hard to read your ad text, which always appears in white on TikTok. Other icons on the screen, like the like, share, and comment buttons, will also appear white and could blend into a light-colored background.

Choose a dark color for your background that will let your caption pop. Any white is fine to use within the creative safe zone since these are the areas where TikTok won’t display any text.

7. Consider Casual or User-Generated Content

Ads that are clearly ads pull the user out of their experience on the app, making them more likely to scroll past your ad without giving it a chance. Your best bet is to make your ad seem like another TikTok video: hire an influencer to promote your product or have an upbeat member of your staff star in the video.  

Keep the tone of your ad conversational. TikTok isn’t the place for a professional video filled with jargon the average person may not understand. Use this ad to establish rapport with your audience and show them you know what TikTok users want.

8. Incorporate Audio

Unlike apps like Facebook or Pinterest, audio is important for everything a user views on TikTok. Be sure to utilize audio in your ad to grab users’ attention and keep things interesting. TikTok notes a 16% increase in impressions for ads that include audio.

If your ad is completely visual, TikTok has a Commercial Music Library of licensed music and sounds you’re welcome to use for free to add background music to your video. If you want to use music not included in this library, you’ll have to license it yourself.  

9. Close with a Strong CTA and an End Frame

Your ad won’t be very helpful if users don’t know what to do next. Add an end frame to let users know the ad is over and now is the time to take action if they liked the product. To increase your chance of conversion by 152%, make sure to add a CTA to the end of your ad letting them know to visit your website (or perform some other action).  

Next Steps for TikTok Marketing

Do you think your ad is ready for TikTok? Would you like a little more feedback on how to give your brand the best shot at seeing success on the app? Do you need help seeking out an influencer to represent your brand? Division-D has trained Creative, Influencer Marketing, and Customer Service teams ready to help you publish the best ad possible for your brand.

Reach out to [email protected] to get started today or visit our website, no matter where you’re at in the planning process.

READ OUR LAST ARTICLE: Celebrating Our Staff with Employee Appreciation Day

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Celebrating Our Staff with Employee Appreciation Day

October 14th, 2022

By: Stefanie Epler, Copywriter

Each of our offices had the opportunity to take a day off work this August and September to bond at various employee appreciation events. Employee Appreciation Day is an annual event for the Division-D community where the company provides food, drinks, and activities as a thank-you for the hard work everyone put in throughout the last year.

The day is always an employee favorite, so we spoke with some Division-D staff to find out what exactly they love about these events and what makes this day unique.  

“The Raleigh office went to a winery for the day! We did a wine tasting, had lunch catered and did a ‘wine and design’!’ I think my favorite part was the wine and design – I’m definitely not an artist, but it was fun to walk around and see everyone else creating the same thing as you. Everyone was definitely hyping each other up a lot about what they were painting which was fun to see.” -Emma Knox, Senior Account Manager

An opportunity to get to know your coworkers

In this job, we often work very closely with certain coworkers and rarely interact with others. That’s why we put so much effort into events like these: we want our employees to get to know everyone, not just those they regularly work with. You never know when a relationship you formed outside of regular work hours will become helpful on the job.

Amory Platts, Account Manager, expressed that this is one of the reasons she loves this event. “I think it allows us to get to know other coworkers that we usually don’t work within our specific roles,” said Platts. “I love the Kansas City office’s culture, and I think this event definitely helped grow our relationships!”

“The LA office went horseback riding in the Hollywood Hills for our Employee Appreciation event. Something I enjoyed the most was being able to take in the scenery with the team and get to know the horses. We were paired with horses by the instructors, and we found out that our horses matched our personalities exactly. It was meant to be!” -Jasmin Khounthasenh, Assistant Account Executive

Have experiences together outside the office

Division-D strives to foster great relationships between coworkers both in and outside of work. In addition to the employee appreciation event, we also hold regular happy hours, food trucks, and other activities. We’re always looking for unique ways to help bond our employees together, and the LA office found the horseback riding event especially helpful in this regard.

“An event like this improves coworker relationships because it gives us a chance to get to know one another outside of the office,” said Jasmin Khounthasenh, Assistant Account Executive. “We were put into another environment where we had to trust in the horses and lean on each other, and looking back on that with one another is a great bonding point.”

Kaitlin Li, Account Manager, who was also on the horseback riding trip, expressed how she enjoyed having the time to bond with her coworkers. “I’ve always believed that creating memories through experiences (even if it’s just an hour) is worth more than a lifetime of conversations with someone,” said Li.

