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Tag: digital advertising

  • “Influencer marketing is a powerful complement to traditional advertising methods”: Vinay Singh

    “Influencer marketing is a powerful complement to traditional advertising methods”: Vinay Singh

    In the dynamic landscape of the Indian television industry, the evolution of influencer marketing stands as a testament to its transformative power. From its nascent stages of brand endorsements to its current role as a driving force behind performance marketing strategies, influencer collaborations have reshaped how television networks and production houses engage with audiences. In this era of digital connectivity and evolving consumer behaviours, the synergy between influencers and television programming has become indispensable.

    Digixpressions, a digital advertising and marketing solution. With a dynamic approach fueled by a vision for business growth, Digixpressions offers a comprehensive suite of services ranging from digital intelligence to branding assistance, MarTech, and hyperlocal solutions. Specializing in Fintech, E-commerce, banking, and Edtech, Digixpressions boasts an impressive clientele including RBL Bank, Shrekhan, ICICI Bank, UpGrad, Angel Broking, and Kotak Securities. Founded by Vinay Singh and Saqib Khan, Digixpressions has rapidly grown in less than five years, with a team of over 100 professionals serving more than 50 clients across 10 sectors. Their pragmatic approach focuses on tailored solutions, leveraging years of expertise to deliver measurable results and build digital prominence for partners.

    Indiantelevision caught up with  Digixpressions co-founder  Vinay Singh to talk about the intricacies of this symbiotic relationship, exploring trends, successes, challenges, future prospects and much more…

    Edited excerpts

    On influencer marketing has evolving within the Indian television industry, particularly in the context of performance marketing strategies

    Influencer marketing has evolved significantly in the Indian television industry, especially performance marketing. Initially, influencer collaborations were primarily focused on brand endorsements and product placements. As the industry became more data-driven, influencers played a pivotal role in driving specific performance metrics such as viewership ratings, engagement rates, and digital subscriptions. Television networks and production houses now strategically partner with influencers to amplify promotional campaigns, boost audience engagement, and ultimately enhance the performance of their shows or channels.

    On the trends that you have observed regarding integrating influencer marketing into performance marketing campaigns in the Indian television landscape

    One prominent trend is the shift towards micro-influencers with a more targeted and engaged audience base. Television networks are increasingly collaborating with niche influencers who cater to specific demographics or genres relevant to their content. Additionally, we have seen a rise in influencer-led content initiatives where influencers create exclusive behind-the-scenes content, interviews, or interactive experiences to drive viewer engagement and tune-in. Moreover, there is a growing emphasis on data-driven influencer selection and campaign optimization to ensure maximum impact on performance metrics.

    On digital assistance platforms shaping the future of influencer marketing in the Indian television sector

    Digital assistance platforms are poised to revolutionize influencer marketing in the Indian television sector by providing new avenues for content distribution, discovery, and engagement. Influencers have unique opportunities to reach audiences innovatively with the increasing adoption of voice assistants, smart devices, and interactive TV platforms. We anticipate collaborations between influencers and digital assistance platforms to facilitate personalized content recommendations, interactive viewing experiences, and seamless branded content integration within entertainment ecosystems.

    Can you share examples of successful influencer marketing campaigns in Indian television that have effectively boosted performance metrics such as viewership, engagement, or brand awareness

    Amazon India has collaborated with various influencers, including actors and YouTubers, to promote their products and services, boosting sales and brand visibility. Myntra, a leading fashion retailer, has partnered with influencers to create engaging content, enhancing brand engagement and awareness. Flipkart, another major e-commerce platform, has utilized influencers to promote its products, strengthening its brand presence.

    At Digixpressions, we have multiple eCommerce,BFSI brands, which have  achieved performance from influencer marketing. We have set up the right KPI, delivering both around brand visibility and driving a relevant set of traffic, which has been helping in end-funnel clients directly with the brand.

    On influencer marketing complementing traditional advertising methods in the Indian television industry

    Influencer marketing is a powerful complement to traditional advertising methods, which adds a layer of authenticity, relatability, and personalization to promotional efforts. While traditional ads convey brand messages to a broader audience, influencer collaborations enable brands to connect with consumers more personally and hence increase the chances of achieving sales.

    On the challenges that you foresee in implementing influencer marketing strategies within performance marketing campaigns for Indian television shows or channels

    To maintain authenticity and credibility, one challenge is ensuring alignment amongst brand values, content tone, and influencer persona. Additionally, measuring the direct impact of influencer marketing on performance metrics such as viewership or subscription rates can be challenging due to the complex nature of audience behaviour and consumption patterns. As the influencer landscape becomes more saturated, identifying the right influencers who resonate with the target audience and deliver tangible results poses another hurdle.

    On the importance of data-driven decision-making in influencer marketing initiatives within the Indian television space

    Data-driven decision-making is significant in influencer marketing initiatives within the Indian television space as it enables television networks and production houses to identify the most relevant influencers, optimize campaign strategies, and measure performance accurately. By leveraging data analytics tools and audience insights, stakeholders can make informed decisions regarding influencer selection, content optimization, and resource allocation to maximize ROI (return on investment) and achieve campaign objectives.

    On the role of AI and automation in optimizing influencer marketing efforts for Indian television programs or channels

    AI and automation can potentially revolutionize influencer marketing efforts by streamlining campaign management, content creation, and performance-tracking processes. AI-powered algorithms can analyse vast amounts of data to identify high-potential influencers, predict audience preferences, and optimize content strategies in real-time. Automation tools can facilitate seamless collaboration, content distribution, and campaign monitoring, thereby enhancing influencer marketing initiatives’ efficiency, scalability, and effectiveness.

    On Indian television networks or production houses measuring the success of influencer marketing campaigns in terms of performance metrics and ROI

    Indian television networks or production houses typically measure the success of influencer marketing campaigns by tracking key performance metrics such as viewership ratings, audience engagement, social media impressions, website traffic, and conversion rates. ROI is evaluated based on the incremental impact of influencer collaborations on these metrics compared to baseline performance or benchmarks. Advanced attribution models, tracking pixels, and analytics platforms often attribute conversions or actions directly to influencer-driven touchpoints and calculate the return on investment.

    On anticipating influencer marketing strategies evolving to adapt to the changing dynamics of digital assistance platforms and emerging technologies in the Indian television industry

    We anticipate influencer marketing strategies to evolve, by prioritizing personalized, interactive, and immersive experiences for viewers. Influencers may leverage voice-enabled content formats, augmented reality experiences, and AI-powered chatbots to seamlessly engage with audiences across digital assistance platforms. Additionally, we expect deeper integrations between influencer-driven content and smart TV ecosystems, enabling viewers to interact with branded content, make purchases, or access exclusive experiences directly through their devices. 

