Influencers, or content creators, are your go-to partners for media performance in the digital age Photo Credit: Perfecto Capucine Think quick: I bet you can name your favorite influencer faster than your favorite celebrity endorsement.  The global creator industry is projected to reach some $480 billion in size by 2027, nearly doubling in three years, according to  Goldman Sachs . And just in the US, EMARKETER forecasts influencer marketing to grow 14.2% in 2025 to $9.29 billion—not including paid media amplification or spend outside social media . We all see this trend in our feeds every day! As Exverus Senior Media Planner Lorus Samo explained to AdAge , “Social platforms allow consumers to share products with friends, leave reviews and engage in the process of discovery in a more personal way than clicking Google search links.” And the right creator can do more than just recite your product’s features; they can demonstrate to an audience how  to use your product in real life and instantly show its effects.  For example, when we won a 2024 WARC Effectiveness Award for our work with Premier Protein on Amazon Prime Days , it wasn't for product-based ads listing the ingredients and health benefits. Instead, we partnered with fun, aspirational health influencers that made videos demonstrating how they use Premier Protein in their daily morning routines. This helped the audience visualize themselves using the product and increases the chance of a buy. Let's answer some FAQs about creator marketing in 2025: What's the difference between an influencer and a creator? We often use these terms interchangeably, but there are some subtle differences: Influencers are primarily defined by their ability to influence purchasing decisions and drive audience behavior. Follower count is traditionally the key metric for success. Creators emphasize content quality, storytelling, production value , and longer collaborations. They're usually positioned as experts with specialized skills, rather than merely people with large followings. Creators typically diversify their revenue streams, going beyond product sponsorships to subscriptions, courses, speaking opportunities, or their own product launches. Photo by Anna Nekrashevich How do we identify the right niche creators and local influencers? Bigger isn’t always better. In the past, larger influencers were thought of as better for brand awareness and broad reach, while micro- or nano-influencers were more likely to drive sales conversions for their trustworthiness and relatability. But today, that's not always the case. Algorithmic social feeds are now highly astute at feeding the right content to the right consumer at the right time, making follower count just one of many factors determining placement . The key to identifying the right niche creators for your project is precise targeting based on deep insights about your audience. Establish: Demographics and psychographics Campaign objectives Budget parameters Geographic scope Content format preferences These will help you narrow down your search to make the most of every influencer dollar you spend. Photo by RDNE Stock project Should I hire an influencer marketing agency or use a self-serve platform? This depends upon a few factors like your campaign budget, your in-house manpower, the length and complexity of the campaign, and the level of control and oversight you want to maintain. Agencies are excellent for managing complex or long-term partnerships, especially if you have limited time and resources to do the legwork in-house, but they can cost more. Choosing a self-serve creator marketing platform can be daunting, as the available options are ever-growing. But platforms like CreatorIQ and Captiv8  have been building out their tech capabilities to better automate creator vetting, brand safety management, customer service, and reporting. In short: More budget, less time? Agency. More time, less budget? Platform. Photo by MART PRODUCTION What's the relationship between UGC and creator marketing? User-generated content (UGC) is a highly effective type of content, which can come in the form of photos, videos, reviews, or text created by people, rather than brands. UGC can be: Organic , in which actual customers voluntarily create content for free. This type is the cheapest and most authentic but hard to scale and control. Paid , in which creators make content for a brand's channels that looks like organic UGC. It's cheaper than a full influencer partnership. 93% of marketers report that UGC performs better than branded content, according to Hootsuite . UGC can be integrated into social but also CTV campaigns , with shoppable ad formats  and interactive features for a smooth path to purchase. Organic UGC builds authentic community, UGC creators provide scalable authentic content, and influencers reach new audiences. Most successful brands use all three strategically. Here are 4 basic guidelines for a successful UGC partnership:  1. Run A/B tests to determine which creative messaging resonates best with your audience 2. Create a natural, relatable vibe that feels more entertaining or educational than promotional 3. Use UGC to retarget people who have already interacted with your brand to reinforce trust and push conversions 4. Integrate UGC onto your product detail pages (PDPs) to reinforce trust & drive conversions Photo by Liza Summer How does creator marketing fit into an omnichannel media strategy? Creator content can serve marketing objectives at all levels of the customer journey: Brand awareness & discovery As the Premier Protein example above illustrates, social media channels can be a powerful brand discovery source that displays your products and messaging to a wide audience with broad reach. Purchase consideration Creators can "unbox", review, or give informative tutorials on your products or services Link directly from content to purchase pages through link stickers, tappable buttons, or other interactive features. Creator discount codes & affiliate links drive conversion Repurpose content Exverus recently partnered with ad-tech vendor SeenThis to launch a new ad format called Social Reach , which takes vertical videos (brand-made or creator-made) and places them in premium Display slots across the open web. This allows media teams to repurpose creative assets and extend their reach far beyond social media platforms. It's already beating the efficiency of paid Meta ads by 50%! Social Reach is just one example of repurposing creator content for multiple channels. Other ways include: Linking to YouTube videos from social posts or blog posts Reusing YouTube videos for CTV ads Building earned media coverage around brand/creator partnerships The key is keeping the visual vibe and the messaging consistent. Earned media & organic reach Trade publications like AdAge and Marketing Dive love to report on a good brand/creator collaboration, so leverage it to earn even more publicity for both parties. Planning a PR strategy around your partnership is a cost-efficient way to multiply the impact on awareness and reach. Live, experiential events Think outside the screen! Live, IRL activations with brand reps and creators onsite draw crowds, encourage organic posting, and leave a deeper impact on attendees than a digital ad alone. Get some ideas for experiential marketing activations here. What mistakes should brands avoid when partnering with professional creators? Freebies aren't payment Sending a free product sample is not sufficient payment for a whole day's worth of work packing, commuting, shooting, editing, writing copy, sharing content, and doing internal admin tasks. If you don't have the budget to pay a creator's going rate for a day of labor and supplies, please don't reach out. It's a waste of their time and yours. Let creators do what they do best Don't hire a well-known internet personality and then snuff out their whole personality by making them read your scripts and perform your corporate-speak. Let creators do what made their audience love them in the first place. If you can't relinquish that control, then just hire actors for a traditional commercial. No generic template emails Lia Haberman , social & creator marketing consultant to Fortune 500 brands and author of the popular ICYMI Substack newsletter , advises: Don't send out a generic message. Don't address them as "Dear creator" or use their social handle instead of their name. Take the time to do your research. Make the effort, use their name and some acknowledgment of why they're a good fit for this campaign. Personalize the outreach. I've worked with creators who say they don't want to feel like they're just a cog in the wheel and impersonal pitches are a deal breaker for them. In 2025 and beyond, brands will start looking at influencer marketing as an overall strategy, rather than a silo in their marketing mix. Influencer and creator marketing can elevate, if not lead, every pillar of marketing communication when planned and executed thoughtfully. To learn more about what the right creator partnership could do for your brand, drop us a line ! This piece originally appeared in our weekly Paid Media Insights newsletter. For more tips, research, and analysis; subscribe for free here .