“The Chicago office started the day with bagels and mimosas in the office, then took a party bus to the harbor where we ventured out on a boat in Lake Michigan. We spent the day swimming, chilling on a raft, eating snacks, and enjoying the open bar.” -Maren Douglass, Assistant Account Manager

Show newer employees how much we love Division-D

We love making our new employees feel welcome, often catering lunch on the new hires’ first day so the office can spend the lunch hour together. Employee Appreciation Day also helps employees hired in the last year see how much fun we have together and learn to appreciate the company the way more seasoned employees do.  

“Something that really stood out to me was how much love and appreciation everyone had for the company and for the relationships they had built throughout their time at Division-D,” said Maren Douglass, Assistant Account Manager, who started at Division-D this August. “I think the event was the best possible way to ease into my first corporate job, and I could not be more thankful that I chose Division-D.”

“The company booked a suite for the KC team to enjoy a Royals Game at Kauffman Stadium. It was my first time watching a game from a suite with catered food and great drink options. I got to connect with the different team members in the KC office on a more personal level while enjoying the game – the vibes were immaculate!” -Tessie Ho, Social Media Strategist

Help everyone feel appreciated

Division-D wants to ensure all its employees feel appreciated and know we value their work. Giving them a day to relax with their teammates has proven to be a beneficial way of accomplishing this throughout the years.

“I could tell that a lot of effort went into making everyone feel special and appreciated,” said Nikki Reijmer, Influencer Marketing Account Manager.

“The Columbia team joined the St. Louis team to go to Top Golf together! We both rode in on buses and enjoyed a super yummy fajita bar and some super beautiful weather. I felt like I was on a middle school field trip (but in the best way possible).” -Nikki Reijmer, Influencer Marketing Account Manager

Division-D knows that this company would be nothing without our amazing staff, and we’re so appreciative of all the effort they put in every day. Thanks for all your hard work!

READ OUR LAST ARTICLE: 6 Tips for Planning Your Holiday Marketing Campaigns

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6 Tips for Planning Your Holiday Marketing Campaigns

Unique Placements to Make Your Brand Stand Out

September 21st, 2022

By: Stefanie Epler, Copywriter

The holiday season is upon us. You may be thinking it’s too early! It’s barely fall! We still have months to go! But in digital advertising, it’s never too early to start planning your holiday marketing.  

eMarketer predicts holiday retail sales will reach $1.262 trillion this year, a 3.3% increase over last year. But don’t wait until December to start advertising; 54% of shoppers are mostly or entirely done with their holiday shopping by Cyber Monday, and many start long before Black Friday.

Developing Your Holiday Marketing Ideas

So how do you start planning your holiday marketing strategy? Where do you place your ads to be sure potential customers are seeing them? How do you make your products or services stand out against competitors? Keep reading for six specialty placements Division-D recommends to effectively reach holiday shoppers throughout their buying journey.

Amazon DSP

With Division-D’s access to the Amazon DSP, we can run ads on Amazon-owned and operated properties, utilizing their arsenal of first-party data. Amazon in-market data targets people Amazon has determined are likely to purchase certain types of products based on previous shopping activities.  

This is a great option to use to get your brand in front of the eyes of people who are already searching for a similar product.

Amazon’s ASIN retargeting works similarly, allowing you to target people who have previously viewed, searched for, or purchased specific products. This is a great way to use popular products to your advantage. Finding the most-viewed products that are most similar to your own and targeting them with ASIN retargeting helps target users more likely to purchase.

Google Shopping

Google Shopping is a placement that shows your product in the Google Shopping tab. This works similarly to Google Search text ads, where ads are displayed at the top of the results based on keywords that were searched for. The user can then see the product name, image, and price without having to first click through to the advertiser’s site.

This ad format helps to increase conversion rates since those who interact with the ad are likely already interested. The ad is only shown to those who search for specified keywords, and they can see the product image before clicking on the ad, guaranteeing those who click through are doing so because they are interested in the product.

Shoppable Ads

Similar to Google Shopping, shoppable ads show a product and its details within the ad. However, these ads also have an “add to cart” button, allowing consumers to streamline the shopping process within the ad. Shoppable ads can also be placed anywhere there is ad space, unlike Google Shopping which only appears on Google or other Google Search partner websites.

These ads are great for incentivizing users to complete the purchase process since adding products to their cart is hassle-free. This ad format integrates with over 35 retailers, giving brands a lot of options for their campaign.  

Influencer Marketing

Influencer marketing has become one of the most popular ways to advertise products to Millennials and Gen Z. This age group is very active on social media, often forming connections with people they have never met face-to-face. It just makes sense that advertising evolves to use this to its advantage.

Influencer marketing allows you to piggyback off the relationship a creator has already fostered with their audience. Influencers spend a lot of time building a persona that others can relate to and trust, and it’s difficult for brands to create the same relationship with their consumers. Getting an honest review from someone who knows the social media and influencer ropes can greatly benefit your campaign.