  • IAB Tech Lab’s Podcast Group proposes measurement updates

    IAB Tech Lab’s Podcast Group proposes measurement updates

    Mumbai:  IAB Tech Lab, the global digital advertising technical standards-setting body, has announced the latest advancements in podcast measurement with the release of Podcast Technical Measurement Guidelines v2.2. The updates are now available for public comment, until 23 March and the Podcast Working Group invites all podcast companies and industry stakeholders to provide feedback within the next 30 days.

    As the podcasting landscape continues to evolve, the need for enhanced metrics and improved filtering logic in server-side measurement becomes crucial. The primary objective of the Podcast Technical Measurement Guidelines v2.2 is to address the challenges faced in measuring downloads of the podcast audio file, where client-side confirmation of ad play is typically unavailable from the player apps that consumers use for listening to their favourite shows. This server-side measurement guidance published by IAB Tech Lab is unique in the industry, setting the gold standard for reliable and transparent podcast measurement.

    “With the release of Podcast Technical Measurement Guidelines v2.2, IAB Tech Lab reaffirms its commitment to adapting to the dynamic technology and practices in the podcasting industry,” said IAB Tech Lab CEO Anthony Katsur. “We urge the entire podcast ecosystem to review the guidelines and actively participate in the feedback process. Your input is instrumental in shaping the future of podcast measurement and the growth of this valuable inventory for an audience that tends to be more deeply focused on the content.”

    IAB Tech Lab will also be revising the Podcast Measurement Compliance guidance embracing these enhanced metrics and measurement practices. The compliance program empowers podcast companies to compete fairly, ensuring that their inventory metrics align with industry standards certified by a third party. This certification fosters trust among buyers of podcast inventory, paving the way for more reliable and transparent advertising transactions.

    “Audio makes up 31 per cent of media consumption, but just 9 per cent of ad spend. To help the medium reach its full potential in advertising and welcome more marketers into the space, we’re proud to work with the IAB Tech Lab to make podcast measurement easier, more transparent, and more standard,” said SiriusXM Media director, Ad Quality Brendan Kelly. “We will wholeheartedly adopt these enhanced metrics and measurement practices to further advance this work.”

    The Podcast Technical Working Group includes leading industry players, and key stakeholders, who recognize the significance of aligning industry practices and fostering consistency in measuring podcast inventory, promoting fairness, and building trust among podcast companies and buyers. Their collaborative efforts have been essential in shaping the Podcast Technical Measurement Guidelines v2.2 into an all-encompassing solution for the industry.

  • TrafficGuard’s innovative approach to ad fraud protection and optimisation

    TrafficGuard’s innovative approach to ad fraud protection and optimisation

    Mumbai: TrafficGuard, headquartered in Perth, Australia, is a global leader in advertising verification, offering a comprehensive suite of solutions to help advertisers optimise their campaigns. By leveraging extensive data and expertise, TrafficGuard ensures enhanced search advertising performance through real-time verification of engagement and proactive prevention of invalid traffic.

    With a presence in key locations like Singapore, the UK, Brazil, India, and the US, TrafficGuard serves a diverse clientele of over 3000 customers worldwide. As a key component of Adveritas, a publicly traded company on the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX: AV1), TrafficGuard plays a crucial role in safeguarding ad spending and maintaining the integrity of advertising data.

    Indiantelevision.com in an email interaction spoke to the TrafficGuard South Asia & India vice president Himanshu Nagrecha.

    Edited Excerpts:

    On TrafficGuard’s official launch and some of the initial challenges and obstacles that TrafficGuard faced during its launch phase

    TrafficGuard was officially established in 2015, primarily to protect the advertising industry. Our headquarters are located in Perth, Australia. TrafficGuard offers a comprehensive solution to measure, control and prevent ad fraud, with the aim of strengthening the digital advertising ecosystem and enabling fraud.

    Initially, our first challenge was to convince marketers of the importance of ad fraud protection. Today, we can say with confidence that we have successfully overcome this challenge by taking a proactive approach to ensure companies’ performance data remains clean and help them scale and optimise their ads with confidence.

    On the USP that makes it stand out in the market

    TrafficGuard is a trusted platform that secures advertising spending from leading global companies across a variety of industries. Our unique approach to combating digital ad fraud involves using a multi-channel strategy. The key features that set us apart are real-time (IVT) blocking of invalid traffic before it affects campaigns. It is based on predictive machine learning algorithms that continuously improve fraud detection.  

    Our platform’s advanced machine learning models deliver the first truly predictive anticipatory fraud prevention, enabling real-time detection and mitigation of IVT. We take a surgical and transparent approach, leveraging cross-channel data and approximately 200 fraud indicators to eliminate IVT cases while protecting valid traffic volumes and addressing a key weakness of legacy solutions. We provide clear and defensible reports on each invalid assignment, demonstrating our commitment to transparency.

    We understand that digital advertising involves multiple stakeholders, so we protect the entire ecosystem and serve brands, mobile apps, ad agencies, ad networks and other intermediaries online. Unlike traditional risk management tools, TrafficGuard focuses on optimising digital advertising performance by giving all parties access to fraud-free data to optimise campaigns faster and more effectively, resulting in higher reach, more efficient user acquisition, higher user lifetime value, better advertising ROI and stronger. . advertiser-vendor partnerships.

    On TrafficGuard’s long-term vision as a global advertising verification company

    At TrafficGuard, we strongly believe that making advertising decisions based on accurate data leads to the best performance. Trusting the data enables us to act swiftly and boldly to achieve optimal results. We are committed to ensuring that advertisers don’t pay for fake or phoney engagement, regardless of where you advertise online or your budget size.

    With our traffic verification and budget protection services, we empower businesses to gain the clarity they need to unlock the full potential of their advertising efforts. Our goal is to offer an all-encompassing solution that safeguards advertisers’ spend across various channels, thereby enhancing campaign effectiveness and return on investment (ROI). By using our services, advertisers can confidently run campaigns, knowing they are protected and can optimise their strategies for success.

