It’s apparent that the long-awaited convergence of TV and digital video is happening. From consumer adoption of connected TVs, increasing preference for cross-screen content and decisions from major brands to move ad budgets online, it’s easy to view 2014 as the launch pad for digital video’s rise. The challenge ahead is to fuse the effectiveness of video branding with the efficiencies of digital personalization. The first milestone will – of course – be measurement. The digital video market today primarily measures digital video advertising with the same metrics as traditional TV ads. Even today, in an environment in which digital has proven its power, most online video ads are un-personalized TV spots measured by the TV metrics of reach or gross ratings points (GRP). This approach doesn’t take advantage of today’s more precise measurement techniques. While reach and overall awareness are important, brands can now look directly at performance metrics that drive purchase activities, such as product research, lead generation, in-store foot traffic and offline sales.