Pinterest

Users tend to turn to Pinterest when planning holidays to find inspiration for décor, recipes, and gifts. This makes it a great place to reach holiday planners ready to try new things. Pinterest ads blend into the rest of the content, combatting banner blindness by encouraging users to interact with them as if they are just another pin.

Pinterest also allows you to upload a catalog so users can shop for your product in the Pinterest app. Pinners can browse a curated list of products recommended to them based on past searches and pins and view similar items to ones they’ve already looked at. When they decide they want to buy, they are sent to the store’s website to purchase.  

Digital Out-of-Home

Digital Out-of-Home includes any digital ads that show in public, including highway billboards, airport TVs, screens on gas pumps, or digital billboards in malls. All of these locations provide great options for reaching holiday shoppers and travelers as they head to the mall or fly to meet family for Thanksgiving.  

We even have access to inventory in Times Square, so ask your customer service rep about that if you’re interested.

DOOH ads may serve to multiple people at once, but with device ID location data, we are able to keep track of which users likely saw your holiday ad and retarget them on their personal devices. This can help to remind someone about an ad they saw once they are on their phone or computer and able to interact with the ad.  

Ready to Start Planning Your Holiday Marketing Campaigns?

Thinking about how to market your brand during the holiday season can be overwhelming. Division-D is here to help take some of that burden off your shoulders and be your guide to successful holiday marketing.

If you’re interested in running any of the above placements for your holiday marketing or want more information, reach out to [email protected] for help crafting a personalized holiday marketing plan.

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6 Ways to Measure Your Influencer Marketing Performance

How to Know if Your Influencer Campaigns Are Hitting Their Goals

August 24th, 2022

By: Stefanie Epler, Copywriter

Influencer marketing is projected to be a $4.99 billion industry in 2022, a 27.8% increase from last year, and is expected to continue growing.1 As the original novelty of the tactic begins to wear off, marketers are taking a closer look at performance to reevaluate if influencer marketing is the best tactic to invest in. If you need to know how to measure the success of your influencer campaigns, keep reading!

We are constantly looking into new measurement options for campaign performance. We provide a variety of options that can be combined to present a big-picture look at how the campaign performed. The measurement tactics you choose for your campaign may vary based on campaign goals.

“A lot of Influencer Marketing campaigns focus on brand awareness,” said Shelby Mustain, Senior Influencer Marketing Account Manager, “which measures engagement with content, sentiment analysis of the comments, and earned media value. For campaigns looking to drive more action, we recommend utilizing pixels, UTMs, and discount codes.”

Brand Awareness Measurement Tactics

Several measurement tactics are most beneficial to campaigns looking to drive brand awareness. They measure how many people have seen or interacted with the ad, whether the ad is receiving positive or negative feedback, and other valuable insights.

“For brand awareness campaigns, we measure a variety of points to get a holistic view of the performance,” said Brad Stewart, Director of Influencer Marketing. “Each of them helps to understand different aspects of the awareness campaign, but when viewed together to provide more powerful insight.”

Engagements

Engagements on social media include any likes, comments, or shares of a creator’s post or piece of content. While the overall number of engagements is likely to increase in relation to an influencer’s follower count, studies show that the engagement rate (engagements in relation to the number of impressions) is higher for nano and micro influencers.2

A higher engagement rate means a higher percentage of people who saw your ad liked or commented on it. Since these nano and micro influencers tend to have higher engagement rates, several smaller influencers may be more beneficial to your campaign than one macro influencer if your goal is post engagement.

Sentiment Analysis

A sentiment analysis provides an overall look at whether users are responding positively or negatively to an ad. After the campaign is over, our team reviews comments and reactions to the influencer content to create a detailed analysis. This allows brands to see the overall consumer sentiment as a quantifiable percentage.

This measurement tool can be helpful when planning future campaigns’ messaging and audience targeting. It is also beneficial for those who are more numbers and figures driven to see engagement as quantifiable data rather than pages of comments.

Earned Media Value

Earned Media Value (EMV) applies a monetary value to engagements on influencer marketing campaigns to show how much you would be spending on traditional media to achieve similar results. We use Ayzenberg Group’s Social Index to determine this value based on social platform and engagement type.

This allows you to see a simulated cost savings and ROI for your campaign. For example, if the Social Index values each Instagram like at $0.86, and your ad received 100 likes, that will add $86 to your earned media value. Comparing this number to the amount spent on the ads allows you to see the simulated ROI.

Action-Driving Measurement Tactics

When an advertiser’s primary goal is to drive action, like purchases or sign-ups, we have a unique set of strategies for measuring campaign success. “When driving action, promo code usage and conversions captured through pixels are great to understand ‘did we move the needle,“ said Stewart.

Promo Codes

Promo codes are an easy way for clients to measure purchases from influencer marketing campaigns. Giving unique codes to each influencer will determine which influencers are driving the most purchases, providing insight into what kind of influencers you might want to partner with in the future.