    On TrafficGuard’s plan to adapt to the evolving landscape of digital media and incorporate new technologies to better serve its clients

    Besides improving on the technology, we are continuously listening to the customer as well as adapting our product to new fraudulent tactics with the use of AI & ML. We have solutions like custom validation and shadow campaign which helps not only to block invalid traffic but gives clients the opportunity to customise their campaign to reach real targeted users that have a higher propensity to convert.  We are also in the process of developing our social product ensuring that advertisers can protect their ecosystem as a whole.

    In addition to advancing our technological capabilities, our traffic monitoring system remains vigilant by actively engaging with customer feedback. In TrafficGuard we use AI and ML techniques to combat the ever-evolving landscape of fraudulent strategies, these tools empower us not only to root out invalid traffic with precision but also to extend a helping hand to our clients.  We’ve introduced features such as custom validation and shadow campaigns, enabling us to not only identify and eliminate invalid traffic but also allow clients to tailor their campaigns for optimal engagement with genuinely interested users, and increasing conversion potential. Furthermore, As the horizon expands, we are currently immersed in the creation of a comprehensive social solution, one that grants advertisers the power to shield their entire ecosystem.

    On the company’s plan to position itself to take advantage of the anticipated growth and trends in the Indian ad tech market

    Globally, ad fraud is a major challenge and India is no exception. As the digital economy continues to grow and brands increase their ad spend, ad fraud tactics become more sophisticated, resulting in higher ad spend each year. In particular, Google’s PPC, mobile acquisition and affiliate campaigns have an average of 5-25 per cent invalid traffic.  

    For performance marketers seeking growth and user acquisition, an independent ad fraud solution is essential to protect campaigns from malicious actors and ensure quality traffic. This means a combination of real, genuine users who convert efficiently and clean data that enables optimization. Working with Ad Tech marketers this year confirmed the prevailing concern about ad fraud and frustrated marketing budgets. Marketers are actively looking for reliable solutions that cover all stages of the marketing funnel, including PPC, mobile app UA, affiliate and social channels.

    On the essential steps and best practices to mitigate the risk of ad fraud and invalid traffic

    Preventing fraud is better than fixing fraud at a later stage. The right thing to do is to have it in place at the very beginning of your digital advertising journey. This will help you to get cleaner traffic and aid your understanding of which channels actually work for you and optimise efficiently based on this.

    Ad fraud is a long-term prevention, as we know that it will not go away and will continue to become complicated and complex as digitization progresses. Finding a third-party, non-biased partner is key to ensuring that you are protected.

    You also require an ad fraud partner that can cover omnichannel & full funnel solutions. Ad fraud occurs at every stage in one form or another. To optimize more effectively, it’s essential that an ad fraud prevention solution can cover the majority of all of your channels so that the data is clean and consistent.

    On AI playing an integral part in detecting and preventing ad fraud

    Ad fraud aimed at exploiting advertising budgets requires a proactive approach to effectively combat advanced ad fraud. Artificial intelligence, which has been around for decades, has seen significant advances, especially in algorithms, processing power and storage capacity, making it mainstream. The use of artificial intelligence, especially machine learning (ML), can offer advertisers greater efficiency and accuracy compared to manual analysis. ML solutions have already proven effective in detecting fraudulent activity in real-time, reducing potentially harmful effects.

    Notably, research by Statista shows that ML solutions will save $3.5 billion in ad spend in Asia Pacific in 2022, highlighting the role of AI and ML in protecting advertisers from fraud and protecting their investments. Thanks to extensive, fast and predictive data analysis, these technologies allow advertisers to detect anomalies and prevent significant damage before they occur, strengthening their efforts to combat ad fraud and protect their interests.

    On blockchain technology’s role in revolutionising the transparency and security of ad tech industries globally

    Blockchain technology has emerged as a pioneering solution in the advertising industry, revolutionising secure and transparent collaboration between advertisers and publishers. Unlike traditional advertising systems, which are plagued by challenges such as ad fraud and lack of transparency, blockchain provides a decentralised and falsifiable digital ledger that records all advertising transactions. The main advantage of using blockchain in advertising is its ability to effectively combat ad fraud.

    Ad fraud, often caused by bots and fake clicks, has resulted in significant financial losses for advertisers. However, blockchain allows advertisers to create a more reliable system to ensure that their ads reach real users. In addition, the implementation of blockchain in advertising provides more accurate and comprehensive data views. Advertisers and publishers can access real-time data on ad performance and audience demographics. With this information, advertisers can refine their targeting strategies and improve campaign performance, while publishers can optimise ad delivery and increase revenue.

    On the key strategies that marketers should adopt to stay ahead of the competition and maximise their ad spending

    To stay ahead of the competition and maximize advertising spend, marketers should implement several key strategies.

    An audience-centric approach to advertising requires a deep understanding of target audience preferences, pain points and behaviours. This data strategy allows you to create customised and effective advertising campaigns that respond to the right people. Marketers use data analytics and artificial intelligence technologies to gain insight into customer data and ad performance metrics, allowing them to make data-driven decisions, optimise campaigns in real-time, and identify new opportunities.

    In addition, implementing a multi-channel marketing strategy helps to reach the target audience on different platforms and devices, increasing brand awareness and attracting potential customers. Creating quality, relevant and valuable content plays a critical role in engaging your audience, driving user retention and driving word-of-mouth marketing. Finally, regular measurement and analysis of ad performance are essential to evaluate campaign effectiveness and understand the return on investment (ROI) so that marketers can effectively allocate their budgets. By following these strategies, marketers can navigate a dynamic environment, outperform competitors and ensure that their advertising spend delivers optimal results.

  • Twitter needs to be more user friendly, improve its ad targeting, boost content curation efforts

    Twitter needs to be more user friendly, improve its ad targeting, boost content curation efforts

    Mumbai: On 27 October, Elon Musk agreed to buy micro-blogging platform Twitter. In a message to advertisers he wrote, “Twitter aspires to be the most respected advertising platform in the world that strengthens your brand and grows your enterprise.” For advertisers and agencies it is a wait and watch mode. Some feel that things should improve given that Musk is a businessperson. At the same time, who owns it is not as important as making the right moves like ensuring a brand safe environment. It also needs to be more user friendly, improve its ad targeting. There is also room for improvement in the content curation area.

    Talking to Indiantelevision.com RD&X Network co-founder & chairman Ashish Bhasin said that who owns the majority stake in Twitter does not matter. “What matters is the policies and principles that Twitter is going to follow. Who owns it does not mean much to advertisers. What they will watch to see is the policy decisions being taken, the ROI, is the editorial environment conducive to them? Are their ads appearing in the right context? That is going to be far more important than ownership.”

