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Nov 22, 2017 5:55:30 PM

How To Build A Successful Video Ad Strategy

Video is quickly emerging as the best way to connect with your consumers - wherever they might come from. Between the automatic video playback on mobile social feeds and the 2.08 billion smartphone users around the world, an effective video ad strategy can be the easiest way to take your business to the next level.

Although establishing your own video ad strategy can sound like an intimidating concept, particularly if you don't have a large production budget to play around with, the good news is that video advertising doesn't have to be something that breaks the bank. In fact, it's not so much about the money you spend, but the steps that you use to make your video stand out. Here, we'll look at just some of the ways that you can improve your chances of building a successful video ad strategy.

1. Focus on the Story, Rather than the Sale

You need to find a way of connecting with your audience through video that's not too overly-promotional. The great thing about video is that it's the perfect platform for having an emotional impact on your audience. With the right use of imagery and sound, you can appeal to customers in a way that's not possible with blogs and articles. You can always add a call to action to the mix to make sure you're still sending leads in the right direction.

2. Be Interesting!

No matter what format your content comes in online, it's important to make sure that you're producing something engaging and entertaining. Think of ways that you can delight your audience by making them laugh, smile, or think more deeply about a certain topic. In some cases, you might even want to try being controversial and approaching an idea from an alternative perspective.

In the world of video, it can be useful to take risks and seem "edgy" from time to time, but it's important to make sure that you're not pushing your chances. Read your audience carefully and figure out what they might be offended by before you take a chance.

3. Start off Strong

Statistics show that about one fifth of your viewers will click away from your video within about ten seconds. That's why it's so important to get to the point and grab their attention as quickly as possible. Outline what you're going to cover in your video, or do something to excite your audience within that first ten seconds.

One option might be to ask questions that will hook their attention straight away. Here, you'll be looking for questions that specifically address the concerns or desires that your audience has, so make sure you know the people you're targeting as well as possible.

4. Prove your Value

One of the things that makes video advertising so appealing, is that about 65% of most audiences are "visual learners". That means that one of the most powerful methods you can use as a video advertising business is to educate your audience on something. For instance, you might teach your customers how to use your service or product in new ways, or you might provide them with an insight based on your unique industry knowledge.

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Oct 24, 2017 9:45:17 AM

ExactDrive accepted into Forbes Agency Council

ExactDrive Inc., a leading online media buying platform with managed services for behavioral, retargeting, mobile, video and other advertising services with offices in Milwaukee, WI and Minneapolis, MN, has been accepted into the Forbes Agency Council, an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies.

ExactDrive's Co-Founder, Timothy Nichols, joins other Forbes Agency Council members, who are hand-selected, to become part of a curated network of successful peers and get access to a variety of exclusive benefits and resources, including the opportunity to submit thought leadership articles and short tips on industry-related topics for publishing on Forbes.com.

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Sep 27, 2017 4:25:30 PM

Give Your Brand A Voice: The Benefits Of Launching A Podcast

As times change in the digital world businesses have begun to implement various new solutions to improve the reach and impact of their brand. If you want to stay ahead of the competition in today's competitive landscape, then you need to have a strategy for connecting with your audience that not only establishes engagement but also helps to build brand loyalty too.

Podcasting is something that has created a significant amount of popularity and success over the years. Basically, a podcast is a set of digital audio files that customers can download from your website or another location on the Internet. Users can subscribe to a podcast so that they automatically receive the digital files as soon as they're uploaded.

Today's businesses are frequently turning towards podcasts as a way of building stronger relationships with audiences and diversifying their marketing experiences. When customers can't watch videos, they turn to podcasts as a simple and entertaining method of getting information from their favorite companies. Here are just some of the benefits of launching your own podcast.

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Jul 20, 2017 9:03:00 AM

What Is Programmatic Audio Advertising?

Before we get into the details of programmatic audio advertising, what exactly isprogrammatic advertising itself? Put simply, programmatic advertising isa way of buying digital ad space via software - as opposed to the traditional process ofhuman negotiation.