Promo codes also encourage potential customers to purchase your product since they often offer a percentage off, making this not just an excellent measurement tactic but an effective advertising strategy as well.

UTMs & Analytics

When adding UTM codes to the click-through URL featured with a post, the campaign activity shows up in your Google Analytics, measuring website traffic, engagement, and on-site actions. This offers a wealth of customizable reports and the ability to easily compare your influencer marketing results against other organic and paid marketing channels.

UTM parameters can be customized based on the data you’d like to see in your Google Analytics account to track which ads and campaigns are drawing the most traffic.

Conversion Pixels

If you plan to scale your influencer marketing efforts with paid amplification, adding a conversion pixel to your site will measure users making a purchase or performing another specified action after seeing or clicking on your ad. While UTMs only measure post-click data, pixels track both post-click and post-impression actions.

Placing pixels also allows you to create custom audiences of users who visit your site, make a purchase, or perform another specific on-site action. You can use this data with future campaigns to target people who are already interested in your brand and know your advertising dollars are being spent efficiently.

Final Thoughts on How to Measure Your Influencer Marketing Performance

Do any of the above measurement tactics pique your interest? We’d love to help you get started with your next influencer marketing campaign. Check out our one-sheeter for more information on measurement options, and reach out to [email protected] to get started!

Sources:

EMarketer, July 2022. “Influencer Marketing Spending”

Statista, July 2022. “Engagement rates among Instagram influencers worldwide from 2018 to 2021, by number of followers”

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How to Run a Successful B2B Campaign

A Definitive Guide to B2B Advertising

July 26th, 2022

By: Stefanie Epler

B2B digital marketing spend is increasing much faster than traditional advertising spend in the industry, turning our attention to more creative and impactful ways to run these campaigns. 1 Keep reading for our step-by-step guide to running a successful B2B campaign.

1. Determine your campaign goal

One of the first things you need to know when running an advertising campaign is why you’ve decided to advertise and what you’re hoping to accomplish. Are you trying to increase brand awareness? Drive traffic to your site? Sell a product? That goal will determine what KPIs the campaign should focus on. It is helpful to set measurable benchmarks: a 0.2% CTR, $100 CPA, etc., giving you something specific to optimize towards.

2. Define your target audience

You probably already know your business’s target audience, or the people most likely to become your customers. However, now that you’ve determined your campaign’s goal, is there a more specific niche you’re trying to reach? Maybe you’re running a special for a particular product or service, or you’re looking to expand into a new market. These are all factors that go into determining who your target audience is for a campaign.

3. Find the best channels to reach your audience

There are many digital avenues to choose from when deciding where to post your ads, so put some thought into where your audience is going to be spending their time, or where they might go to look for your product. CMOs surveyed by Gartner said social and search advertising ranked highest in terms of online budget allocations for 2022, with 10.1% and 9.8% of their budget, respectively.2 However, this doesn’t mean that other placements won’t be beneficial to your campaign. Choosing the right placement is just as important as choosing the right audience.

Social

When you think of social platforms to run a B2B campaign on, you probably think LinkedIn, and in a survey done by MarketingProfs, 75% of B2B marketers make use of LinkedIn for paid media.3 While LinkedIn is a great option for B2B campaigns due to their arsenal of proprietary data on job experience, professional interests, and company attributes, other social platforms can also be beneficial for B2B campaigns. “Social platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and even TikTok can be utilized for B2B efforts,” said Katelyn Duff, Chief Revenue Officer. “The social platforms suggested would be determined based on the target audience itself, the industry they are in, as well as other industry research.”

If the audience you’re trying to reach is spending more of their time on social sites like Twitter or Facebook, it might be easier to reach them there, even if they aren’t specifically browsing business-related content. “There is great value in exploring additional platforms for B2B efforts, especially given that we can still target individuals that hold certain job titles or functions across other social media outlets,” said Shalyn Mulholland, Vice President of Sales

Paid Search

Paid search, or PPC, is a great way to reach users who are actively searching for and possibly comparing products. With the right keyword list, you can target people looking for your product, a competitor’s product, or even just a solution to a problem your product solves. Paid search has the added benefit of putting your brand in front of a user at a time they are prepared to be seeing it, giving a higher likelihood of engagement than standard display or social ads.

Others

Email marketing, native ads, and podcast advertising are all great ways to reach a B2B audience. Each placement has its strengths, so reach out to your sales representative to see what is the best fit for your campaign.

Keep in mind that running multiple placements will help you reach more people and achieve your goals easier, as niche targeting will limit your audience size. “Audiences are often much more granular for B2B than B2C programs, so forecasting avails in advance can be super important to ensure feasibility and to help determine what spend levels make the most sense to achieve desired frequencies,” said Mulholland.

