Unlike traditional forms of advertising, CTV, full-form Connected TV, can target individual viewers based on first-party data like their browsing activity, interests, lifestyle choices, and more. Thus, CTV advertising is revolutionizing marketing with precise targeting, allowing marketers to reach specific audiences through programmatic advertising.
No wonder, Insider Intelligence reports that CTV ad spending will increase by $5.5M this year, thereby accounting for most of the growth in US TV and connected TV ad spending combined.
In the coming years, CTV marketing will thrive amid technological innovations, widespread adoption of smart TVs, and shifting audience behaviors. With advancements in AI, programmatic ads, and data-driven personalization reshaping how brands engage viewers CTV will emerge as an essential advertising channel for businesses.In this post, we will share interesting insights into CTV advertising, enabling you to uncover the huge marketing potential it holds.
7 Key Trends in CTV Marketing for 2025 and beyond
1. Advanced Personalization
In 2025 and beyond, advanced personalization will be a defining trend in CTV marketing. Mobile apps will increasingly leverage AI, machine learning, and predictive modeling to analyze first-party data and audience insights and deliver relevant content and custom ad experiences across connected devices.
For instance, In CTV advertising, marketers use a combination of first-party identifiers, unique device IDs, and household IP addresses for audience-specific advertising.
Most CTV ad platforms like Google, Hulu, and Roku offer enhanced targeting options like age, gender, ad and product interaction, CTV devices, and more to make CTV ad targeting more precise.
With the advancement in AI and the proliferation of data, such as geolocation and viewing habits, CTV marketing and ad campaigns will be more capable of creating individualized experiences at scale.
2. Massive Growth in Programmatic Advertising
Programmatic advertising is revolutionizing the CTV advertising domain by automating ad buying and allowing precise audience targeting. The primary drivers of this trend are the increasing data availability and advanced targeting capabilities that allow marketers and advertisers to deliver personalized ads in real-time based on viewer preferences.
With programmatic advertising platforms, marketers can gain flexibility and scale their campaigns effectively while optimizing ad spend. Moreover, AI and machine learning are improving bidding strategies, ensuring that the ads reach the right audience at the right time.
Going forward, programmatic advertising will become the cornerstone for scalable and measurable CTV campaigns, as advertisers embrace CTV’s data-rich environment.
3. A More Privacy-Conscious Future
Advertisers and publishers alike are becoming increasingly aware of how connected television (CTV) is shifting in a privacy-centric world. As more people pull the cord and move to streaming services, advertisers will be more updated on new privacy concerns and find ways to address them.
This includes being transparent about data collection, using privacy-enhancing technologies, and limiting the use of third-party cookies. Thus, advertisers can manage CTV ad campaigns that are respectful of the viewers’ privacy and compliant with the latest regulations.
Thus, one major CTV advertising trend that will stay the increased emphasis on user data privacy and security. Users expect transparency on how their data is being used. They demand user data empowerment, enabling them to have more control over it. This has led to multiple partnerships between advertisers and brands and the use of data security tools and consent management platforms.
4. Attribution Will Get More Advanced
In the coming years, we’ll see new advanced technologies to track and measure the impact of CTV advertising. It will enable app marketers and advertisers to link ad impressions directly to measurable outcomes like website visits, in-store traffic, and purchases.
CTV platforms will seamlessly integrate with other analytics tools to get marketers the granular insights into ad performance they’ve been looking for. This includes click-through rates, time spent, multi-device user behavior, and more.
With these innovations in the CTV advertising methods, marketers will explore new ways to track campaign performance and gain in-depth insights about its success. They can better monitor how their users are moving through the sales funnel and identify areas for campaign optimization.
For instance, platforms like Apptrove have made next-gen attribution possible, thus helping them improve their CTV advertising efforts.
It allows marketers to measure cross-platform performance across apps, web, referrals, email, TV, and more. With its advanced mobile ad fraud detection feature, it helps keep the ad budget focused on real users while avoiding false reporting.