    He goes on to tell that there are some changes proposed and some of them look positive as well. “The proof of the pudding will rest in what happens on the ground and not in statements that are made. Hopefully the changes will keep in mind the interests of brands and advertisers.” He noted that Twitter, if used properly, can lead to superb ROI. He, however, added that the lion’s share of digital advertising goes to Google and Facebook. Twitter is not in that league. “But it is an important medium for certain types of brands or certain objectives that brands may have. It can be a very powerful tool if used properly.

    “But from an advertisers point of view once the noise dies down one has to see the long run ROI as well as brand safety issues around editorial and freedom of speech. This is what brands are waiting to see before taking further long term decisions. But it can be pretty effective if used properly. With a relatively small sum of money you can get very powerful returns. You can reach a certain consumer base very quickly by using top of the mind issues,” Bhasin added.

    He points out that brand safety issues affect other digital platforms also, besides Twitter. Tech, in his opinion, can solve issues like fake news, inappropriate content, trumped up figures pertaining to viewership visibility. “This is an industry wide issue that needs to be tackled. Tech giants have the best of brains, sufficient resources and are cash rich to figure out a way to tackle this in the long run. Only the use of technology will be the solution. It cannot be done manually. The problem is too big and widespread.”

    Bhasin explains that the area of balancing free speech with content moderation has to be navigated very carefully. “You do not want to go too much to one side. Content that is obviously inflammatory or is promoting something illegal is about misuse of media, not about free speech.” He added that recognising diversity of India will be important for platforms like Twitter. It is a matter of how much a priority regional languages will be for Twitter. Mediums that want to exploit the full potential of India cannot restrict themselves to only English. “If they do then they will play only in a niche. Some platforms have adapted better than others to regionalisation,” he notes.

    Since Twitter is instantaneous it will have to be careful to follow all the rules, regulations and laws of the land. “It can go viral in a very short period of time. Therefore it is the responsibility of the platform to make sure that it is not being unfairly exploited by certain people. The government is coming out with more laws for social media platforms and following them will be key,” he brings out.

    Kurate Digital Consulting senior partner Uday Sodhi said that Twitter needs to scale and get in young audiences. It also needs to work on reducing fake profiles. “I’m sure it works as a good platform for brands but in India it is small compared to other social media platforms/ Facebook and Google.” He also noted that with all the politics and hatred in the country, brand safety could be an issue. “Also consumer information is very limited to run anything targeted at a group of consumers.” On whether Elon Musk can bring in Gen Z audiences he said that it is a wait and watch situation.

    Musk had also tweeted, “Twitter obviously cannot become a free-for-all hell-scape, where anything can be said with no consequences!” NOFILTR.Group partner chief marketing officer Hitarth Dadia meanwhile said that he is very excited about Musk owning it. “There are not a lot of billionaires who are relatable. Musk is extremely relatable. Platforms need a good shakeup every now and then for people to care about them. More people will take Twitter seriously.”

    Meanwhile dentsuMB India managing partner Indrajeet Mookerjee said that with the transition of Twitter moving to its new owner, it is certain for the platform to evolve in terms of technology and functionality. “Apart from dismissing key executives, a couple of changes we can expect from this transition are – monetisation, gaming, and a window to innovative advertising avenues. It would be interesting to see how brands leverage these changes innovatively to play it to their advantage.”

    In terms of Twitter’s goal to be the most respected ad platform, he noted that it surely isn’t easy to be so overnight and it would be a long journey for the platform to achieve it. “It is apparent that the platform is currently focusing on preventing the outflow of power users.”

    Shedding light on the role it plays in a digital marketing mix Mookerjee said that an effective way to incorporate this medium into the brand’s marketing plan is by using it as a top of funnel approach.” As a social platform, Twitter lends itself excellently to achieving the first two phases of the funnel that is awareness and consideration for B2B and B2C campaigns.

    “With a whopping 450 million monthly active Twitter users, the platform gives large and small businesses direct reach and avenues to engage with their target audience at their fingertips. Today, brands have capitalized on this by using Twitter as a tool to create interesting content that not only captures the audience’s attention but also draws them into having a conversation,” he states.

    He added that with over 500 million tweets daily, the platform is cluttered with micro-content that’s shared every minute. “However, it is this real-time engagement that continues to keep brands relevant and interact with their online community.”

    Social network for Web 3.0 influencers, educators, and artists Soclly co-founder Prayag Singh noted that some changes in Twitter are already being seen. The first is the cutting down on the workforce. “Sometimes you do not want to do it but it is mandatory for a long term goal. A lot of tech companies are cutting back.” Secondly is the platform’s move to diversify revenue streams beyond advertising. Hence the subscription fee of eight dollars a month for the blue tick verification. Thus there will also be more web 3 adoption. Musk supports Dogecoin.”

    So in the future there could be integration of this cryptocurrency into Twitter. Another move he feels will happen will be a more thorough investigation before an account is suspended. “You will see a more in-depth analysis of things.” He also expects Gen Z and millenials to have a more active presence on Twitter and share their thoughts. He expects challenges and changes to happen in terms of how brands showcase their presence on Twitter moving forward. He also thinks that Twitter Vines may return. This is short form video like Instagram Reels.

    Meanwhile Wing Communications CEO & founder Shiva Bhavani is very clear on what Twitter needs to do to be the most respected digital ad platform. “Twitter needs to provide more value to advertisers than any other platform. This means offering the best targeting options, the most effective ad formats, and the most insightful data. Twitter also needs to continue to invest in its ad product so that it remains at the cutting edge of digital advertising.”

    According to him, Twitter needs to be more user-friendly. “Twitter is notoriously difficult to use for beginners, and even experienced users can find the interface confusing and overwhelming. The platform needs to streamline its design and make it more intuitive to use.”

    Bhavani also feels that the social media company needs to improve its ad targeting: “Twitter’s ad targeting options are currently very basic, which makes it difficult for advertisers to reach their target audience. The platform needs to offer more detailed targeting options so that advertisers can better target their ads.”

    He is of the view that Twitter needs to do a better job of curating content. “Twitter is full of spammy and low-quality content, which can make it hard for users to find the good stuff. The platform needs to do a better job of curating its content so that users can easily find the best tweets.”

    When asked about the impact of a new owner Bhavani noted that one could see a lot of changes happening on Twitter under Musk. “For one, he could bring some much-needed innovation to the platform. He might also make some major changes to the way the content and things are displayed, or even get rid of them altogether”. 