Interactive TV ads collapse the path between entertainment and purchase. With the FIFA Club World Cup, Super Bowl LX, and 2026 Winter Olympics on the horizon, it's no wonder CTV ad spend is projected to grow by 13% this year to $26.6 billion ! 70% of the US population will be a CTV user in 2025. That's truly a can't-miss advertising opportunity for brands. But sophisticated media buyers are looking at ways of measuring sales conversions from CTV investments , not just awareness-related metrics like impressions, reach, and frequency. In the context of omnichannel marketing , advertisers must bridge the gap between the TV ad watch and the point of purchase for the modern shopper. Shoppable CTV ads may be the solution. What is a shoppable CTV ad? Shoppable Connected TV, sometimes referred to as T-Commerce (short for television commerce), is the newest evolution in television advertising, incorporating interactive or transactional features directly into television platform s. In other words, consumers can purchase products directly from a TV ad without ever leaving the couch. Premier Protein lets shoppers buy straight from a QR code to their phones What is an example of T-Commerce? The actual formats can vary: It could be as simple as a call-to-action (CTA) with a text message discount code, or a TV ad could display a QR code to scan and checkout via mobile phone; or a voice-activated command to a smart speaker; or even check out right from the TV Our longtime client and friend, Kristin Rasmussen of Premier Nutrition Company, spoke about this at the May 2025 MediaPost Brand Insider Summit: CPG in Nashville, TN: Kristin Rasmussen of Premier Nutrition Company finds success with shoppable CTV campaigns for her brands Are shoppable CTV ads effective? Data shows...yes! In a recent study by LG , 51% of the 1200 CTV users surveyed said they "wish they could shop online using their TV." Many TV watchers today have their phones closer at hand than their TV remotes. This strategy capitalizes upon the increasing trend of consumers turning to digital platforms for both entertainment and shopping (we see you, TikTok Shop). With T-commerce, consumers can seamlessly explore and purchase products with a simple click while watching their favorite shows. This frictionless experience eliminates traditional barriers between content consumption and commerce, providing consumers with a more simple and enjoyable path-to-purchase journey. Technological advancements such as smart TVs, interactive content overlays, and seamless payment gateways , have played a pivotal role in making T-commerce possible, and all the major TV players want a piece of the pie. Disney, NBCUniversal, Samsung, Paramount, and others have already rolled out shoppable ad features to brand marketers and media agencies. What are the benefits of shoppable CTV ads? The shift from conventional TV commercials to shoppable CTV ads: benefits advertisers in measuring and optimizing campaigns, enhances the viewing experience for consumers, and creates new revenue streams for content creators and streaming platforms T-Commerce relies on data analytics to provide a personalized and curated shopping experience. As consumers engage with shoppable content, their preferences and behaviors are tracked, allowing for targeted product recommendations. Data-driven personalization benefits consumers by presenting them with better offerings, and it helps advertisers improve their inventory and media strategy going forward. Shoppable ads for "The Chosen" by KERV let viewers watch the trailer or buy tickets immediately How do I measure ROI on shoppable CTV ads? Every brand will have different metrics for success, which can depend on things like: price point retail availability consumption habits how target consumers interact with shoppable ads. Our media planners and ad-tech partners listen to each brand's unique objectives, provide insights on what's worked well for similar campaigns in the past, and tailor the advice accordingly. A few methods for measuring ROI in shoppable CTV include: Tracking pixels and unique landing pages: These can help attribute conversions to viewers who have seen your ad. QR Code tracking: Monitor the traffic and conversions generated from QR codes within your shoppable ads. Platform analytics: Utilize analytics tools provided by CTV platforms or integrated with your e-commerce platform (e.g., Google Analytics, Shopify Analytics) to track key metrics and performance.  How do I set up cross-device tracking for shoppable CTV campaigns? Partner with a cross-device vendor.  For example, The Trade Desk uses Identity Alliance  to map connections between users and their devices into a single graph for better frequency management and accurate measurement.  Ad-tech partners like KERV.ai can see both exposure-level data for the ad based on device and any interactor data (various engagement points with the creative) for full transparency. How do I measure across streaming platforms? Most ad-tech platforms have limited relationships with the publishers and streamers, but some (including KERV) have partnerships with all the major streamers and many TV manufacturers for accurate measurement. How do I comply with privacy laws? With the ease and convenience of shoppable TV comes the responsibility of understanding data sharing and privacy . As consumers engage with shoppable content, they need to be mindful of the information they share and the permissions granted to platforms. Contextual targeting ensures relevance and privacy by aligning ads with the content they appear in, rather than consumer identity data. For example, a kitchen gadget brand could appear during an ad break for Top Chef , or an automobile ad could appear during a travel show. Show-level data helps brands appear in front of increasingly relevant audiences without needing to extract data from the consumers themselves. How is AI shaping the future of shoppable CTV ads? AI is the engine driving the contextual targeting and shoppability mentioned above, helping both publishers and brands at the same time. Imagine the ad break in a home remodeling show being a retailer that showcases the exact furniture in the show. Or a paint manufacturer advertising the exact shade of paint in the beautiful home. Imagine ads showing the exact jeans or makeup brand your favorite character was wearing in the last scene.  "What we're building today couldn't be done with traditional CTV. The publishers can make their ad breaks more relevant and their content more powerful to brands. Moving that consumer down the funnel with immediate add-to-cart...that's what's exciting and powerful in the space today." - Mark Corte, VP of Brand & Agency Partnerships, KERV With the expansion of CTV ad formats and interactive capabilities, paired with premium streaming video content and audiences hungry to buy, our programmatic advertising experts predict this space will transform in the next three to five years. Brand clients who are already testing into this will be ahead of the game. This piece originally appeared in our weekly Paid Media Insights newsletter. For more tips, research, and analysis; subscribe for free here .

