The curiosity surrounding automatic content recognition technology (ACR) is surging — advertisers are thirsting for more data, better targeting, and top-notch reporting. ACR technology, which uses audio and video fingerprints to identify and recognize television content, is poised to provide solutions. But if you choose to leverage this powerful new tool, how can you ensure you’re getting the most out of your ACR campaigns?
What Is Automatic Content Recognition?
As an advertiser, you can use ACR data to leverage data from streaming/CTV content to better understand and target your audiences in a way we haven’t yet been able to do with linear TV data. ACR data is about more than just viewership. Not only can you gauge the highest video completion rates from each network and the top current programming on these networks, but you can also gain audience insights such as app ownership rates, device activity, and the digital interests of each user.
For example, Samsung smart TVs come with ACR measurement capabilities that can gauge viewership. Additionally, their ad retargeting allows companies to reach out to viewers who either spotted or missed their television ads by targeting them through mobile, tablet, or computer screens and over-the-top (OTT) streaming services.
How Does ACR Data Work?
1. Unboxing and consent
ACR launches when someone turns on a Wi-Fi-powered device for the first time and then selects to opt in to audio/video data collection during initial setup.
2. Fragment analysis
Once the user opts in to data collection, the device provider can analyze small fragments of images or sounds from the content they consume over time.
3. Content matching
ACR processes these tiny samples, uploads them to cloud storage, and then cross-references and matches them to existing data.
4. Personalized targeting
As an advertiser, you can link devices together to better reach consumers with the ads they’ll be most interested in. This includes classifying consumers by a variety of characteristics, including their location, language, apps used, TV commercial exposure, device brands and models used, the TV and internet services they subscribe to, and even the games they play.
For example, our partnership with Samsung allows us to craft and utilize example audience segments to better target our advertising, such as our Samsung affinity audiences, which are made up of deterministic “connected life” data, such as viewership and mobile app usage.
Long-Term Benefits of ACR Data
With ACR, you can:
Target specific programs and channels.
By analyzing ACR data, you can identify the TV shows and channels that are most popular among your target audience, aiming for specific programs and channels and increasing the likelihood that the right people will see your ads.
Measure the effectiveness of advertising campaigns.
ACR data can be used to track the TV shows and channels that users watch, which can provide insights into the effectiveness of advertising campaigns. This can help advertisers determine which programs and channels deliver the best results and optimize their campaigns accordingly.
Provide more personalized and relevant ads.
By knowing what TV shows and channels users are watching, advertisers can tailor their ads to be more relevant to the user’s interests and preferences. This can make the ads more engaging, effective, and helpful for advertisers looking to build stronger relationships with their customers.
3 Ways ACR Measurement Technology Can Increase ROI
Overall, ACR technology offers a more holistic ACR measurement of campaigns, helping you better understand audience reach and engagement across linear, CTV, mobile, and desktop campaigns in a single report. But ACR has other benefits to boost ROI, too. With ACR measurement capabilities, you can do the following:
1. Track ads more effectively.
As an advertiser, you’re always looking for more effective ways to measure how your ads are performing. While tracking has come a long way, you don’t have much insight into performance unless you know for certain that the user played and watched the ad. Without this information, you don’t have holistic metrics, and that could lead to inflated data on impressions, completion rates, plays, and more.
ACR technology offers a solution to this problem because it recognizes exactly which content users are playing. This capability ultimately gives you a clearer picture of ad delivery and engagement, allowing you to make more effective advertising decisions.
2. Connect your efforts across linear and digital.
One of the biggest benefits of ACR technology is that it measures across all forms of content that users view on an ACR-enabled TV, both streaming and linear.
You can use this data to understand any overlap between people who watch traditional vs. streaming ads. The data can also help you cap the frequency with which your ad appears so you don’t overspend on the same consumers.
3. Understand the full impact of ads on your audience.
The data you obtain from ACR technology can build profiles of your audience based on the content they view. These profiles can then be tied to an IP address, an email address, or even a street address and used in tandem with other forms of data and existing profiles — such as demographic groups, income levels, or behavioral data — to create an even more holistic view of your audiences.
After all, the more information you have about your audience, the better you can understand their customer journey and which ads are resulting in sales.
Ready to Get Started With ACR?
ACR campaigns can be a powerful tool for advertisers, offering valuable insights into target audiences and allowing the targeting of specific programs and channels. By leveraging ACR technology, you can have a better understanding of the impact your ads have on your audience, leading to improved ROI and stronger relationships with your customers.
If you’re ready to dive into ACR campaigns, reach out to our team at Digilant for help getting started. We will provide the necessary information to build a strategy that is unique to your business, niche, and goals.