Why Small Businesses Need Programmatic Advertising

May 24, 2024

As a business owner, you know how crucial it is to get your marketing messages in front of the right audience at the right time. With limited budgets and resources, small businesses can’t afford to waste ad spend on impressions that don’t convert. That’s where programmatic advertising comes in.

What is Programmatic Advertising?

Programmatic advertising is the automated buying and selling of digital ad inventory through an automated bidding system. It allows marketers to target very specific audiences based on data insights, rather than spraying ads across websites and apps.

Programmatic uses artificial intelligence and real-time bidding to identify the most relevant websites, mobile apps, video channels, and other digital inventory sources to serve ads to for each campaign goal. Major programmatic ad platforms like the Google Ad Network and StackAdapt enable this data-driven audience targeting and media buying through automated auctions.

This precision targeting means your ad dollars go much farther in reaching your ideal customers on the right channels and inventory sources. At Imagine This, we believe in full transparency – we never hide your media costs in our fees. You’ll always know exactly what you’re paying for media purchased through platforms like these.

Why Programmatic is a Must for Small Businesses:

1. Precise Audience Targeting

With programmatic, you can laser-focus your ads on users who match your target customer demographics, locations, interests, purchase intent signals, and more. No more wasted impressions on irrelevant audiences.

Example: Through the Google Ad Network, a local plumbing company can serve ads only to homeowners in their regional area searching for plumbing services.

2. Real-Time Optimization

Programmatic leverages AI and machine learning to automatically optimize ad delivery for best performance as the campaign runs. The system analyzes data and constantly adjusts targeting for maximum ROI.

Example: If StackAdapt campaign data shows ads are performing better on parenting blogs vs. news sites, it will automatically shift more spend towards the higher-performing parenting inventory.

3. Increased Reach

By tapping into programmatic platforms like the Google Ad Network and StackAdapt, small businesses can access thousands of websites, apps, video channels and other digital inventory sources all in one place. This expansive pool of ad inventory boosts reach exponentially.

Example: A mom-and-pop bike shop can affordably display banner ads across hundreds of sports, outdoor, and cycling content sites their audience frequents through Google Ad Manager.

4. Cost Efficiency

The automated, data-driven bidding process helps stretch your ad budget much farther. Plus, programmatic cuts out manual processes and middlemen fees associated with traditional ad buying.

Example: Machine-based bidding on StackAdapt optimizes when and where to serve each impression for the lowest cost, so every marketing dollar goes further.

5. In-Depth Analytics

Programmatic provides rich data and transparent insights to measure your campaign’s true impact across all touchpoints. This allows you to double down on what works and pivot from tactics that don’t.

Example: The Google Ad Network’s detailed reporting quantifies how many store visits or website purchases resulted from different audience segments and creative messaging.

6. Transparency with ITMG

One key advantage of working with Imagine This on your programmatic advertising is our commitment to fully transparent pricing. Unlike some agencies that bundle their fees into your media costs, we always separate our service fees from your working media budget. This way, you know exactly what you’re paying for ad inventory purchased through platforms like Google and StackAdapt.

Example: For a $1,000 per month ad spend, your monthly reporting will show the detailed placements across websites, apps, and channels that comprised the $1,000 media buy. Our ITMG service fees for campaign management, insights, and optimizations are listed separately.

With Imagine This, you can trust you’re getting full visibility into your media dollars at work. Our specialty is driving maximum impact through skilled targeting, not pricing games. Our interests are fully aligned with stretching your budget as far as possible.

In today’s crowded digital landscape, every small business needs to maximize its marketing impact and budget. Programmatic advertising provides the precision, reach, efficiency, and analytics-savvy businesses require to stay ahead.

Reach out to us today to learn how your business can leverage Programmatic Advertising.