Why working with professional media planners can be more cost-effective in the long run than hiring one in-house. Photo Credit: Fauxels Brand marketers have to make big decisions every day -- when to launch new products, what the packaging design should look like, who to hire internally and externally. And in 2025, with a potential dip in the economy looming and marketing budgets on the chopping block, you’ve got to balance cost-cutting with ad-spending that keeps sales up!   Just as we saw during the pandemic, the ability to  pivot quickly and eliminate inefficiencies  will be critical for marketing leaders navigating ahead. It would be natural to consider cutting ties with your external partners. After all,  Meta and  Google  are appealing directly to brands, making their buying platforms as user-friendly as possible to eliminate the need for agencies. And generative AI is helping with creative and analytics at record speed. But it's precisely during tough economic periods that you need an experienced, nimble media agency to help. Why?  Because media channels are like ingredients, and agencies are like professional chefs. Anyone with a Facebook or Google account can run ads – but if they don’t have a deep understanding of: what your target consumer’s purchase journey could look like your brand’s voice, personality, and category positioning how multiple marketing channels work together for brand  and  performance why certain campaigns perform better than others …they might as well throw your money against the wall to see if it sticks. Costs of hiring a media agency vs. hiring in-house We know we're a little biased here. So don't take our word for it! Steve Boehler , founding partner at marketing agency consultancy Mercer Island Group , explains: It’s incredibly hard for marketers to staff and maintain an outstanding in-house media capability. Platforms and technology change constantly. Best practices today are different from a month ago. Specialized planning tools are needed to plan across platforms. There is no formal career path for the folks that have hands on keyboards. There is no learning from other agency clients. Staffing your own internal media capability may seem like a cost savings, but it often is not. And the actual performance often lags behind an agency’s capabilities. Bradley Keefer , chief revenue officer at  media mix modeling  platform Keen Decision Systems , agrees: “Independent agencies are uniquely positioned to seize this moment. Lean, adaptive, and hungry, they don’t need to wait for bureaucracy to green-light innovation. They’re already integrating best-in-breed tools, building interoperable stacks that actually work, today.” Before considering hiring any media agency, ask them in the pitch process questions like: What specific expertise do you have in our industry or with similar target demographics? Which team members would be dedicated to our account, and what are their backgrounds? How do you stay current with emerging media trends, platforms, and technologies? What proprietary tools, data sources, or technology platforms do you use? What attribution models do you use to track performance across channels? How frequently do you report on campaign performance, and what does that reporting look like? Do you have preferred partnerships that might benefit our campaigns? How transparent are you about media costs, fees, and any rebates you receive? How media agencies save time and money Long-term growth strategies Economical campaign ideas Transparent pricing models Data-informed reporting & analysis Long-term growth strategies When times are tight, many marketers feel the pressure to close the sale and place a disproportionate emphasis on short-term performance metrics -- that's understandable! But be careful not to lose sight of the long-term brand trajectory. While the immediate ROI metrics can look attractive and seem to reinforce this approach, we caution marketers not to get short-sighted and overlook the importance of long-term brand-building. This mistake is called short-termism , and it must be overcome to ensure brand success. Paid media efficiency isn't about eliminating channels -- it's about reaching new consumers everywhere they discover and building swift, elegant paths to purchase. We go long.  Media planners collect deep audience- and competitive-insights to build a bespoke, full-funnel media strategy that guarantees the most bang for your buck. Economical campaign ideas Exverus lives at the intersection of creativity and technology —where bold media ideas meet cutting-edge execution to drive real business results. In order to remain at the forefront, we strategically partner with advanced ad tech and media platforms to unlock transformative value for our clients. We’re not just using the ad-buying tools Big Tech offers us –  we’re inventing new ones.  In March, we partnered with SeenThis to launch a new ad format called  Social Reach , which splashes brands’ existing social videos across the open web in PubMatic’s premium Display slots. The initial results are astounding: First-to-market brand Premier Protein achieved +3.3MM more completed video views than on Meta at a fraction of the cost — $0.03 cost per completed view (CPCV) vs. $0.06 on Meta in the same 6 weeks, a + 50% improvement in efficiency !  How does Social Reach save so much money?  Guaranteed outcomes due to its CPCV price structure Scalable growth with less investment Zero need for new creative production, just repurposed assets More brands are already preparing to run Social Reach campaigns on the heels of Premier Protein’s early success. Transparent pricing models Exverus is named after the Latin phrase for "from the truth" for a reason! While the holding companies merge into increasingly opaque, profit-blinded conglomerates, mid-sized independent agencies like Exverus only get more transparent, more agile, and more proactively creative for our clients. Holdco agencies often engage in shady transaction practices like principal media buying . Not here! The right media agency partner will only recommend ad buys that will truly move the needle for your brand, based upon precise audience research. Data-informed reporting & analysis Modern, AI-powered measurement and analytics capabilities that were once reserved for the biggest high-rollers are now available to brands of all sizes through your media agency partner. Our in-house programmatic traders and data analysts use platforms like Keen Decision Systems, Resonate, Skai, and DoubleVerify to justify every recommendation with brand safety and suitability for clients’ peace of mind. Again, we're not just reporting today's sales performance -- we're evaluating your whole brand's health to ensure continued growth tomorrow and next year. If you’re curious about what fresh, new recipe our chefs could cook up for you – let’s talk. For more advertising news and tips, join our free weekly Paid Media Insights  newsletter.

While social media platforms can often feel enraging, distracting, or dividing; Pinterest commits to being an oasis of self-expression, discovery, and inspiration. Pinterest is one of the first places we look for fashion ideas, new recipes, design trends, or ways to decorate for a kid's birthday party. But beyond flipping through boards for inspo, it's a highly underrated advertising platform for brands looking to grow. With 570 million monthly active users globally and 98 million in the U.S. [as of May 2025], Pinterest is the second fastest-growing social media platform after Instagram. What's new in Pinterest advertising for 2025? A doom spending gold rush With tariffs forthcoming and portending major price hikes, marketers are in a particularly tough spot, tasked with making difficult decisions about how to keep sales up while consumer sentiment is down. Fortune  reports that many Americans are “doom spending”, or stockpiling essentials like food, personal care items, and home goods  before prices go up. This behavioral trend provides a ripe opportunity for brands to marry performance marketing now  (to get in on the doom spending spree) with brand equity building  (to keep customers returning when they’re in a better spot down the road). Fortunately, some media channels (like Pinterest) are proactively preparing for shaky waters by gathering data and sprucing up their offerings to help advertisers do more with less. AI revamps ad creative, targeting, & tracking Pinterest’s AI-powered Performance+ campaign builder ingests conversion signals, audience signals, creative assets, and objectives to automate ad placements and elevate brand affinity, traffic, and sales on the backend.   Performance+ bundles creative assistance with target ROAS bidding together  for the strongest lower-funnel performance yet. In 2024, Pinterest expanded its Clean Rooms Partnership with LiveRamp , which allows marketers to safely use first-party data for targeted ads without needing to re-share that information with the social platform. LiveRamp’s Authenticated Traffic Solution can now be connected with Pinterest’s API for Conversions. This new solution builds on existing capabilities by creating addressable audiences that can be reached at scale and measured on any channel. This integration makes Pinterest the first platform to invest in both measurement solutions for their advertisers. Finally, Pinterest’s newest offering is a set of visual search  features that let users interact with image Pins to quickly find and shop all the items in a picture. FAQs Why should I advertise on Pinterest? Positivity sells. Pinterest CEO Bill Ready has called out social media as "the new big tobacco," accusing their (faster growing) competitors of utilizing AI in a destructive way, leaving the world "more distracted, more depressed, and more divided." It's an interesting approach, given Pinterest is a social platform itself, but it speaks to the company's dedication to creating a different kind of experience from its rivals -- one that is built around self-expression and discovery. In a 2023 campaign, Pinterest championed the concept "Don't Don't Yourself" to encourage people to break out of their existing habits and routines. This shift to positivity and optimism presents an excellent opportunity for brand safety, something declining in other blue-chip social platforms. Positively viewed platforms can be up to 94% more impactful in driving purchase intent compared to platforms viewed as non-positive. How do I advertise on Pinterest? The media buying process on Pinterest is similar to other digital advertising platforms: Set up a Business Profile for free Establish a campaign objective using Pinterest Ads Manager, like brand awareness, driving web traffic, or converting sales. Define your target audience by demographics, psychographics, location, interest, etc. Creative assets: Choose which Pins to use in your ads, or use the Pin builder to create new ones Set your budget & bidding: Determine your daily or lifetime campaign budget. Then set your bids, which determines how much you pay per click or impression. Create ad groups: Multiple ad groups can target different segments of your audience or display different messaging, each with their own campaign objective, targeting, and budget. Analyze and optimize: Pinterest analytics provides rich insights into campaign performance. Optimize as you go by adjusting your bids, audience, or budget. But don't switch things up too often! Campaigns need sufficient time to gather significant data. How much does it cost to advertise on Pinterest? The cost depends on a number of factors, like: bidding strategy (manual or automated) competitiveness of keywords and industry targeting criteria (broad vs. niche) ad format campaign goals But a typical click-through cost (CPC) ranges from $0.10 to $1.50 per click; while cost per conversion usually ranges from $0.00 to $2.00. A three-year Nielsen study of US and UK food, health/beauty, and home decor campaigns found that Pinterest delivered a 32% higher ROAS than other digital platforms. As advertisers, we find Pinterest's position in the market very compelling. The positive atmosphere, the brand safety, the strong campaign performance, and constantly evolving media buying innovations are a real boon to our clients. To find out what else we’re hearing from Pinterest in agency-exclusive meetings, contact one of our paid social media experts here .   For more advertising news and tips, join our free weekly Paid Media Insights  newsletter.