4. Choose targeting tactics that help you reach your audience in a creative way

Using a variety of targeting tactics ensures you’re reaching as many relevant people as possible. “Division-D partners with a variety of premium B2B targeting vendors such as Bombora, Dun & Bradstreet, and HG Insights,” said Blair Michael, Senior Account Executive. “The ability to customize target audiences has been valuable to ensure our campaigns are reaching the correct audience.”

ABM 

Account-Based Marketing allows you to target employees of a specific company. This tactic can be combined with other targeting options to ensure your ads serve to the exact audience you’re looking to reach. “ABM targeting has been a historically successful tactic for B2B campaigns,” said Duff. “With ABM, we leverage third-party data partners to match a job title list against a client-specified list of companies. We can then target those specific users.”

Conference Targeting

Conference targeting uses geofencing technology to target the location of a conference, tradeshow, or other event where the attendees are likely to be prospective customers of your business. Those same users can be retargeted after the event has ended. This way, users are exposed to your brand while in a relevant mindset and then reminded of it once they return home and have time to research your product and services.

Firmographic

Firmographic targeting creates custom targeting segments based on industry classification, functional area, company revenue, company size, job title, seniority, and more. “I often run Firmographic targeting when industry or job title requests are more granular than what we have third-party audience segments available for,” said Mulholland. “With Firmographic targeting, industry leaders Bombora and Dun & Bradstreet will build custom audience segments leveraging NAICS or SIC codes to ensure we are serving ads to professionals based on a wide range of business classifications and professional roles.”

Mail Domain

Mail domain targeting serves ads to users based on the domains they have received emails from. Create a list of competitor sites, relevant newsletters, etc. to build an extensive prospective audience for your campaign. This is a great option for reaching people your competitors are already in contact with or people who are actively engaging in your industry.

5. Include a lead form

Include some sort of lead form on your website, whether it be for an email newsletter, trading contact info for a whitepaper, or creating an account with your business. First-party data is becoming increasingly valuable as third-party cookies are phased out and other privacy measures implemented. Having a list of emails, addresses, phone numbers, etc. ensures that you always have a way to reach the people who have shown interest in your business.

Division-D offers additional placements and targeting tactics not mentioned in this blog. Check out our B2B one-sheeter or set up a call with your Division-D rep for more information.

Sources:

Statista, 2022. “Change in digital marketing spending and traditional advertising according to B2B CMOs in the United States as of August 2022”

Gartner, 2022. “The State of Marketing Budget and Strategy 2022”

Statista, 2021. “Leading paid social media platforms used by B2B marketers to distribute content worldwide between July 2020 and July 2021”

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4 Tactics to Improve Your CTV Campaign

Tips for Keeping up with the Changing Market

June 22nd, 2022

By: Stefanie Epler

As cord-cutting becomes increasingly common, users are turning to Connected TV. Because of this, CTV ad spending is growing quickly and is expected to reach $18.89 billion this year.1

To keep up with the trends, 73% of marketing professionals in the US are planning to shift their linear TV budget to CTV this year.2 This increased competition means staying on top of the changing trends and new opportunities in the industry is essential. Here are some of Division-D’s unique offerings for CTV.

1. Premium & Live Event Inventory

One of the biggest concerns advertisers have regarding CTV is whether their ads serve on reputable apps and channels. Division-D offers reporting insights outlining top apps in a campaign, but we can also take it further and target select inventory of interest.

Premium Inventory

As more networks release their own streaming services, options for where to run ads increase. Division-D’s goal is to stay on top of these changes to offer the most premium inventory to its advertisers. We’re pleased to have partnerships with ESPN, Disney, Discovery Networks, Hallmark, HBO Max, and many more.

Live Event Inventory

You don’t have to buy linear TV ad space to advertise on live events. Sports and entertainment events are available to stream, and Division-D’s partnerships with premium publishers allow us to purchase ad space for these events.

According to a study by SpotX, 75% of CTV viewers regularly watch live programming.3 Users watching a live event like the Oscars, March Madness, or the FIFA World Cup are more likely to be engaged with the content than someone watching a sitcom in the background, for instance, making live event inventory a great way to get your ad noticed.

2. Sequential Messaging

Sequential messaging allows advertisers to build a cohesive storytelling campaign. For this strategy, a user is first shown an upper-funnel CTV ad that catches their attention and makes them aware of the brand. Later, they are served a lower-funnel ad on their desktop or mobile device to remind them of the brand and give them the chance to interact with the ad and the brand’s website.

