We saw a transformative change in the 2023 digital advertising landscape, from CGI ads to the use of AI. In 2024, we are expecting to see more innovations in the industry. Here are some of the predictions we think will shape our landscape this year. Let’s dive in.
1. The growth of Shoppable Ads
As the spending power of Gen-Z continues to grow, it is becoming vital to understand where and how they are spending their money, we know that Gen-Z’s most preferred social platform is TikTok and after the emergence of TikTok Shop and its exponential growth, advertisers are increasing their investment in social e-commerce by 44%. Sales through social platforms are expected to reach $82 billion in the US and $7 billion in the UK by 2026.
Shoppable ads are not only constricted to social media. In 2019 NBC Universal saw a 73% increase in conversions after their TV ad supported by a QR code enabled shoppers to directly buy the product when the ad played, shortening the sales funnel. In 2023, Peacock, NBC Universal’s OTT platform, introduced a new trend in Shoppable Ads. They launched a segment called Must Shop TV, which allows viewers to shop for the products live on TV by scanning a QR code. This technology is powered by KERV.
We are expecting to see this industry rise and perhaps have more immersive experiences on both TV and social media.
2. Attention, Attention!
The 69% decrease in attention spans since 2004 has resulted in 62% of marketers preferring to use attention as a metric to solve for ROI over CTR and other metrics in 2024, according to Kantar. Attention metrics are where the attention falls on the most. With many eye-tracking and predictive eye-tracking tools available in the market, we know a tool that goes one step further and captures the most memorable element in the frame using Attention Heatmaps. Spoiler alert, it’s us; Incivus.
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3. Microbrands are leading the way
Microbrands are said to disrupt in 2024. According to Kantar’s Kantar Worldpanel 2023, brands with less than 10% global penetration are gaining popularity over large corporations in the CPG industry. 1 out of 2 shoppers prefer buying from micro brands as they find unique products, provide better customer service and customers find that the brands are contributing to charity and other causes. Bonus points if the brands are niche-centric, culture-oriented, and environmentally conscious.
So, what happens to the large CPG brands? Those Brands need to follow suit and market their company from being product-centric to more purpose and people-marketing-centric, enabling culture-appropriate products to be more inclusive and give back to the community.
4. Connected TV & OTT ads to grow in 2024
CTV ads are projected to grow by 22.4% in 2024. Amazon made a whopping $31 billion in advertising revenue last year making them the leader in the space of Connected TV ads and OTT ads.
What is setting Connected TV ads apart from OTT ads is that on OTT platforms, the data in terms of personalization is vast. Due to this Amazon Prime is also launching their OTT ads curated to their audiences, ensuring the right ads are targeted towards desirable audiences. Amazon will generate roughly $5.2 billion in additional annual revenue through Prime Video ad sales and the $2.99 monthly surcharge that subscribers can pay to avoid the ad, according to Morgan Stanley’s research note.
In early 2024, Netflix is to follow suit and launch their ad-supported plans in the US and UK. Both Prime & Netflix to face some challenges here as giants like Disney+ and Warner Bros. have adapted to this model years prior.
5. Generative AI still on the rise?
In 2023, we saw the space of AI disrupt the marketing industry, in 2024 we are exploring AI in depth. We saw many creation and automation AI tools in 2023, this year we are looking forward to seeing more customizations in terms of AI services deployed to companies and more powerful AI systems that tackle the problems we faced in 2023 like hallucinations and other malfunctions.
Based on the Gartner hype disillusionment slope, the application of AI will be put to the test in real-world scenarios. There is a possibility of people becoming disillusioned with the idea of AI replacing human workers. AI will be tested in different areas such as the entertainment industry, school classrooms, and the workplace. In 2024, we might discover if the use of AI has any significant impact on productivity.
In 2024, we are expecting to see more growth in multi-modality systems where users can mix and match content types like text, audio, images, and videos. This could result in chatbots, and digital assistants evolving to see, listen, and talk back to users, enhancing customer experience.
6. Programmatic advertising continues to grow.
The ad spend in Programmatic Advertising is on the rise in 2024 and has been projected to reach $6 billion. This growth could be due to the rise of CTV ads, in-game ads, and in-app ads.
This year, we are entering the cookie-less era. Over the years programmatic advertising has relied on cookies and other relevant third-party data to track and target the right audience. Now, advertisers will have to adopt to first-party data, contextual targeting, and privacy-friendly methods to sustain effectiveness in their programmatic ad campaigns.
Brands are now looking to shift and craft their own in-house programmatic advertising, which enables brands to look into the data more closely and can increase the possibilities of more segmentation, improving ROI. Tools like Eskimi, Smarty Ads and Media Math are popularly used for this.
Another trend emerging in Programmatic Advertising is Programmatic Audio. With audio platforms like Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Podimo on the rise, advertisers are looking to buy audio spaces on these platforms as the platforms are resistant to ad blockers, and often, listeners are keenly focused on the podcast whilst performing other tasks, the chances of them skipping an ad is slim.
7. Ad Fraud on the rise
Ad spending is growing and is going towards social media platforms, CTV, and retail media, all three categories that are subject to ad fraud.
According to Juniper’s Research, advertisers’ total loss of ad spend to ad fraud in 2023 was $84 billion, this number is expected to grow to $100 billion in 2024 and $172 billion by year 2028.
With the emergence of AI tools free to the public like ChatGPT, fraudsters are crafting advanced algorithms to create bots to mimic human behavior. There are a few emerging tools that can empower advertisers to save their ad spend from going to waste, like Fraudblocker. However, it will be important to regularize and set up stronger controls on the platforms on which these frauds occur.
There you have it! Our digital advertising predictions for 2024. We are excited to see the revolution unfold this year.