    “And, of course, he could also add some new features that we can’t even imagine right now. Whatever happens, it’s sure to be interesting – and we can’t wait to see what Twitter looks like under Musk’s ownership,” he says further.

    At the same time, though, Bhavani noted that Twitter is a challenging platform for brands due to the amount of noise. The average person is exposed to over 34 GB of data per day, and that number is only increasing. In order to stand out, brands need to be strategic about their content and how they engage with their audience. 

    He suggests a few ways to cut through the noise on Twitter:

    1.      Use hashtags strategically: Hashtags are a great way to help your tweets get seen by more people. But don’t just use any old hashtag – make sure it’s relevant to your brand and your message.

    2.      Engage with influencers: Twitter is all about relationships. If you can build relationships with influencers in your industry, they can help amplify your message and reach a larger audience.

    3.      Be timely: Timing is everything on Twitter. Make sure you’re tweeting when your audience is most active, and you’re more likely to get seen.

    Bhavani pointed out that as more and more brands join Twitter, the question of how effective the platform is for them becomes increasingly relevant. “While there are many potential benefits to using Twitter as a marketing tool, including increased visibility and reach, it’s important to consider how well the platform aligns with your goals and objectives.”

    “For example, if you’re looking to use Twitter to drive website traffic or generate leads, you’ll need to make sure your content is optimised for these goals. The same goes for if you’re hoping to build brand awareness or create a strong connection with your audience – your tweets should be tailored accordingly,” he reveals.

    “Of course, no matter what your goal is, it’s essential to tweet regularly and interact with other users on the platform. The more active you are, the more likely you are to achieve success with Twitter,” he says.

    So, how effective is Twitter as a tool for brands? Bhavani elucidates, “It depends on what your goals are and how well you utilize the platform. With that said, there’s no doubt that Twitter can be a powerful marketing tool – it just takes some strategic planning and execution.”

    He goes on to add that Twitter has become an increasingly popular platform for businesses and individuals alike. As a result, many companies are now using Twitter as part of their digital marketing mix.

    So what role does Twitter play in the digital marketing mix? Bhavani mentions a few key ways that Twitter can be used to help achieve marketing objectives:

    1. Increasing brand awareness and reach: With over 500 million active users, Twitter provides businesses with a massive potential audience. By regularly tweeting interesting and relevant content, businesses can quickly grow their follower base and increase their brand visibility, he explains.

    2  Generating leads and sales: Twitter can also be used as a powerful lead generation tool. By sharing offers, coupons, or other incentives, businesses can encourage users to click through to their website or make a purchase, he noted.

    3. Building relationships and engaging with customers: In today’s digital world, customers expect brands to be responsive and engaged on social media. By actively listening to and responding to customers on Twitter, businesses can build strong relationships with their target audience.

    4. Providing customer service: Customers also increasingly expect brands to provide customer service via social media platforms such as Twitter. “By monitoring mentions of your business, you can quickly respond to any customer queries or concerns, helping in better customer satisfaction and engagement,” he says.

  • Devendra Nagle joins edtech platform RISE as VP of marketing

    Devendra Nagle joins edtech platform RISE as VP of marketing

    Mumbai: RISE, the edtech platform, has announced the appointment of Devendra Nagle as the company’s vice president of marketing, in a major boost to its leadership group. Incidentally, this is the first leadership hire outside of the founding team.

    Prior to joining RISE, Nagle was associate vice president at the Internet and Mobile Association of India, where he spearheaded digital advertising and venture capital committees.

    Earlier, he had conceptualised and created award-winning IPs in the startup space. He brings 10+ years of extensive experience in marketing across various sectors like media, education, and startups. Nagle had earlier worked at Google, India Today, and Hindustan Times, where he was responsible for leading various marketing initiatives. He holds a B.Tech degree in computer science and an MBA from IIM Bangalore.

    In his role at RISE, Devendra will be responsible for scaling the brand’s industry-led and localised programmes, alongside supporting RISE’s vision to help colleges and universities expand their offerings by focusing on creating new digital credentials and degree programmes with industry-led training. His mandate would be to lead all marketing initiatives for RISE.

    Commenting on the appointment, Nagle said, “With technology as an enabler, there is tremendous scope in the edtech sector across the world. RISE is leading the way in the ed-tech space through a tech-facing strategy that embraces innovation and is focusing on growing its operations rapidly. I am excited to be onboard this rocket ship and look forward to working with Gaurav Bhatia and the team.”

    RISE offers various postgraduate and professional certification courses. Each course is affordable and, crucially, is curated and taught by industry experts, thus increasing the chances of employability. The platform also aims to help colleges and universities expand and add digital content to their offerings, and benefit from the hybrid mode of imparting education.

    RISE CEO Gaurav Bhatia believes Devendra’s varied and vast experience will add to the company’s knowhow. He shared, “We at RISE are always looking to evolve and to introduce new paradigms to the edtech sector, keeping in mind how education overall has transformed since 2020. Getting Devendra on board is just another step in our plans to continue pushing the envelope and ensure that our students are as industry-ready as possible. And with his work experience across various domains, I believe Devendra will bring substance and value to RISE and add to our growth story.”

  • The CTV India market maybe small, but it surely packs a big punch: mediasmart’s Nikhil Kumar

    The CTV India market maybe small, but it surely packs a big punch: mediasmart’s Nikhil Kumar

    With the changing digital landscape, consumers are warming up to connected TVs (CTVs) like never before. As Indian audiences increasingly embrace OTT content while gradually making the shift from traditional linear TV viewing, the change also presents an untapped advertising goldmine for brands and advertisers alike.

    On the sidelines of the Indian Digital Brand Fest organised by Indiantelevision.com, we caught up with mediasmart vice-president of India & SEA Nikhil Kumar, an Affle company, to understand how advertisers can buckle up to face this new beast in advertising. Last year, mediasmart commissioned research that helped understand the CTV behaviour patterns in India to provide greater market understanding. With mediasmart recently releasing its latest industry report on the CTV ecosystem in India that would help fast-track the growth of this industry, we take a deep dive into some of the underlying challenges and come away with some key takeaways.

    Kumar, a consumer marketing professional with over a decade of experience working in FMCG , retail, F&B, and ad-tech set-ups with global brands like TikTok, Puma, L’Oreal, Cafe Coffee Day, and InMobi, is extremely bullish about the current and future role of CTV as a medium for delivering impact for brands. He believes that CTV consumption today goes beyond the inhibitions of individual consumption on mobile screens and probably also brings back the family-viewing phenomenon of linear television, but with very measurable metrics of targeting and delivery.