“Leveraging sequential messaging that starts with CTV is a great way to build out a full-funnel digital marketing strategy,” said Shalyn Mulholland, Vice President of Sales. “With brand familiarity often comes increased perception of credibility and overall favorability, which increases the likelihood of engagement when served other ad formats to follow. This has been reflected when comparing side-by-side performance between standard banners with general targeting versus banners that are served as a second or third step in a series aligned with CTV sequential messaging.”

Sequential messaging is an excellent strategy if you want to reinforce your message but are worried about creative fatigue. The tactic ensures an effective frequency, but since they are different placements, viewers won’t feel over saturated by seeing the same ad repeatedly.

3. Pixel Placement

Since most CTV ads aren’t clickable, placing pixels offers increased insights into a campaign’s effectiveness. Cross-device tracking allows users’ movements to be tracked on their desktop or mobile device after exposure to a CTV. So, if a user converts on your site after seeing a CTV ad, we can attribute the conversion back to the campaign.

“I always recommend tracking engagements across the root URL or homepage of a site along with any additional actions of interest since site visits occur in a non-linear fashion most of the time following CTV ad exposure,” said Mulholland. “It’s a great performance indicator to track how many people independently sought out a site visit after being exposed to an ad on one of their associated devices.”

4. Advanced Measurement Options

If you want to measure even more results, we encourage you to check out our offerings on Brand Lift Studies and Foot Traffic Measurement. With multiple vendors for both, there are many options to consider for your campaign.

Brand Lift Studies

For awareness-based campaigns, which CTV campaigns often are, brand lift studies quantify effectiveness based on factors like awareness, ad recall, consideration, and purchase intent. They can also be used to see how you stack up against competitors.

These studies are done by giving surveys to users exposed to your ad and a control group. Survey questions can be customized to help you get the most useful information for your brand.

Foot Traffic Studies

If your brand has a brick-and-mortar location, you may be interested to see if your digital advertising efforts bring customers into your physical store. Foot traffic studies use a user’s physical location to let you know. Some options allow for mid-flight reporting to optimize your campaign according to results.

Division-D continues to evaluate the best offerings for CTV campaigns and provide brands with the tools for a successful campaign. If you’re interested in adding these tactics to your next CTV campaign, reach out to your Division-D rep or email [email protected]. Don’t forget to check out our one-sheeters for CTV, Foot Traffic Measurement, Brand Lift Studies, and Sequential Messaging.

Sources:

eMarketer, March 2022. “Connected TV Ad Spending”

eMarketer, 2022. “Sources for Funding the Increase in Connected TV (CTV) Ad Spending Due to the Deprecation of Third-Party Cookies/Mobile IDs According to US Agency/Marketing Professionals, March 2022”

SpotX, 2020. “CTV is For Everyone.”

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5 Tips for Success at Your First Job

And 3 Ways Employers Can Help

May 25th, 2022

By: Stefanie Epler

‘Tis the season for graduation, interviews, and first jobs. We know the transition to the workforce can be scary, so we reached out to some of our employees for their best tips for transitioning to working full time, as well as what Division-D does to help new employees succeed.

Tips for Success at Your First Job

Just like your first day of college, your first day at a new job might be intimidating. What exactly does “business casual” mean in this office? Will you be the only new hire? How much are you expected to already know about the job? We can’t answer those questions for you, but we can provide a few tips from our team.

1. Be ready to learn

Getting your degree doesn’t mean you’re done learning. Consider this the next step in your mental and professional development, rather than the destination. “Go in with a positive attitude and be ready to learn,” said Gavin White, Account Manager. “It will be a total change from what you’re used to in college, and absorbing all the information and tips from your training and more senior-level coworkers is crucial.”

2. Establish a routine, but stay flexible

You probably had a routine in college: studying in the mornings before class or going to the gym every Wednesday after lunch. Keeping up that mindset will be helpful as you start your first job as well. Find the routine that works for you, both at work and at home, to make the transition easier. Don’t get too comfortable in this routine, though, or unexpected changes will be hard to manage. “Having a routine helps ensure I stay on track with my work for the day,” said Melissa Parker, Account Executive. “However, it is important to be flexible in case projects take more or less time than planned or last-minute priorities come up.”

3. Set goals Reach out to your manager to find out what is expected of you and what might be a lofty but achievable goal. Knowing this range will help you work towards where you want to be professionally. “Accomplishing something big in your role feels great and is so rewarding because of the hard work put in,” said Parker. “But it’s important to remember that some days will be better than others, just like in college, and it’s very normal.”

4. Make Connections Some people choose to separate work and play, but finding friends at work can help you adjust to your new environment sooner. So go to lunch with coworkers, attend company happy hours, and say hi to people in the break room while you grab a snack. “Having friends around makes the day go by so much quicker and makes the adjustment to working full time a lot easier and more fun!” said Melissa Parker, Account Executive. “They are a great support system to have at work and even outside of work.”

