By Jonathan Baker, with Insights from Angela Mertz, VP of Integrated Media at EGC Many people are familiar with Amazon Ads. which offers online promotion opportunities for businesses, sellers, and vendors of all kinds. Many people are also familiar with Roku, the well-known brand famous for streaming services. What many people may not be familiar with is the partnership these two iconic brand have just formed. A Near Perfect Partnership and Perfect Timing The Amazon Ads/Roku partnership is, to quote Deadline, a “milestone.” The plan is to provide media buyers with access to more than 80 percent of connected television (CTV)-equipped households throughout the United States. Considering the rapid shift among consumers who are choosing CTV, the timing of this partnership could not have been better. How will this operation work? Amazon Ads and Roku in Motion The demand-side platform (DSP) of Amazon allows advertisers to purchase ad space. By leveraging the Amazon DSP, streaming services—particularly Roku and Amazon’s Fire TV—will serve ads to the many CTV users across the country. Early trials of this setup have been encouraging. As explained in Deadline, placed ads were see by 40 percent of more unique viewers—and with no added cost to the buyer. Complementing this result was a reduced frequency of 30 percent in instances where ads were delivered to the same viewer. These results demonstrate stronger relevancy and better efficiency—which is one reason behind this partnership. A New Era in Advertising? As summed up in Roku Newsroom, the goal of this alliance is to improve ad targeting, measurement, and overall efficiency by combining the strengths of both platforms via CTV. As impressive and game changing as this partnership seems, wide-ranging impact remains to be seen. The Amazon Ads/Roku offering is scheduled to reach the market by the fourth quarter of this year. Until then, marketers and advertisers will have questions along with their anticipation of the launch. Is a new—and profitable—era in advertising on the horizon? Takeaway Angela Mertz, EGC’s VP of Integrated Media, offered her opinion on this powerful partnership, as well as words of caution: The new Amazon/Roku alliance opens up huge CTV reach with better efficiency and targeting across top-tier content. It’s a smart move for advertisers looking to stretch their budgets and drive performance, but it’s worth keeping an eye on data practices, pricing shifts, and how the partnership evolves. Is your brand’s video presence truly as visible as it could be? The EGC Group can help strengthen if visibility in everything from video content creation to strategically effective media placement. Reach out to learn more about our services in video, marketing—and everything else.