    In an in-depth interaction with Indiantelevision.com, Kumar also talks about his journey from primarily marketing brands spread across the consumer goods sector, food retail, and sports & wellness, to now navigating the ad-tech space. While managing marketing for multiple brands, there were great learnings towards understanding consumer behaviour and sentiments, advertising objectives, media channel goals and analysis, and so forth. What I have really enjoyed after switching sides and working within ad-tech/mar-tech set-ups is the understanding of how each dollar spent is effectively reaching or not reaching the intended consumer. More importantly, the journey from ad exposure to intended purchase & the continued lifetime journey are built on strong data tech stacks with due diligence on consumer privacy. So for me, the whole journey from the brand side to now the adtech side has been an immense learning curve.”

    My learning, which I often share with my team, is—”Never sell the product, sell the insight—sell the solution to the problem that the marketer is intending to solve—that’ll bring better adoption for your offering,” shares Kumar.

    Edited excerpts:

    On why advertisers are cautious adapting to the CTV medium, despite the rapid adoption of it by consumers

    We live in an era that can be defined as pre-covid and post-covid. Covid played a huge catalyst in the growth of connected TVs as people realised that they could view the same content they see on their mobiles on a bigger screen via connected TV , thereby providing a better experience.

    For advertisers, the caution is actually natural, primarily because of the newness of the medium—connected TV & the scale/reach it brings from a planning lens. I think the hesitancy could also be derived from not understanding whether CTV reach spend should be bucketed under offline or digital spend, because it’s still TV and that’s well covered by most large spenders.

    Most large traditional advertisers feel they are already advertising on TV to a much more mass audience on broadcast, so why do they need to spend extra to advertise on CTV?

    When CTV started getting sold in India as an inventory for monetisation, it was being talked about as a digital medium. But then they are doing enough advertising for OTT already on mobile. And suddenly there’s this new accessibility for users via CTV. So you have to educate them that OTT is not CTV. The subset of CTV can be OTT, but that’s not the totality of it. There’s so much more that you can do on CTV, like play games, watch live news, etc., which led to its phenomenal growth. I think brands and advertisers, rather than being hesitant, are becoming more inquisitive.

    A year back, there was hesitancy, which has turned to inquisitiveness, and today, if you look at it, it’s a Fomo (Fear of missing out) created for every media planner or agency owing to the scale of CTV growth globally. If they don’t have CTV as a top priority, clearly it’s a miss. Even the agencies catering to smaller brands from tier II and tier III categories feel the need to hop onto the CTV bandwagon. More so because of the sheer pressure that the clients are creating on how to get their brand’s ads on the medium. Because that is where their audience is, watching their content.

    On whether the decline of DTH and linear TV viewing is leading to the spurt in CTV or vice versa

    It’s important to understand that sometimes users weren’t even contributing to DTH for them to decline from the database. These are the cord-nevers beyond the cord cutters.

    Suddenly, people are realising that the decline of DTH doesn’t mean the growth of CTV. Yes, it does imply that. But connected TV by itself as a base is growing. There’s a section of consumers who have never had a cable/DTH connection (cord-nevers), who bought a smart TV and immediately connected it to the internet and started watching it.

    Advertisers are also understanding that some of the audiences they want to reach out to are not there on TV. Thus, more than being hesitant, I think they are convincing themselves that this is a medium that’s creating more impact and providing a way to reach audiences they can’t reach otherwise on TV.

    Around 2.5 million DTH and cable subscribers have declined in the past two years or so, while comparatively, nine million wired broadband subscribers have increased. According to these two data points, the home wifi/broadband ecosystem is growing. There’s an accessibility to TV, while at the same time, there’s a decline in DTH, and last but not least, there’s suddenly a growth pattern in the availability of content. The number of OTTs that are available in the market is not just restricted to Hotstar, Netflix, Amazon, Sony, Zee, and Mx Player. There are 40 plus OTT players today—vernacular, regional, multi-lingual, event dialect-specific OTTs—there’s so much happening in the space.

    We have recently released a report titled “India CTV Report 2022,” which is one of the most comprehensive reports on this subject. Last year, when we first released it, it became a bespoke reference point for most avid marketers and media houses. This year, we did a very interesting comparison of the prices that you are paying. A comparison of the cost of these OTTs versus the average price of a DTH plan has not been put into perspective . If you compare the prices, it is actually not that expensive. So you can have all the content from around the world that you want to see at a price that is affordable. These are some of the factors that are really contributing to the growth of the connected television market in the country.

    And it’s not restricted to Gen-Z or millennial users, as we realised from our survey report. In our first-party survey covering a diverse audience segment across metros and non-metros, we realised more than 84 per cent claimed to be watching CTV with someone in the household rather than alone, similar to the TV broadcast era, in which family viewing was the dominant form of consumption. The TV broadcast era was followed by the era of mobile phones, which meant we went from a family viewing/co-viewing to a personalised content consumption experience on our mobile devices. This received a huge boost with the Jio revolution from 2016 onwards. And now, in a post-pandemic era, the connect TV experience has brought everybody back together for co-viewing, implying we have come full circle, but now with a way to answer the question: what happened after the TV ad was served?

    On how can agencies & advertisers overcome the lack of standard industry metrics- one of the key reasons limiting faster advertiser adoption of CTV

    There are always challenges related to a new medium in how measurability is going to happen. In fact, globally, one of the reports released recently claimed that there’s massive ad fraud happening already within the CTV space globally. If you see, most of the OTTs are owned by large broadcast networks. The OTT, or the platform, is evaluating the user reach and where your ads were served, along with who saw them. How does one evaluate ad fraud, which is obviously a difficult area?

    This is where programmatic advertising is becoming more and more important for advertisers, because for them it’s not important where the ad is shown, it’s more important to whom the ad is shown. The idea is to target audiences as opposed to targeting platforms where your ad is running, and hence, targeting the same user across multiple platforms becomes possible.

    Additionally, programmatic advertising provides transparency. You can access the dashboard. You can see the ads getting served, what time they were served, how they were served, which audience segments they were served to, and which audiences are engaging with them. Today we have technology where you can map a TV to a device id on a mobile phone. Hence the intuitive understanding that “this is the guy who has a TV at home; this is the device ID so I can continue the lifetime journey of engaging with that consumer either on his TV or on his mobile.”

    Technologies like ours are building that trust so that while currently there’s no measurement for what can happen on TV, you can link that journey to a user on their mobile where all possible mobile measurement options exist.