5. Keep an open mind Chances are your first job isn’t exactly what you thought you’d be doing when you walked into your first class freshman year. Continue to keep an open mind to opportunities that weren’t originally on your radar; you never know where they’ll take you. “When I started with Division-D,” said Lori Dillender, CEO, “it was a small start-up with five other employees, and I never expected to see the company get to this stage, nor would I have imagined the career path that I’ve had with the company.”

How Division-D Helps New Hires Adjust

Whether you’re a college graduate looking for a job or a business owner about to onboard a new hiring class, it’s important to know what companies can do to make employees feel valued. According to a LinkedIn study, “94% of employees say that they would stay at a company longer if it simply invested in helping them learn.” See below for how Division-D stays invested in its employees’ success.

1. Provide mentoring for new hires Starting a new job can be daunting, so all our new employees are assigned a peer mentor to answer daily questions and help balance their workload. “Our mentor program is designed to give new employees a support system outside of their direct manager,” said Dillender. “This allows new employees to receive guidance from a colleague and build rapport with a teammate as they get acclimated in the new role.”

2. Treat mistakes as learning opportunities Mistakes are inevitable whether you’re just learning or have been at a job for years. We encourage employees to talk to their manager about any mistakes that were made as soon as possible so they can work as a team to create the best solution. “There was a focus on learning from mistakes rather than making us fear mistakes, which really helped the transition for me,” said White.

3. Value their opinions New employees may have a lot to learn about the industry, but they can also bring a fresh perspective to something that may have gotten stale. “Division-D made me feel like my opinions had value, even as a new employee,” said John Harris, Media Planner. “This encouraged me to ask questions and actively contribute.”

Remember there are resources to help you in this new life stage. Your manager, co-workers, friends, college professors, and your parents all want to see you succeed. Best wishes from Division-D!

Information for today’s blog came from LinkedIn’s 2019 Workforce Learning Report.

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How to Prepare for the Deprecation of Third-Party Cookies

Frequently Asked Questions

April 27, 2022

By: Stefanie Epler

Google Chrome, which makes up about 60% of US desktop browsing, plans to deprecate third-party cookies by the second half of 2023. However, Firefox and Safari, accounting for about 25% of US desktop browsing, have already blocked these cookies.

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The impending deprecation of cookies causes concern among marketing professionals who use the data to target users with ads. Division-D has been preparing for this change and offers a variety of solutions to advertisers. Below we’ve compiled some frequently asked questions for those wondering what the advertising world might look like without third-party cookies.

What are third-party cookies, and how are they used in advertising?

The third-party cookie is a small, unique file dropped on an internet user's browser that allows advertising technologies to recognize that user across the web. With this recognition, ad technologies can apply more precise audience targeting, frequency capping, conversion tracking, etc. This method of targeting raises privacy concerns, and to combat concerns, common web browsers have chosen to eliminate cookies.

Cookies are only used in desktop and mobile web environments, so in-app and connected TV campaigns will be unaffected by this change.

What changes can I expect to see?

Division-D offers a wide variety of cookieless targeting solutions, which are being integrated into current campaigns to create a seamless transition into the cookieless landscape. However, we want to prepare our advertisers for some of the below.

Smaller audience sizes

Without third-party cookies, it will be harder to identify and target specific users, so some behavior-based audience sizes may decrease.

Increased costs

As audience sizes decrease, the market could become more competitive, potentially causing digital advertising costs to increase.

Decrease in action tracking

Today, action tracking relies heavily on third-party cookies, and while many vendors are working on alternatives, we still expect to see a decrease in the number of website actions tracked. This does not necessarily mean fewer overall conversions, just fewer conversions marketers can attribute back to a specific campaign.

The best way to prepare for these changes in advance is to test cookieless strategies now and speak with your Division-D rep about enabling enhanced conversion tracking.

Why should I test cookieless strategies now instead of when cookies are no longer available?

Division-D encourages all advertisers to start split testing cookieless and cookie-based strategies for their digital campaigns for a smoother transition. Here are some reasons why.

Save Money

While we expect increased costs after third-party cookies are eliminated, cookieless audience pricing is currently similar to cookie-based audiences. Testing these audiences now to determine what works for your brand will save money down the road once supply is limited and more expensive.

Set New Performance Benchmarks

As mentioned above, campaigns will likely see a decrease in action tracking. We may see changes in other metrics like CTR, CPC, VTR, etc. By split testing cookie-based and cookieless audiences now, we can see a direct comparison between the two and adjust KPIs as needed.

Reach More Users

With Safari and Firefox no longer using third-party cookies, about 25% of all US users are no longer included in audiences using cookies. Adding cookieless audiences can expand your reach to new users.

How can I target users without third-party cookies?

By using targeting solutions based on alternative signals advertisers can effectively target ads without third-party cookies. Below are some examples.