Search engines are now mid-funnel channels. Learn how consumers really discover brands in 2025 to reach new consumers. Need efficiency in your paid media plan? Save money on lower-funnel media spend by building awareness and demand for your brand among new consumers before they search. What is discovery-driven demand? Consumers, especially of Gen Z, are increasingly discovering brands without actively seeking them in a process that WARC  calls discovery-driven demand. The consumer journey  isn't a straight line anymore—it's a multidimensional, curiosity-driven web shaped by discovery-first platforms. We've found that establishing brand recognition earlier in the journey dramatically reduces the premium you'll pay for bottom-funnel conversions. This upstream approach doesn't just build awareness—it creates efficiency across your entire media investment. Is social media a search engine now? December 2024 data from ForbesAdvisor shows that social media is rapidly overtaking traditional search engines like Google and Bing as the first choice for product and trend discovery among Gen Z and Millennials. Interestingly, only 64% of Gen Z and 35% of millennials use search engines for brand discovery, a significant decline compared to 94% of Baby Boomers. Instead, popular social platforms are becoming primary search tools, with 46% of Gen Z and 35% of millennials preferring them over traditional search engines. A whopping 44% of Gen Z discover new brands on social media daily! Why the shift? Trust and community. Social networks like Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok have given voice to influencers and creators who have credibility with younger generations, which traditional marketing efforts lack. Ads are nice, but it's amazing to have a creator who fits the demographics of your target buyer and talks about your product.   That's why partnerships, influencer marketing, and user-generated content are vital to today's campaigns. Micro and macro communities have been built around these individuals, creating a sense of authenticity and connection  that search engines (and brands) simply can't compete with alone. How else can brands create demand in 2025? Here are a few ideas for reaching new consumers everywhere they’re open to inspiration:  1. Optimize for social-search  and retail-search Apply SEO principles to: Instagram , where captions perform better than hashtags to meet searchers in discovery mode TikTok , which is ripe for expanding reach and influencing viewers, particularly on its For You page and in search results Retail media networks , which can pair shopper data with sponsored recommendations more precisely than ever Exverus’ paid search expert Michael Robbins advises, “Find the long-tail search terms that resonate with your consumers best, and aim to own those key terms. Be specific; don’t take your hands off the wheel, going broad-match or letting the ‘algorithm’ do the work.” CASE STUDY: For Dymatize protein powders, we chose to highlight the brand’s unique flavor offerings (like Fruity Pebbles!) in the creative assets for social and retail media, and in turn, we saw searches for those same flavors spike significantly. Influencer and UGC social content effectively drove Dymatize branded searches 2. Invest in (and repurpose) visually engaging content. TikTok videos, Pinterest  boards, and Social Reach activations pique curiosity and engagement. Pinterest is especially well-suited for reaching people not looking for a particular product but open to inspiration.  And don't just tout a product, build a community. Research suggests that as many as 60% of millennial purchases are driven by FOMO, or Fear of Missing Out. Build the perception that owning a particular product means belonging to a larger community, and young adult customers will loyally align themselves with your brand.   3. Create new paths to purchase. Our award-winning Premier Protein & Dymatize campaign for October 2023 Prime Day did just that. On TikTok  and Instagram, we served up the kind of influencer content our target enjoys to create awareness; nurtured consideration and urgency with TikTok’s interactive features; and attached shoppable links from the social videos directly to the Amazon product pages with excellent deals to follow through with purchase. Learn more below: Start the conversation. To be recommended by AI-driven search , focus less on website click-through and more on product feeds that answer searchers’ natural questions. Engage meaningfully in conversations on Reddit , which trains AI models, as well. Get OOH and IRL. High-impact, out-of-home (OOH) media activations are excellent awareness-builders that drive branded searches.  John Hoover, SVP at NPRP Media , has the proof: “OOH media drives 7x more social engagement and search than any other format. An impressive 48% of people exposed to OOH featuring a celebrity or influencer visit the product or brand’s website afterward.” Case Study: When MasterClass sought Exverus’ help announcing the new talent on their platform (Gordon Ramsay, Serena Williams, Lewis Hamilton, etc.) we partnered with NPRP Media to implement a can’t-miss blend of large-format and digital OOH, paired with social retargeting, in multiple target demo areas. As a result, we saw a 667% boost in MasterClass searches, 47% lift in positive brand sentiment, and a 25% lift in aided brand awareness. The campaign won two Adweek Media Plan of the Year awards! Digital OOH media activations for MasterClass significantly raised branded searches Businesses that rely on traditional search traffic are being left in the dust by generative AI tools and shifting consumer behavior.  To thrive in 2025, don’t wait to be searched for—strategically position your brand where discovery happens organically, creating demand before consumers even know what they're looking for. Ready to rethink your discovery strategy? Let's discuss .  This piece originally appeared in our weekly Paid Media Insights newsletter. For more tips, research, and analysis; subscribe for free here .