    And you can control it because it’s digital. So we know who saw the ad. Because you can track it down to a TV, to a location, to the size of a TV, to a certain household. So many data points can come up. You can target users by the size of the screen, by location, etc.—so many targeting options are available because of the digital nature of the medium. Hence, the trackability of success is also there. And hence, it’s clearly an impactful medium.

    On some of the underlying challenges & emerging trends in advertising on CTV in the domestic market

    So challenges can also be opportunities, and some of them we saw were in education, as India is still a market with high spending on traditional platforms like TV and print. We need to focus on educating advertisers and agencies on how CTV, as a digital medium, is a growing channel and an incremental reach medium at that. For instance, the festive season this time is all going to be about going back to retail, OOH, a massive print spend, and a big burst on television across brands. But, was your brand able to reach the users on CTV where they are most engaged and spend close to 4 hours a day? If not, you have clearly missed an opportunity. So that’s the first challenge in the ecosystem’s education.

    If we talk about trends, the growing trend is that gaming has grown by leaps and bounds on CTV and is going to become a destination. Another major trend is programmatic advertising via CTV to avoid spillovers. We are a country that does almost 60 per cent of media buying directly as opposed to 40 per cent programmatically. But how do you integrate the user’s journey across multiple ecosystems and screens that he operates on into one experience? That’s where programmatic advertising comes into the picture, which can help you build a unified view of the consumer.

    On how can marketers maximise viewer engagement on ads and improve the ad viewing experience for users on CTV?

    That’s an interesting premise because on CTV there are multiple ecosystems that clearly users spend time on—there is the OTT or on-demand content ecosystem, and the other is user-generated content (UGC) platforms. Beyond this, we also have news, gaming, and music, which are growing very fast.

    What does a user tend to do when they see an ad on a UGC platform? They are more likely to skip it since the 20-or 30-second ad in a three-minute video is more of a distraction.

    The user’s behaviour on on-demand OTT is observed to be very different, where on average they spend anywhere between 30 mins and an hour watching their favourite on-demand show or movie. The user is committed to spending a longer time there and hence doesn’t mind watching a 20-second ad here. Another thing to note here is that, as per the Ormax OTT Audience Report: 2022, only 31 per cent of India’s digital video audience is paid users, while the remaining 69 per cent is an advertising-based video-on-demand (AVoD) audience. Clearly, a huge chunk of the audience is reachable via ads on OTT and CTV.

    Also, CTV, with its immersive brand storytelling on the large screen, along with the ability to connect the journey from TV to mobile, can create an ecosystem that enables a user to retain the ad better for all kinds of segments like beauty, cosmetics, auto, FMCG, e-commerce, app-first etc. Ad retention and a CTA (call to action) created via omnichannel audience targeting, CTV household sync, and drive-to-store technologies enable users to act upon the ad that they have seen. Because at the end of the day, what is advertising for if not to act upon it?

    On how does the India market differ from the US and European markets in this aspect

    From a CTV advertising standpoint, I think the US and Europe are more evolved markets. They saw the trend almost three to four years ago. In the US, almost 90 per cent of households have at least one CTV device—clearly, it is a highly evolved CTV market. Besides, non-pay TV households are set to exceed pay TV households by 2023, indicating cord cutting and cord nevers are on the rise in the US.

    The European Union is very similar, though it obviously has GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) laws and other regulations that affect how users are tracked. But in both global markets, the share of CTV impressions is growing really fast. In fact, in the US, the share of CTV impressions has exceeded the share of mobile, which has skewed the global average as well, in favour of CTV. If you look at the US, CTV ad spending will touch almost 10 per cent of the total ad spending by 2024. And within that high share, most ads are being transacted programmatically, not even direct buys. They have moved from a system dealing with multiple publishers. So, that’s the evolution and mindset that we are moving towards.

    If you compare it to India, it’s a very small market in terms of adoption. It’s been just two years since we started CTV advertising. So it’s early days, but last year we grew almost 30-40 per cent. We have seen the CTV reach go from six million to nine million and now to 14 million, and the pace is only increasing Q-o-Q. So, while the size of the market is small today, the adoption rate is very high in the domestic market. CTV penetration is growing really fast, and we predict that it will be 40–50 million by 2025. So, even though the Indian market is small, it is surely packing a big punch. CTVs are here to stay and grow.

  • Nazara acquires majority in ad tech company Datawrkz

    Nazara acquires majority in ad tech company Datawrkz

    Mumbai: Sports media company Nazara Technologies has entered an agreement to acquire 55 per cent stake in programmatic advertising and monetisation company Datawrkz valuing the company at Rs 255 crore (~$30 million) linked to CY 22 EBITDA performance.

    “Datawrkz tech offerings will enhance in-house capabilities of Nazara for optimising its customer acquisition spends as well as enhance yields on ad monetisation of its large consumer base,” the company said in a statement on Tuesday. “The ad revenue monetisation is expected to assist many of the companies in the ‘Friends of Nazara’ network.”

    Nazara will acquire 33 per cent stake (Rs 60 crore payable of which Rs 35 crore is partly payable in cash and the balance consideration of Rs 25 crore will be paid either in cash or swap of shares) in the first tranche by 22 April. Nazara has reserved an option to acquire an additional 22 per cent in the second tranche that is expected to close in Q4 FY23.

    “We, at Nazara, are looking to build strong gaming ad tech offerings globally with the partnership with Datawrkz,” said Nazara Technologies CEO Manish Agarwal. “We strongly believe that growth of gaming-focused ad tech will be exponential in the coming decade across geographies with the growth of gamers and game publishers across freemium, web 3.0 and skill-based real money gaming.”

    He further added, “Ad tech companies with deep data processing capabilities and first-party data ownership will emerge as winners in gaming-focused ad tech and will help Datawrkz to create value for itself as well as for Nazara shareholders.”

    Datawrkz was founded in 2013 by IIM Ahmedabad alumnus Senthil Govindan and is a global advertising technology firm focused on accelerating user and revenue growth for clients through highly optimised digital advertising. It has offices in the US, Singapore, and India and functions as an independent trading desk to power digital media strategy, planning and execution.

    Datawrkz’s self-service product suite for advertisers – Vizibl includes a demand-side platform as well as a customer data platform. On the supply side, Datawrkz generates revenue for publishers through AdPrimus, its supply-side product that drives user engagement, mediates between demand sources and enables audience segmentation.