Contextual & Contextual Keyword

Contextual audiences target the page an ad is on rather than the user, so this targeting tactic does not rely on third-party cookies. Standard contextual audiences target based on vertical, such as sports, news, or travel. Contextual keyword audiences show ads on webpages containing certain keywords.

Weather Trigger

Weather trigger targeting can be used to show ads during a particular weather event. An ad for ice cream can be shown while it’s sunny, or snow removal services can be shown while it’s snowing.

CRM (Customer List)

If your brand has current or prospective lists of customer names, addresses, phone numbers, etc. to target, we can do so without third-party cookies.

And Many More!

There are many more options for targeting users without using third-party cookies, such as automatic content recognition, app detection, social engagement, and sequential messaging.

Reach out to your Division-D sales representative or [email protected] to test cookieless targeting strategies, or download our one-sheeter for more information.

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5 Reasons to Add TikTok Influencer Marketing to Your Next Ad Campaign

Expand Your Advertising Reach and Grow Your Audience

March 25, 2022

By: Stefanie Epler

Influencer marketing is a growing advertising tactic, becoming more popular as more of the population spends time on social media. TikTok, which was named the third fastest-growing brand of 20201 and has continued to increase in popularity, is Division D’s newest offering in influencer marketing. 

So, why should you add TikTok Influencer Marketing to your next advertising campaign?

1. You’re looking to target the Gen Z and Millennial generations on a platform with rapidly growing popularity.

Sixty-nine percent of TikTok users are age 39 and under2, making it a great way to reach Gen Z and Millennials, who are more likely to respond to social media advertisements. “TikTok’s audience tends to skew younger,” said Shelby Mustain, Influencer Marketing Account Manager, “and the short-form video and more playful and organic content seem to resonate with Millennials and Gen Z best.”

Now that TikTok has been established as a popular social media platform, more brands are pushing their advertising dollars there. In 2021, TikTok received 46% of influencer marketing budgets, only being beaten by Instagram at 48%.3

2. You want to provide an authentic message targeted to users who are most likely to respond to it.

Influencer marketing has the added benefit of not looking like an advertisement at first glance. A user sees the face of someone they likely follow and often see posts from, making the advertisement more trustworthy. “Influencers are able to promote their products with a more authentic and therefore relatable tone,” said Shalyn Mulholland, Vice President of Sales. “Often influencer content seems as though it’s an organic part of that influencer’s feed vs. being a paid advertisement.” 

Additionally, influencers regularly interact with their followers and spend a lot of time making content users are more likely to engage with. “[They] understand what type of content and messaging their audience is most responsive to, and they harness this knowledge to create effective, highly targeted content,” said Grace Huguelet, Influencer Marketing Account Manager. “This allows the campaign to include uniquely curated content that incorporates the brand’s key messaging and audience’s interests.”

3. You want to build trust between consumers and your brand.

Influencers spend a lot of time building their brand and creating a presence that their followers love and trust. Many users feel like they “know” the influencers they follow, so when the influencer promotes a brand they love, users feel like they can trust that they are being given an honest review of the product or service. “An influencer campaign provides an opportunity to utilize a creator that has developed connections with their audience,” said Katelyn Duff, Chief Revenue Officer. “The user has a higher level of trust for the content they consume via an influencer compared to their level of trust for other paid advertising mediums.” 

According to eMarketer, influencers on social media are the second most popular way consumers learn about a product they purchase, beating all other forms of advertising.

4. You want people to engage with your content.

Success of social media marketing is often measured by interactions with the post: likes, comments, shares, etc. Influencers already have an audience that interacts with their posts, and many users are aware that engaging with promotional posts is a way they can support their favorite creators. “There is typically much more positivity and a higher volume of social engagements that come from influencer content [versus standard paid social advertising],” said Mulholland. “Influencer marketing serves as more than an opportunity for exposure, but as an opportunity to involve an intended audience.”

5. You want to be able to reuse authentically created content on your own channels.

Influencer marketing posts aren’t limited to an influencer’s followers. In addition to boosting posts to open them up to a wider audience, brands can also reuse the influencer content on their own channels. “One thing that is often overlooked is the ability to repurpose the high-quality content that is created as part of the collaboration for organic purposes,” said Brad Stewart, Director of Influencer Marketing. “Brands have the ability to repost the content across their own social channels and blogs to engage with their current customers, and also help bring in new ones researching the brand.”

Check out our TikTok Influencer Marketing one-sheeter, or reach out to [email protected] for more information on adding an influencer marketing to your next campaign.

Sources:

Morning Consult, 2020. “The Fastest Growing Brands of 2020”

Backlinko, 2022. “TikTok User Statistics (2022)”

eMarketer, 2021. “Influencer marketing reached new heights in 2021”