Learn how any kind of business can grow amid the digital grocery craze If you’re a food, beverage, or CPG brand, you already know how important it is to reach consumers buying groceries digitally.  But are you fully capitalizing on the expansive opportunities this space offers? A powerful sales converter Grocery e-commerce isn't just growing—it's transforming the entire digital media playing field. In fact, EMARKETER projects that digital grocery sales will account for 19% of all US e-commerce sales in 2026, surpassing apparel and accessories as the largest e-commerce category. But the opportunities here go way  beyond last-click and CPG. Dream bigger! Brands of all types are partnering with grocery retailers to serve their full-funnel marketing objectives; it just takes a bit of creativity (and the right media agency!) A brand marketer's complete guide to retail media buying for sustained business growth Beyond the sale, building long-term relationships Grocery consumers are loyal and consistent , often buying from the same retailer twice per week, so if you invest in building your brand’s equity, you can keep them coming back for years to come.  McKinsey research confirms this trend, finding that 75% of consumers have maintained the same primary grocery retailer throughout the past decade. This loyalty represents an untapped reservoir of lifetime value for brands that can establish themselves in consumers' regular shopping routines. Understanding the grocery ecosystem Food and beverage sales are just one-half of the grocery market.  In 2024, they will account for 51.9% of digital grocery sales, with remaining sales coming from non-food items (pet food, household cleaning products, personal care products, and other household consumables) . This diversification means brands across multiple categories can benefit from grocery e-commerce strategies. The National Retail Federation reports that consumers who purchase groceries online spend an average of 44% more annually than in-store-only shoppers, highlighting the value of these digital customers. And grocery chains offer a growing array of digital advertising and out-of-home opportunities, from in-store audio to in-app ads that can be targeted directly to consumers who frequently buy a competing brand. Learn how we made Premier Nutrition a winner for Best Retail Media Campaign. Here are a few research-backed media campaign ideas to get you started: Grocery e-commerce marketing ideas for brands Plan for click-and-collect  shopping 31% of online shoppers surveyed by the Food Industry Association (FMI) in 2024 preferred to order groceries for curbside pickup, up 4% from 2023, overtaking same-day home delivery. Run brand collabs, sales, or promotions that can be redeemed online on or in-store.  Exverus Media's multichannel sweepstakes for Stella & Chewy's drove in-store traffic and collected zero-party data via mobile. Partner directly with retailers , not just third-party delivery apps While Instacart, UberEats, and other 3P services spiked in popularity during the pandemic, consumers now predominantly place digital orders through the retailers themselves, and that trend is expected to continue through 2026. Catch consumers during pre-shopping Pre-shopping includes creating lists, browsing circulars, visiting retailer websites and mobile apps and utilizing social media and other online resources. This planning phase represents a critical window for influencing purchase decisions before consumers even begin adding items to their carts. Notably, Boomers are the most active pre-shoppers, with nearly 60% engaging in pre-shopping. Our Prime Day media plan won Best Path to Purchase for successfully bridging social media with e-commerce. Non-endemic advertising is a major growth opportunity Retailers are seeking ad revenue from brands they don’t carry in stores. If a shopper buys diapers, for instance, there’s a good chance they’ll also be in the market for baby products that a grocery chain doesn’t carry, like baby clothes. Albertson’s has partnered with Rokt to offer shoppers deals on Hulu, Uber, Ticketmaster, and more. Take advantage of Walmart Connect ’s robust offerings Walmart’s retail media network has built an impressive offering for brands beyond retail-search. It now includes the offsite Walmart DSP in partnership with The Trade Desk, integrations with Social platforms and CTV inventory, Display ads  in the shopping app, and data clean rooms for deeper reporting insights.  Fun fact: Exverus is now a Walmart Connect Premium Partner! This gives us exclusive access to more growth opportunities for our clients. Let’s learn more about how your  audience likes to shop so you’ll be top of their list.

Exverus VP of Media Planning & Strategy Tasha Day spoke on the Screen & Sponsor podcast about the omnichannel media strategy for TV's smash hit “The Chosen”. An excerpt of their conversation is below. Listen on Spotify | Apple Podcast S&S: I'd love to hear about the different channels that Exverus is hitting with this and what inspired you to go with those particular mediums. T: We like to look at everything. As I mentioned, at Exverus we're believers in a full funnel strategy; that awareness is just as important (it’s critical) to drive conversion results (ticket sales, merchandise sales, etc.) And so we have a varied media mix that we employ to drive results for “The Chosen”, which includes:  For our ongoing merch plan, it's everything from Video and YouTube, where we know we can target not only faith-based content but other history content and things that resonate with the kind of viewers who would be interested in “The Chosen”.  For our upcoming campaign, for example, for the release of Season Five, this is gonna be next-level because we know we really need to make a splash. And so we've got tons of tentpole activations from:  Times Square Out-of-Home March Madness lots of high-impact CTV that connects directly to ticket sales through a QR code Display: We'll be retargeting people who were exposed to our CTV in the first week and then letting them know: Part Two is gonna be coming out this weekend; Part three is coming out the next weekend. Paid Search to capture interest in all the demand we're creating as a result of featuring "The Chosen" in these super cool Out-of-Home wallscapes and taking over Times Square.  It's gonna be really exciting! "We're creating a moment for 'The Chosen' this year." Shoppable CTV Ads: Are Consumers Ready for T-Commerce? And then, since you brought up the app, we've seen tremendous results driving app downloads for "The Chosen". In fact, in three months, we helped drive an additional million downloads, so they've got over 5 million now. And [we’re] using Display and Search placements in Apple to drive serious web traffic; we saw over +211% increase in where-to-watch web traffic, which would lead people to download the app, so they could watch previous seasons of “The Chosen” for free.  That's the great thing about “The Chosen”, is that they want to make it accessible to everybody regardless of where they live or what language they speak . So it's available in 600 languages, and we also support the effort globally. We have media buys – YouTube, for example, in 20 international markets pushing viewership through the app so that people know that it is available to everyone. It's available for free, so they can join the community and get excited about what really is a very emotional drama that's really fun to watch. S&S: Of course, this is a special instance, but as you're talking, I'm just thinking to myself: It's almost like a DTC play, because you and the filmmakers are managing this full-funnel experience for everyone. And if you're working, I assume, with a traditional distributor, then maybe there are more stipulations about how you might approach something like that, which will be a question for another time! But it's just something that came to mind as you were talking – perhaps this is a new way we're gonna start seeing things get made and then supported by agencies. T: Absolutely. And it's exciting to be part of this unconventional way of bringing entertainment and content to people. I do think it very much could be the way of the future. I mean, it's shifting from traditional studios to really making it about what the fans want, and they're showing (or they're proving )   that they want it by investing in it. The series has been available on multiple streaming partners in the past, and they're consolidating this year. I don't know if I'm at liberty to share quite yet who that one streaming partner is gonna be, but it is a big one! Just the fact that the streaming partners were competing  to be able to have the rights to stream all the seasons and this new one, shows what kind of demand and interest there is in the show.  We're super stoked about this year, as well as the fact that there's gonna be coming theatrical events that are even bigger. Because what happens after “The Last Supper” is the series of events that happen in the story, between the crucifixion and the resurrection…there's so much story to tell. It's really exciting to be a part of it. S&S: I am kind of curious. What challenges do you guys face? I imagine being crowdfunded that, sometimes you guys have to maybe pull back budget or things like that? Or is it because you guys have the nonprofit? Does it come in pretty well? Is your budget pretty consistent?  