5. Increasing Demand for Interactive CTV Ads
Another big trend that’s expected in the CTV advertising segment is the increased use of shoppable and gamified ads, other shoppable elements, QR codes, and voice-activated interactions that are more engaging and interactive.
With such shoppable CTV ads, users can engage with the ad content and move through their buying process within the device. In fact, a recent report revealed that these interactive CTV ad campaigns can generate up to 10.3 times higher engagement compared to traditional formats. Moreover, with their advanced creatives, these ads extend the viewing time significantly when compared to the standard pre-roll ads.
This shift towards interactive CTV advertising points to the increasing demand for dynamic and engaging ad experiences on connected platforms.
6. Omnichannel Strategies Will Gain Traction
Omnichannel strategies are key to brands leveraging CTV advertising to deliver consistent brand messages across platforms. Going forward, integrating CTV with other channels like social, email, mobile, and others will become pivotal in CTV advertising.
In fact, recent data has shown that omnichannel strategies boost customer retention rates and overall sales. Brands using 3 or more channels experience a 287% higher purchase rate than those who don’t.
Advancements in advertising tech are enabling precise audience targeting and unified reporting across multiple platforms. This allows marketers to run cohesive and measurable campaigns.
The omnichannel trend highlights the growing importance of aligning CTV advertising with broader marketing strategies to enhance user engagement and marketing ROI.
7. Improved Measurement Standards
Measurement of connective TV is nothing like linear TV, mobile, or PC. In fact, this territory is highly fragmented with multiple devices. Plus, it lacks common identifiers between platforms. Hence, CTV advertising measurement has a long way to go.
However, with time, significant steps have been taken to make CTV ad measurement more accessible to all parties involved. For marketers, the data, technology, and industry benchmarks are within reach, ensuring that CTC advertising becomes more transparent and effective.
Enhanced metrics for ROI and engagement tracking and improved measurement standards are changing the way marketers seek deeper insights into campaign performance. The enhanced frameworks now available offer granular insights on metrics like viewability, completion rates, and cross-device impact.
Lastly, innovations like incremental lift studies and audience reach measurement are helping advertisers understand how CTV drives conversions beyond the traditional metrics. Such advancements make CTV an increasingly reliable medium for performance-driven advertising.
Tips and Best Practices for Effective CTV Marketing Campaigns
1. Understand Audience Segmentation
Precise audience segmentation ensures your CTV ad campaigns are relevant, thus delivering a highly personalized and engaging ad experience and maximizing ROI.
Here are a few quick tips for effective audience segmentation.
- Leverage demographics like age, gender, location, and household income data to share targeted content with specific audience profiles.
- Study their viewing habits and purchase history to send relevant and timely content to viewers.
- Studying their preferences, such as a specific hobby or favorite genre, can help you sharpen your content according to their interests.
- Adapt your campaign based on their device and platform preferences for better reach and engagement. This requires a study of the devices or streaming platforms they use.
Proper audience segmentation powers advanced analytics and data-driven insights and ensure that the CTV ads resonate with the viewers being targeted.
2. Optimize Creative Assets for Viewer Preferences
Viewers engage with content on a variety of devices, making it critical to tailor creative assets to suit various screen formats and user preferences.
- Leverage dynamic ad insertion to deliver personalized messages based on viewer behavior, location, or context. For instance, ads should highlight local deals for enhanced engagement.
- For seamless experience, tailor ad visuals and content to the 16:9 aspect ratio and resolutions like 1080p to align with CTV platform specifications. Leveraging responsive design principles can make your ad work seamlessly on varying screen sizes and orientations.
- Count on an all-round measurement suite like Apptrove that comes with multiple features to assist you with creative optimization of assets.
- Use interactive elements like QR codes, clickable elements, or gamification in CTV ads to allow viewers to engage with the content directly.
- Keep the ad copy to the point and impactful. Use compelling headlines, user benefit-centric language, and effective CTAs to encourage action.
