Who Is Advertising on CTV? From Global Brands to SMBs

The big screen is no longer reserved for the biggest brands.

CTV Advertising Has Become a Soup-to-Nuts Marketplace

Companies with large media budgets historically dominated traditional television advertising,

Connected TV has changed that equation.

Streaming platforms, self-service buying tools, managed-service platforms, and more flexible campaign
budgets have opened television advertising to a much broader range of businesses.

Today, the advertiser mix can include everything from multinational brands to growing SMBs.

Why Are More SMBs Advertising on CTV?

The answer is largely accessibility.

Connected TV platforms have reduced many of the traditional barriers to television advertising.

Businesses can increasingly choose campaign budgets, define geographic markets, target specific audiences,
and launch streaming television campaigns without committing to the types of media buys traditionally associated
with national television.

That makes the big screen more realistic for businesses that may never have considered television advertising before.

CTV Is Becoming More Like Digital Advertising

Part of the appeal is that CTV increasingly combines television’s visual impact with features businesses
already recognize from digital advertising.

Depending on the platform and campaign, advertisers may be able to control:

• Geographic targeting
• Audience criteria
• Budget
• Campaign duration
• Frequency
• Creative
• Measurement

That does not mean CTV is simply social advertising on a television screen.

The environment, viewer behavior, creative expectations, and post-ad journey are different.

Why Are Global Brands Still Investing?

Increased access for SMBs does not mean large advertisers are leaving.

Major brands continue to use streaming television because the channel can support broad awareness,
audience targeting, premium video creative, and reach across increasingly fragmented viewing environments.

For those advertisers, CTV is often part of a larger media strategy that may include traditional television,
digital video, search, social, retail media, and other channels.

The result is an advertising environment where large and small brands can appear in the same commercial pod.

That Creates a Bigger Trust Challenge

A nationally recognized brand begins a television ad with an advantage: familiarity.

An emerging or regional company may not.

If a viewer sees an unfamiliar advertiser and becomes interested, they may immediately search for the company,
visit its website, look for reviews, or evaluate whether the business appears credible.

That means CTV exposure can create opportunity and scrutiny at the same time.

The television ad may introduce the brand.
The digital presence must help establish confidence.

The Advertiser Mix Is Broader. The Website Quality Is Too.

As access to CTV expands, advertisers entering the market will naturally have very different levels
of digital maturity.

One brand may send viewers to a sophisticated campaign landing page with a clear Call-to-Action.

Another may send them to a generic homepage.

Another may have strong branding but a confusing mobile experience.

Another may have an excellent technical website but no obvious conversion path for someone responding to an ad.

Being able to buy a CTV campaign does not automatically mean every destination is equally prepared
for the attention the campaign may create.

Why Landing Experience Matters More for Emerging Brands

A viewer who already knows the advertiser may arrive with established trust.

A viewer encountering a new SMB lacks that history.

The website may need to answer several questions very quickly:

• Who is this company?
• What does it offer?
• Why should I trust it?
• Does the website match what I saw in the ad?
• What should I do next?

The stronger that transition is, the better positioned the business is to make use of the attention
generated on television.

CTV Can Be a Powerful Brand-Building Channel for SMBs

For a growing business, appearing on television can create a different kind of brand impression.

The format can help a company look larger, more established, and more memorable when the creative
and campaign strategy are strong.

That can be particularly valuable for businesses trying to expand awareness within a geographic region
or introduce themselves to new audiences.

But the campaign should still be evaluated as part of a larger customer journey.

What Should an SMB Consider Before Running a CTV Ad?

Before launching a campaign, consider:

• What audience are you trying to reach?
• What do you want viewers to remember?
• What action should interested viewers take?
• Where will the ad send them?
• Does that destination work well on mobile?
• Are trust signals easy to find?
• Is there a clear Call-to-Action and conversion path?
• How will you measure campaign performance?

What Does This Mean for Agencies?

Agencies may increasingly find themselves managing CTV campaigns for clients with very different
levels of digital readiness.

One client may have a highly optimized campaign destination while another may still be relying on
a general corporate homepage.

Evaluating those destinations individually can help agencies identify potential post-ad friction
before campaign spend increases.

As the advertiser mix expands, readiness may become an increasingly important part of campaign planning.