T: No. Actually, it has not been. One of the biggest challenges that we faced initially and that we've been communicating and working with “The Chosen” – and they've been great partners, they see us as experts and true partners, and they listen to what we have to say – is coming in, knowing what it really takes to break through for theatrical release, because it is competitive. And with declining movie attendance as it is, plus many features coming out on the same weekend, it's gonna be really challenging to make an impact, with $3MM nationally. I mean, that's just pennies when you're talking about a theatrical release.  And so over the past year, we have had many, many conversations and shared much data to prove how an increased investment would benefit them in terms of reach and frequency, media best practices, and principles we'd be meeting that would set them up for success to help them reach their theatrical ticket goals and their merchandise sales goals. It has very much been an education along the way, both for us and for them as our partnership has grown, to prove why more investment was actually going to help them unlock their business goal success. So, their investments are up much more – 4x [higher] this year than they were last year. So it is working, and we have a ton of faith that all of that media and increased media investment is going to make the impact that they need to keep the show going.  S&S: I imagine that you guys have to spend a lot of time figuring out the lifetime value of a crowdfunded project. Right? Are they sticking around and then also buying the merch and how you guys are able to benefit from that? I'm curious, what are you guys' main KPIs? I guess you have the app installs, the viewership, and (I imagine) return on investment, but I'm just curious.  T: Yeah, it does vary by initiative. For the theatrical piece, they've done a lot of research; they actually have really smart research people on their end who formerly worked at Disney. And their goal for this theatrical release is to increase their awareness, because through research, they realized that was one of the biggest barriers to getting people to actually attend subsequent theatrical releases. Nobody knew that there was a release one weekend, and then two weekends later, they were gonna release the next couple of episodes in theater. So, we have an awareness increase: a hard number that they want to reach, say, they wanna get to a 55% awareness [goal] with this campaign, which I totally think we can do, especially because we've done the work, and we know what our media plan will get them.  But then also, in tandem with that is ticket sales. They have ticket sales KPIs . They've got numbers that they have to meet. And so, we're connecting the pipes on the back end and implementing things like I mentioned, like the QR code that will lead to ticket purchase on our CTV so that we can track ticket activity on our end so that we can monitor how well the media plan is delivering against those ticket sales goals.  Of course, merch is a really interesting one, and we've done some really, really cool things there because merch was all about a revenue increase goal. And so, we have done a lot of work connecting the pipes on the back end between their Shopify accounts and our dashboards and data and implementing multi-touch attribution that attributes how much merchandise sales each channel is providing – how much CTV, for example, or how much Search is contributing to the revenue goals. We've learned so much about the different multi-touch attribution models there are between algorithmic and linear. And I know it seems like I'm seeking a different language, but it's been super interesting to put such concrete results against our media plans for merch.  S&S: Well, I think it's interesting too. You always hear of media agencies that wind up helping their clients actually discover new target audiences . I talked to some folks at some point that said, We didn't realize that our home security camera could be interesting for fish owners who wanted to watch their fish while they were gone. So just funny things like that. But it seems like there's an opportunity with all this data and analytics to really go deep for them and then bring them insights that maybe they didn't even know. T:  Absolutely. And that's another one of our goals for this year's campaign is that they identified some areas where we can beef up viewership even against women, which might seem counterintuitive, but the majority of viewership comes in through men who bring it to their family. And so, one of the goals is: How can we find the right insights to connect with women so that we're getting women to also start the viewership chain and bring it into their home? Of course, the a-ha  moments come not only with research upfront but as we activate the campaign and look at performance. That's going to be a particular focus this year, is to figure out how can we really connect with women and then optimize our plans so that we're speaking to them in a way that then fuels word-of-mouth or it grows the fanbase with women specifically.  S&S: Awesome. Well, thank you so much, Tasha, for sharing all of these insights. I feel like I learned quite a bit about the process of marketing a series. So really appreciate having you on, and until next time.  T: Thanks so much for having me. This has been really fun. For more advertising news and tips, join our free, weekly Paid Media Insights  newsletter.

A scientific approach to measuring paid media's impact on actual business growth It's 2025 -- we've all moved beyond the tired brand vs. performance debate, correct? And we understand the importance of brand as an indicator of sustained business growth . But the challenge remains: how do we effectively measure brand outcomes for upper-funnel paid media campaigns? The Challenge of Measuring Brand Common brand metrics include: awareness favorability perceived quality, and advocacy These metrics are inherently challenging to measure because they require either: Direct consumer feedback  through surveys, panels, or focus groups; or Indirect behavioral indicators  such as branded search volume or social listening tools There's no perfect solution! At Exverus, we prefer taking a scientific approach through brand lift studies. Understanding Brand Lift Studies A brand lift study measures an advertising campaign's impact on brand awareness and favorability. Brand lift studies use a test-and-control methodology, comparing a test group (people exposed to the ads) against a control group (people not exposed to the ads but otherwise similar). This approach offers significant advantages: It controls for external factors that might impact brand perception, such as negative press or viral content Unlike brand search trends or social listening, it specifically accounts for media exposure, allowing us to isolate the impact of marketing campaigns Brand Lift Studies: FAQs for CMOs How much does a brand lift study cost? Brand lift studies vary in cost: they may be added-value on some ad platforms and with some media partners with minimum media spend, or from about $30K for simple digital only studies to over $150K for complex multi-channel studies. Google Ads ,   Amazon Ads , and   Meta  offer free brand lift studies to advertisers who spend above a certain threshold and achieve a certain impression threshold to ensure enough data for a statistically significant result.  The main disadvantage of these studies is the inability to account for exposure to ads from your campaign that are running on other channels that can potentially contaminate results. Research partners like Nielsen or DISQO can measure incremental brand lift across many media channels holistically ( CTV ,   digital audio ,   out-of-home ,   radio , you name it!) This can give your team a more complete idea of how exposures to your ad connect with real-life consumer sentiment. It’s usually less costly to run studies for online channels where ads can be tagged and more expensive to measure offline channels such as TV or out-of-home. Long campaign flights, interim reports, online dashboards, and larger samples needed to break out results in more detail are all factors that can add to the cost of a study. What's the minimum budget needed to run a brand lift study? Again, it depends upon the platform and the question(s) you're trying to answer. Below are the requirements for added values studies on a couple of popular ad platforms: LinkedIn Ads provides free Brand Lift Testing for campaigns spending at least: $60K to answer one brand metric $90K to answer two brand metrics Meanwhile, YouTube brand lift studies need only: $3,500 in the first seven days of the campaign for one metric $5,000 in the first seven days of the campaign for two metrics How large does my brand lift study sample size need to be for reliable results? This question is complicated because the answer can vary so widely and depend upon many considerations. We've seen sample sizes as low as 30, whereas Google recommends 2,000-5,000 responses per question in both the control and test groups for each lift metric. If you need multiple breakouts, such as by audiences or creatives, you'll need a large overall sample size to have enough data for each. Source: Google DV360 Help How do I know who saw my ad? Tracking ad exposure typically involves placing pixels on creative assets to digitally monitor viewership. However, this approach isn't feasible across all channels: Many social media platforms restrict this tracking capability Traditional channels like TV, radio, and out-of-home don't support digital tracking The common alternative is an opportunity to see (OTS) methodology , where survey respondents' reported media consumption is matched against media placement timing. In our experience, OTS works well for certain channels like TV or radio but yields