Using machines to buy ads is actually a really efficient way of buying advertising space, because both buyers and salespeople can be expensive and unreliable in the real world. With the use of machines the whole process is slicker and smoother than buying through RFP (Request for Proposal).

I'm Interested in Audio

On top of this, when the selling, buying, placement and optimization of media space is automated, marketers and advertisers can deliver more customized and personalized messages to audiences based on real-time data – this isn’t the case with RFP.With programmatic you get targeted dataabout things like music-based psychographic groups, weather and traffic patterns, purchase behavior and other environmental, population and consumer trends.

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Jul 18, 2017 12:33:15 PM

What Is Purpose Driven Marketing?

With the Internet and social media being such a massive part of our everyday life we’re connecting with friends and family more frequently than ever before. And at the same time we find ourselves confronted by companies and brands striving for our attention in the digital arena.

Purpose-driven marketing really makes the most of these touch points and aims to form a connection that’s more meaningful to the consumer.This style of marketing makes your brand's cause available to your customers and target audience, helping them to connect more fully with your brand as a whole.

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Jun 20, 2017 9:56:13 AM

Grow Your Business With Digital Media

If you’re a small or medium-sized business, growing your online presence can seem like a minefield – particularly if you don’t have the resources for a dedicated digital team within your organization. Whether we’re talking Facebook and Twitter, email marketing, mobile web, or YouTube and the latest industry apps – there’s a lot to keep up with, and it can feel overwhelming.

But the truth is, if you use digital media and employ digital marketing techniques, the rewards are endless. And if you don’t have a business that exists in the digital arena, you don’t really have a sustainable business at all.

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Jun 15, 2017 2:00:56 PM

Why Native Advertising Should Excite You

There’s no doubt about it, native advertising should be central to your digital strategy when it comes to generating online traffic. Are you investing time and money into it? Do you know how to do it properly? Do you really understand what it can do for you and your business? Maybe it’s time to see what all the fuss is about…

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Apr 20, 2017 3:56:46 PM

Benefits Of Programmatic Advertising

The benefits of programmatic advertising areincreasingly relevant in today’s content-saturated digital world. Marketers need their adsto be targeted, personalized and engaging whenever and however they’re reaching out to consumers; and although a great deal of this targeting takes place via the online tools we have at our fingertips, programmatic advertising takes it to another level.

If you’re not already allocating chunks of your ad budget to programmatic advertising, you may be keen to find out what exactly it is, and how can it help your business?

Put simply, it’s a style of advertising that cuts out the middle man. So instead of liaising and negotiating with people, it’s all done via machines - or a demand-side platform (DSP) to be precise. It sounds very technical, but a DSP allows you to manage multiple ad exchange and data exchange accounts with one platform. Genius Right?

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Mar 16, 2017 9:10:00 AM

Benefits Of In-Stream Video Ads

Video advertising has emerged as a valuable solution for companies that want to make a lasting impression on their target audience. Not only is video more convenient to consume than large blocks of text, but it can also be more engaging too! It's no surprise that experts are estimating that we'll be spending around $16.69 billion on digital video advertising by the close of 2020.

In-Stream video advertising is a type of advertisement designed to grab your prospects attention as quickly as possible. Unlike traditional advertisement videos that are separate from other content, In-stream video ads are designed to run similarly to a television ad. In other words, they appear while your target market is watching something else.

Usually, these ads have an option for viewers to skip the ad after they've watched five seconds, which means that if you want to get the most out of your marketing efforts, you'll need to make sure that you've made enough of an impression in those initial seconds to convince your audience that they should keep watching. Click to Learn more about in-stream video ads.

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Mar 14, 2017 9:04:00 AM

5 Benefits Of Online Advertising

Online advertising is business for the modern world. Also known as online marketing or Internet advertising, the potential for success is huge. There are manystrategies to learn and, while that in itself can prove to be pretty intimidating for a lot of people, the benefits of online advertising are varied.

So, in case you’re feeling a bit overwhelmed, we created this article to remind you what you’re fighting for. Here are 5 advantages of online advertising:

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