Self-service is a convenience that has rocked the world in many ways. For customers, it has meant finding their answers and solutions online without the help of another human being. For companies, it has meant having more control over their advertising and campaigns through self-serve advertising.
Gartner predicts that AI will power 95% of business and customer interactions by 2025. Self-service ad platforms will be no different as publishers discover its efficiency and cost-savings over face-to-face negotiations with their salespersons, and businesses experience greater autonomy and flexibility over how they advertise.
Here are all your answers to 'what is self-service advertising?' and 'how does self-service work?'
What is Self-Service Advertising?
Self-service advertising refers to any platform you can deliver ads on without going through a salesperson face-to-face. It also allows the advertiser to define the ad's criteria. It's great to ensure you're targeting your ideal customers with more relevant and actionable messages. It is beneficial in an environment that expects this type of targeting and experience at every touchpoint because consumers are pickier about ads.
According to Forbes, 47% of customers don't want annoying and irrelevant ads. Media buyers can use these platforms to target their customers based on region, demographic, and interests, using multiple ad formats, like display, video, native, and social media. Famous examples include Google Ads, Snapchat Ad Manager, Twitter Ads, and Facebook Ads.
It also opens up ad options to a broader base of companies, as you can place ads on your terms—at your budget. Smaller companies, in particular, will benefit from this, as they can control how much they spend based on their specials or revenue swings.
What is It Like to Use Self-Service Advertising?
Your experience with self-service ad managers will vary from platform to platform. With McClatchy, however, our McClatchy Ad Manager offers you exclusive access to premium ad space on numerous news and information sites. What's more, it's a one-stop-shop environment. But how does it work?
The process from an advertiser standpoint will include the following steps:
Set Your Budget
A budget is a crucial first step to your self-service advertising experience because it will guide your entire campaign, meaning fewer risks of going over your budget or not contributing enough to your campaign efforts.
Choose Your Ad Format
Choosing the perfect ad format for your campaign may require some testing and time to get it right. Which formats you go with will depend on many factors, like your ideal customers or the type and purpose of the campaign. Fortunately, self-serve platforms give you the flexibility and time to move around parts until your ad is exactly what you need.
Select Your Target Audience
Whether you already have your personas made or need to create them, your target audience will play a significant role in your ad's success. With a self-serve platform, you'll have options for selecting the target audience you want to reach, but make sure it's the most up-to-date and relevant information backing your selection.
Put Your Focus on the Right Region or City
Targeting by location is particularly helpful for businesses that want to target nearby customers. However, regions and cities aren't limited to companies in one area. It is also an excellent opportunity to target different parts with locally specific and relevant content they will resonate with better.
Determine When You Want Your Ads to Appear
Select the right time to deliver your ads. While the task would be easy to complete in your ad management platform, it will take considerable thought before deciding. If you want to reach the right audience at the right time, you've got to have the data on when and where your customers are most active; and, therefore, when they will be the most influential.
Create Your Ad and Upload it
There are two options to consider before uploading your ad. You can create one on the spot or upload an existing ad before purchasing. If you have enough, working with multiple ad creations may even be worth your time before choosing the best one for your campaign.
Purchase!
Remember that you still have more to do after you've created the perfect ad and made your purchase. Self-service advertising doesn't just mean you have more control over design and delivery. It also means more control over tracking, measuring, and making improvements. Take this time to explore all your options, like moving variables around. You can also build multiple campaigns before choosing one, adding it to your cart, and purchasing.
How Do Self-Service Platforms Benefit Businesses?
Self-service platforms can benefit businesses in several ways:
- Greater control over marketing
- Let them arrange everything themselves
- Gain analytics insights
- More freedom and control over campaigns
- It provides you with ample options
- 24/7 access and management
- Continuously improving
- Maximizes the effectiveness of campaigns
- Digital solutions save time
- More cost-effective
Are you looking for fully-integrated marketing solutions that include self-service advertising on platforms that reach and resonate with highly engaged and relevant audiences? Then you'll be excited to learn that McClatchy recently launched their self-service ad platform to help businesses streamline their advertising efforts and leverage the most powerful digital tools available to them— all in one place.
Interested in exploring McClatchy's self-service ad platform? Check out Ad Manager today!