inconsistent results for others like social media. The methodology assumes test and control groups are identical except for ad exposure. We attempt to ensure this through sample matching  based on demographics, geography, or online behaviors—but no two samples are 100% alike! The goal is similarity, not perfection. And beware of cross-channel contamination : Modern consumers fluidly move between mobile, video, and TV multiple times daily, making channel-level impact testing challenging. When we're trying to compare ad-exposed versus non-exposed individuals, channel-level  brand impact testing can be contaminated with other ad exposures. How do I connect brand lift metrics to business outcomes? A few ways: Mid-funnel metrics like web traffic, customer acquisition rates, and customer acquisition cost (CAC). The more you invest in your brand, the lower your CAC should be. Marketing mix modeling (or media mix modeling) aggregates many sources of data to provide a comprehensive, full-funnel understanding of how different marketing channels contribute to overall business growth. AI-powered predictive analytics tools model different scenarios to help us choose the right course. Loyalty indicators like customer retention, online reviews, referrals, and consistent price premium. Your brand is strong if consumers think of you long after they've made a first purchase. The Importance of Data Integration Scientific measurement can be complex and messy sometimes . That's why we recommend integrating multiple data sources to corroborate brand lift results. For example, if your study shows no significant lift from advertising, but your searches and sales show substantial increases, you have good reason to believe your campaign was effective despite the study results. The Exverus Approach When making complex decisions about advertising strategy or evaluating campaign performance, we believe in considering multiple information sources and leveraging expert analysis. Our director of data analytics, Charles Lai, leads a team of seasoned statistics experts who can glean the strongest possible insights for your brand. Learn more about brand lift measurement from Charles below:

Sports podcasts are quickly becoming key players on the field, drawing in avid sports fans from across generations and providing a fertile ground for ad buying. Whether it's Super Bowl season, World Cup, March Madness, or the Olympics; there's always a buzz around sports with dedicated viewers and loyal supporters. But beyond just watching and chatting about last night's game around the water cooler (virtual or IRL), sports fans are interacting with their favorite teams and athletes in a whole new way - through podcasts.   Sports podcasts are quickly becoming key players on the field, drawing in avid sports fans from across generations and providing a fertile ground for ad buying. A recent study by SiriusXM Media , GroupM, and Edison Research revealed that an impressive 64% of self-identified sports fans regularly tune in to sports audio content! And, sports podcasts are the leading audio format among Gen Z fans, presenting an exciting opportunity to reach this demographic. Why advertise on sports podcasts? Built-in consumer trust According to the aforementioned study, the majority of sports fans (67%) trust the products and services used by their favorite athletes , and a similar proportion (64%) extend this trust to products and services endorsed by sports announcers or commentators. This level of confidence can significantly impact brand perception and loyalty . Programmatic audio ad buying Many sports podcasts can be bought programmatically, or through automated bidding platforms. Programmatic audio offers advertisers the same broad reach, precise audience data, contextual targeting, and valuable campaign measurements as CTV or streaming radio. Sonic branding opportunities Audio ads generally provide brands with outstanding opportunities to convey their tone, message, values, and brand identity to listeners already in a receptive mindset. Strategically placed jingles or voiceovers by trusted influencers can evoke a deeper emotional resonance in a listener and ensure higher brand recall than a static visual ad. Photo by KoolShooters What are the top sports podcasts? The appeal of sports podcasts extends beyond the four major men's leagues. Women's sports are finally getting the attention and investment they've long deserved, with the WNBA breaking viewership records , and podcasts are playing a crucial role in bridging the gap for fans. Shows like The Re-Cap Show by soccer stars Christen Press and Tobin Heath are capturing the attention of a growing audience, especially among younger demographics. According to Feedspot , the most influential US sports podcasts in 2024 are: 1. Pardon My Take by Barstool Sports 2. The Bill Simmons Podcast by The Ringer 3. The Ryen Russillo Podcast by The Ringer 4. Cover 3 College Football by CBS 5. Crime in Sports by Wondery, and 6. (of course) ESPN Daily! The data is clear: sports podcasts are not just a passing trend; they are a powerful tool for reaching and engaging target audiences. However, simply buying ad space is not enough. Brands need to leverage these platforms creatively to connect with listeners and maximize their return on investment (ROI). How best to advertise on sports podcasts Branded content One effective strategy is to create custom content that aligns with a brand's values and messaging. This could involve producing original podcasts, sponsoring specific segments, or collaborating with athletes or commentators . By providing valuable and entertaining content, brands can build a loyal following and generate positive brand awareness. Athlete endorsements Partnering with athletes idolized by a brand's target audience can enhance credibility and drive engagement . Athletes' influence can be particularly powerful in reaching younger demographics and niche markets. Multi-channel messaging Brands can leverage the power of social media to expand their sports podcast initiatives. By sharing clips, behind-the-scenes content, and engaging with fans on platforms like Twitter and Instagram, brands can extend their reach and foster a sense of community. In conclusion, sports podcasts offer a unique opportunity for brands to connect with a passionate and engaged audience. By understanding the preferences of sports fans, leveraging athlete endorsements, and creating valuable content, brands can effectively utilize these platforms to achieve their marketing goals. As the popularity of sports podcasts continues to grow, it is essential for brands to stay ahead of the curve and capitalize on this exciting new medium.   For more media buying news and tips, subscribe to our weekly Paid Media Insights  newsletter.

New Creative Format Engages Audiences Across PubMatic’s Premium Supply Imagine you’re perusing various websites on your phone. Instead of the usual square, static or video ads around the content, you see vertical video ads like on TikTok or Reels. SeenThis today announced a partnership with Exverus to power their Social Reach product with its streaming vertical video technology. Premier Protein is the first client to run this new product. SeenThis’ new ad format brings the engagement of social ads to the open web, delivering with lightning fast speed using adaptive streaming technology. With SeenThis, Exverus combines the creativity and mobile-first design of social media ad formats with the power of targeted advertising at scale on premium content environments for their clients. SeenThis and Exverus are partnered with PubMatic to deliver Social Reach across their premium supply. "This year, we’re doubling down on sweetening the journey. New flavors, new products and new creative, all speaking to our strategic positioning,” said Kristin Rasmussen, Associate Director, Integrated Marketing, Premier Protein. “With the help of SeenThis and PubMatic, we’re able to spread the joy and encourage even more protein-users to join the party with amplified distribution of social content via high-performing video experiences.” “Social Reach powered by SeenThis streaming vertical video gives us access to new environments to deliver social creative to audiences beyond the social walled-gardens. This represents the next generation of much needed social extension. SeenThis’ adaptive streaming technology takes existing social assets and delivers them more efficiently than standard social formats via targeted inventory from PubMatic across the open web,” said Hillary Kupferberg, VP Performance Marketing at Exverus. The groundbreaking campaign brings the first to market vertical video ad format to the open web and improves upon it with high-quality streaming delivery and premium placements in brand-safe environments. Social Reach powered by SeenThis vertical video ads can deliver in standard display ad slots, giving brands the ability to scale their campaigns across more of the open web and reach their audiences in new ways. “SeenThis gives advertisers the opportunity to reinvent their approach to display advertising, delivering high quality vertical social video in standard IAB ad slots. With lightning-fast load times and creative formats that fit the vertical experience of a smartphone, we are unlocking new levels of performance for advertisers,” said Susan Kravitz, Head of Commercial Partnerships at SeenThis. About SeenThis Since 2017, SeenThis has been evolving screen experiences for everyone, everywhere. With its groundbreaking adaptive streaming technology, SeenThis is transforming the distribution and climate impact of digital content compared to traditional technology. With billions of streams served for 5000+ brands in 50+ countries, the company is on a journey to reshape the internet – for good. Working across seven offices globally, SeenThis employees are obsessed with creating a truly high-speed and energy-efficient Internet. For more information, visit seenthis.co. About Exverus Media Founded in 2014, Exverus is a Los Angeles-headquartered media agency elevating growth-stage brands through full-funnel media planning, traditional and programmatic advertising, retail media & e-commerce, paid search, paid social, and analytics. Our data-driven media plans combine precise market research with creative ideas to confidently allocate every ad dollar for the maximum return. Named for the Latin phrase "from the truth", Exverus is dedicated to transparency and long-term client trust. Learn more at exverus.com. For press queries, contact Michelle Andrade michelle.andrade@exverus.com