    For the calendar year 2021, Datawrkz posted combined revenue of Rs 90.7 crore (~$12.1 million) and EBIDTA margin of 12 per cent with around 70 per cent of its revenue coming from the US as per CY 2021 unaudited financial statements.

    “We had started this company with a vision to disrupt the digital advertising space,” said Datawrkz founder Senthil Govindan. “Datawrkz was already on a fast track to achieve our objective with rapid growth and satisfied clients around the world. Through our partnership with Nazara, I see our pace accelerating further. While Datawrkz will be able to immediately bring our natural strengths to bear within the existing Nazara fold, this also gives both sides a tremendous opportunity to build global advertising and publisher monetization products with a sharp focus on the gaming vertical.”

    “As always, it’s a great moment for us to welcome a new friend to our ‘Friends of Nazara’ network and I believe Senthil and the entire Datawrkz team will add great value to what we are building at Nazara over the next few years,” added Nazara Technologies founder and joint MD Nitish Mittersain.

  • GUEST COLUMN: One-third of digital ads going unseen; what can brands do?

    GUEST COLUMN: One-third of digital ads going unseen; what can brands do?

    Mumbai: When you look at the evolution of digital advertising, it makes sense that viewability has continued to be a top concern for marketers. The entire digital advertising ecosystem exists to support brands and their efforts to reach and influence consumers. Whether caused by a growing number of channels and platforms or out of necessity to stay connected, consumers are increasing their time spent with digital media.

    It was not long ago that viewability rates of 50 per cent were the industry norm, but rates are now on the rise. According to our H1 2021 media quality report, viewability averages stand above 65 per cent across nearly all formats and environments. While this marks an impressive accomplishment, this range indicates that as much as one-third of digital ads are going unseen by consumers in certain environments. This viewability gap creates challenges for both the buy and sell side of the digital media business. Marketers often talk about reaching the right consumers, in the right places, in the appropriate context. But first, marketers should ensure that their ads have the opportunity to be viewable in order to make a lasting impact.

    Consider time-in-view to measure ad effectiveness

    In simple terms, viewability is a digital ad seen by an actual consumer, while time-in-view is the average duration that a viewable impression remains in view. This excludes impressions that are not viewable. Viewability is good for eliminating waste, but time-in-view may be an even better metric for measuring media quality, especially for brand campaigns where exposure time drives better brand recall.

    A joint study by GroupM and Integral Ad Science (IAS) for Toyota proved that media quality, frequency, and time-in-view metrics as well as exposure to ad placements were key to driving positive business outcomes for the auto manufacturer. Toyota saw an 83 per cent conversion rate uplift, resulting in 3,679 incremental brochure downloads attributed to viewable impressions. The case study showed that exposure time is a primary driver for outcomes, directly impacting campaign effectiveness.

    As advertising budgets continue to shift towards digital, advertisers are being asked to prove RoI and the added value of digital marketing. This need to demonstrate impact is driving a shift in how they seek to measure the quality of their digital investments. Time in view allows advertisers to optimise towards a metric that better drives marketing ROI.

    Mobile campaigns in India deliver stronger media quality results

    With over 500 million Indians using smartphones, an overwhelming majority of consumers today are making purchasing decisions through mobile devices. A recent study found that over 60 per cent of Indian consumers are using their mobile devices to guide them through their shopper journey, from research to discovery to making the ultimate purchase.  People are typically on the go and traveling during the festive season, which means that they will be spending additional time on their mobile devices. It’s critical for marketers to have a mobile-first strategy for India.

    According to the recent IAS media quality report H1 2021, mobile campaigns in India delivered stronger results. Mobile web display viewability increased by one percentage point to 58.9 per cent in H1 2021 and mobile in-app display increased from 51.3 per cent to 54.1 per cent. The time-in-view for mobile web display campaigns in India increased from 15.24 seconds to 19.33 seconds, while the worldwide average stood at 14.91 seconds, clearly indicating that Indian consumers were engaged longer with the ads on mobile web display.

    From a brand risk perspective too, mobile campaigns in India posted lower brand risks than display, with mobile web display registering brand risk reduction from 2.6 per cent to 1.8 per cent. The ad fraud on mobile web display marginally decreased to 0.2 per cent, while the global average was 0.4 per cent. As spending increases on mobile, media quality challenges may arise such as ad fraud, unsafe brand environments, and unviewable inventory.

    Forrester expects e-retail sales to reach about $9.2 billion in India during the 2021 festive month, up 42 per cent year-on-year. While this indicates a huge opportunity for marketers, it also calls for them to evaluate the metrics of their campaign’s performance – bringing to the forefront viewability and time-in-view.

    Brands need to know that their ads are being viewed by real people – or risk losing the chance to improve RoI this Diwali.

    (The author is commercial lead for India at Integral Ad Science. The views expressed in the column are personal and Indiantelevision.com may not subscribe to them.)

  • YouTube reports $6 billon ad revenue in Q1, up 49% from year earlier

    YouTube reports $6 billon ad revenue in Q1, up 49% from year earlier

    KOLKATA: YouTube’s advertising revenue rose dramatically in the first quarter of 2021 , up 49 per cent from the same quarter in the last year. As the parent company Google/Alphabet reported its first quarter earnings, YouTube ad revenue amounting to $6 billion has trumped all expectations.

    Google and Alphabet chief financial officer Ruth Porat has credited “exceptional performance in direct response and ongoing strength in brand advertising” for the jump in ad revenue. The direct response business is now a large and fast-growing business for the segment, Google chief business officer Philipp Schindler added.

    The platform is also working on shopping capabilities of viewers on the platform. “I think we’re still scratching the surface on what’s possible really with commercial intent on YouTube,” Schindler said. He emphasised that advertisers are using YouTube to reach audience that they can’t find anywhere else. The video viewing platform is starting to see an advertiser mix of awareness and more action-oriented formats who are driving reach and results across the funnel.

    The video giant currently boasts of over two billion monthly logged users and over one billion hours of daily video consumption. Interestingly, its short video platform has also seen exponential growth. “YouTube Shorts continues to gain popularity with over 6.5 billion daily views as of March, up from 3.5 billion at the end of 2020,” Google and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai said.

    Overall, Alphabet reported $55.3 billion in Q1 revenue, up 34 per cent year-over-year. “Over the last year, people have turned to Google Search and many online services to stay informed, connected and entertained. We’ve continued our focus on delivering trusted services to help people around the world. Our Cloud services are helping businesses, big and small, accelerate their digital transformations,” Pichai said in a letter to the shareholders.