- A/B test visuals and videos to determine the ones driving the most engagement and conversions. Experiment with different creative elements to filter the ones that resonate the most with your audience.
3. Leverage First-Party Data for Targeted Ad Delivery
First-party data is directly collected from the viewer through interactions like website visits, app usage, or customer purchases. Using this data can transform your CTV advertising campaigns in the following ways.
- It can help you tailor ads to the audience’s demographics, preferences, and past behaviors.
- First-party data frees you from reliance on third-party cookies, thus ensuring complete compliance with GDPR and CCPA regulations.
- First-party data allows you to reach high-value intent-ready viewers, thus reducing wasted impressions and optimizing your ad spend.
- When CTV first-party insights are coupled with other platform data like the web or mobile, you can create a cohesive multi-platform strategy.
4. Test and Iterate Campaigns Based on Performance Analytics
Performance data includes completion rates, click-through rates (CTR), and engagement metrics that offer actionable insights to refine and optimize campaigns in real-time.
Make sure you implement A/B testing for ad formats, creative variations, and other elements. For instance, testing CTAs or calls-to-action (CTAs) or audience segments can point to what’s driving conversions or engagement.
Advanced analytics tools can be used to track granular data like specific audience behaviors or device usage patterns. A few platforms offer built-in analytics to assess the KPIs. Integrate this data with attribution models to make sure your campaigns are aligned with your business goals.
This process of testing and iterating allows marketers to maximize efficiency, focus on high-performing strategies, and ensure sustainable success in CTV.
5. Focus on Transparency and Compliance with Privacy Regulations
The ever-evolving landscape of Connected TV (CTV) advertising requires marketers to prioritize transparency and compliance with privacy regulations. This is necessary for building trust with viewers and ensuring long-term campaign success.
Moreover, privacy laws like GDPR, CCPA, and other regional regulations become stricter, requiring advertisers to implement consent-driven personalization practices that safeguard user data.
Adopt a clear consent mechanism to communicate how the data will be used. Make sure you offer the option to opt out of data collection and sharing to instill trust and ensure a seamless experience.
Moreover, use privacy-first technologies that are designed to anonymize user data while allowing effective targeting. These tools offer a secure experience and respect user privacy. Several CTV platforms leverage privacy-enhancing technologies like differential privacy to uphold viewer privacy.
You can also limit the use of third-party cookies by going for first-party cookies instead.
Finally, conduct routine audits to ensure the ad platforms and partnerships comply with the required regulations.
All this can ensure that the user’s browsing history is not being tracked without their consent or knowledge. It also avoids unnecessary penalties and strengthens user trust.
6. Invest in High-Quality, Interactive Ad Formats
Interactive ad formats tend to engage audiences effectively by encouraging direct participation. For instance, they persuade the viewer to choose an outcome, respond to a question, or browse products directly on their screen.
This enhances viewer experience and conversion rates. A recent report revealed that interactive ads on CTV deliver a 4.5 times higher engagement rate than standard video ads.
Interactive ads often include shoppable formats, QR codes, and dynamic overlays to help brands connect with viewers in real-time. The high-quality visuals and tailored content shared in these ads enhance brand recall and drive the desired action.
Thus, it is wise to invest in interactive ad formats to improve the effectiveness of your CTV advertising campaigns.
Summing Up
CTV marketing in 2025 is all set to evolve with key trends like advanced personalization, programmatic advertising growth, interactive ads, omnichannel strategies, and more. Going forward, advertisers should prioritize improved measurement standards, compliance with privacy regulations, and leveraging first-party data for targeted campaigns.
As an app marketer, you can measure the effectiveness of all your campaigns using a mobile measurement partner (MMP) or by linking its API with your existing system. The metrics shown by Apptrove can help you run an in-depth performance analysis. You can optimize campaigns by leveraging first-party data, embracing performance analytics, and aligning creative assets with audience preferences.
Get in touch with our experts to know more about Apptrove’s features and how the platform can help in achieving your marketing goals.