5 ways the top brands stay evergreen and top-of-mind What is seasonal variation? Advantages and disadvantages of seasonal patterns 5 ways to overcome seasonality in marketing Expand product offerings Market repositioning Subscription models Live experiences Plan ahead What is seasonal variation? Flowers for Mother's Day, new cars for Christmas, costumes for Halloween -- some products really sprout with their season, right? Seasonality is an important consideration for marketers in terms of predicting demand, planning sales, and measuring campaigns. But major fluctuations in cash flow can make it difficult to plan and sustain the business’s finances throughout the year. And consumers can easily forget about your brand during off-seasons, undoing all the hard work you’ve put into building your brand equity already! So some brands are working to make their product sales less seasonal and more evergreen to keep the growth steady all year long. This is called a seasonality strategy . Source: FasterCapital Advantages and disadvantages of seasonal patterns Advantages Built-in consumer demand Plenty of time to plan a campaign Excellent customer acquisition opportunities Disadvantages Instability of cash flow More competition = higher overhead Risk of too much leftover product Whether you want to smooth out the fluctuations in your sales throughout the year or just weather the ups and downs more efficiently, a few similar guidelines can help.  Deep market research into your target audience segmented by location, demographics, and media consumption habits  is crucial to understanding your consumers’ needs and meeting them without wasting ad spend.  Here are a few ideas from top brands you could employ to mitigate the impact of seasonal cycles on your business! 5 ways to overcome seasonality in marketing Expand product offerings UGG ,   known for its wintery fur boots, has launched a new line of sandals and Mary Janes for spring with a global ad campaign called   Big Spring Energy , featuring popular musicians enjoying fun in the sun.  Canada Goose  clothing (another winter staple) is adding T-shirts, rain boots, and polos to its repertoire of heavy parkas to catch outdoor adventurers all year long.  Market repositioning Expanding product offerings isn't the only way to reduce seasonal patterns. Le Creuset promotes their high-end Dutch ovens for summer barbecues as well as winter stews, expanding the perceived utility of their existing product line. This approach offers several advantages over product diversification: Lower investment costs (no new product development required) Maintains brand focus and identity Leverages existing manufacturing capabilities Builds additional value into products customers already recognize Strengthens the core brand proposition of versatility and quality Subscription models Setting up steady revenue streams, as FabFitFun and Dollar Shave Club have masterfully demonstrated with their monthly delivery boxes, saves money and automates loyalty. These brands didn't just create subscription boxes; they fundamentally changed the way consumers interact with their categories, delivering some serious benefits to their business goals, like: Predictable cash flow. By generating consistent revenue, companies can forecast with confidence, managing inventory and staffing needs with surgical precision throughout the year. Frictionless ordering. Subscription club members don’t have to decide or remember to re-order products each month – products simply arrive on schedule, creating an “always-on” relationship that transcends the calendar.  Lower acquisition costs. Rather than repeatedly spending to attract customers during peak seasons, subscription-based companies invest in retention strategies that maintain value year-round—a much more efficient approach to sustainable growth. 4. Live experiences  Build immersive,   experiential activations  that let customers (current and future) see, touch, and feel the brand in a memorable way. These tentpole events help you  set the pace of growth, not the weather.  “Pre-market testing can help brands fine-tune in-store activations to make a real impact. By testing designs, messaging, and displays in advance, brands can be sure they’re creating experiences that genuinely engage and resonate with consumers beyond the usual seasonal rush.” - EMARKETER 5. Use consumer behavioral data to plan ahead While some fluctuation of sales throughout the year is inevitable, your business isn't beholden to them. Gather historical data and analyze search keyword trends to anticipate highs and lows well in advance, so your audience already has you in mind (and not your competitor!) when the rush comes. Conduct competitive analyses , too, so you know which media channels your competitors are running on, and find the untapped whitespace.  For example, when media planning for Amazon Prime Day or Prime Big Deals Day, our Premier Protein team knows the category giants will load up on Amazon Ads. So, instead of wasting ad dollars trying to compete, they start elsewhere for brand discovery (like clickable social ads or Reddit threads) and build a clear path to the Amazon product pages. It really works! Exverus is now offering more predictive keyword insights through our proprietary tools. Reach out to us if you'd like to conduct these analyses for assessing opportunities and outsmarting your competition, no matter the season. Plan ahead with   long-term media strategies  in mind so your brand can thrive, rain or shine.

As the agency celebrates a decade in business, we look back at how the industry's changed. Get out the cake and candles because, in January 2024, Exverus Media celebrates 10 years in business! 🥳 William Durrant, Talia Arnold, and Jack Win founded Exverus in 2014 with a shared vision for the type of agency they wanted to work for. Fed up and burnt out from a decade each of grinding for ad agencies that put profit before people, the founding Exverians built a new kind of agency: one in which people could have families without hindering their careers, sleep 8 hours a night and take real breaks, see women and people of color in leadership positions, feel good about the deals they’re signing with clients. Named for the Latin phrase "from the truth", Exverus dedicates itself to transparency and long-term client trust. Our omnichannel media plans combine market research data with creative ideas to confidently allocate every ad dollar for the maximum return. Over the last decade, Exverus has served Fortune 500 companies like CLIF bar, Coca-Cola, Post, and MasterClass. Our specialty is sustainable, wellness brands like Premier Protein, Stella & Chewy's , New Belgium & Bell's Brewery. We’ve taken the Clean Creatives Pledge to never work with fossil fuel companies, and we’re proud of what we put into the world. In that time, we've won numerous industry awards, including: 2x Ad Age Small Agency of the Year: Media 2x Ad Age Media Planner of the Year 6x Adweek Media Plan of the Year 3x CANNES Lions Shortlist LA Times' Best Workplaces in SoCal 2023 But the advertising industry has changed dramatically from 2014 to 2024. Here are just a few of the ways things have changed, according to our executives: “While it's true that the more things change the more they stay the same, remote work has been an important change that's opened us up to new talent across the country.”  - Bill Durrant , President & Founder “We've only begun to scratch the surface of what AI  can do, but it's already made such a huge impact on every aspect of our work. It has revolutionized traditional processes and shifted our approach to all facets of problem-solving, strategy, and even operational efficiency.”  - Jack Win, Head of Operations & Cofounder “The evolution of consumer privacy : this has included the introduction of new regulations such as GDPR, the growing global regulatory landscape, and the need for brands and companies to take a proactive stance on privacy all due to the rapid growth of social media, digital transactions, and digital marketing in the last several years.”  - Melissa Andraos , SVP of Media Strategy “Targeting consumers based on programmatic audience data  vs placing ads in context: there used to be way more emphasis on making a creative connection between ads and the environment across TV, print, and site direct partnerships. Now, more ads are placed in feed vs in context.”  Tasha Day , VP of Media Strategy At Exverus Media, we pride ourselves on spearheading industry changes and technological evolutions to provide our clients with the most up-to-date best practices. Congratulations to all of our employees on ten years, and big thanks to everyone who has supported us along the way. Here's to ten more! 🥂