Connected TV Ad Measurement Tools That Link Data to Identity

Connected TV advertising has become increasingly popular in recent years, as more people cut the cord and turn to streaming services for all-things entertainment. However, measuring the effectiveness of CTV ads and attributing their impact to business outcomes has continued to challenge agencies and advertisers. 

Advertising with CTV and streaming increased 57% in 2021, to $15.2 billion, largely because of the results that advertisers can achieve. According to IAB, buyers score CTV as 57% more effective than linear TV at delivering website and sales actions. CTV also lets advertisers leverage data they can’t get from linear TV, like first-party brand data, location data, and shopping data. However, none of that matters if the results aren’t measurable — and if audience measurements can’t be linked to actual identities. 

With more CTV and streaming measurement platforms adding “big data” to pre-existing and panel-based measurement methods, advertisers are finally understanding why it’s so important — and useful — to link CTV ad data to accurate and transparent identities. Qualified and independent identity services providers can solve for validating panels, while also enabling accurate demographic profiles and figuring all the complexities that come with measuring the effectiveness of CTV ads.

Here are six top CTV ad measurement firms offering media measurement solutions that link big data to identity in a transparent, scaled, and privacy-compliant way. 

1. Nielsen

Nielsen is one of the most well-known names in the media measurement space. Unsurprisingly, the company also offers a CTV ad measurement solution that links data to user identities. Nielsen’s platform allows advertisers to measure the reach and frequency of their CTV campaigns, as well as the demographics of the audience they are reaching. In addition, Nielsen offers attribution capabilities that allow advertisers to tie their CTV ads to business outcomes, like website visits, store visits, and sales.

2. iSpot

iSpot is another popular CTV ad measurement and attribution platform. The company’s integrated solution offers real-time analytics that allow advertisers to track the performance of CTV campaigns as they run. iSpot also offers attribution capabilities that allow advertisers to measure the impact of CTV ads on website visits, store visits, and sales. In 2018, iSpot partnered with LiveRamp to give advertisers a way to connect the TV ad impression measurement and performance analytics iSpot provides with digital segments connected via LiveRamp. The enhanced measurement allows brands to deliver even more relevant advertising experiences to consumers across all platforms.

3. Innovid

Innovid is a video advertising platform that offers CTV ad measurement and attribution as part of its solution. The company takes an “infrastructure approach to identity resolution,” mapping privacy-compliant data signals, partners, and approaches to unlock identity across devices and platforms. Currency-grade impression data is tied to an expansive CTV ad serving footprint, so Innovid can provide always-on converged CTV measurement for the largest brand advertisers. Innovid says it provides census-level measurement, powered by independent ad impression delivery, across more than 95 million CTV homes in the U.S. alone.

4. Adjust

While Adjust is known primarily as a marketing analytics platform for app developers, the company offers an impressive product known as CTV AdVision that can determine the exact impact of any CTV campaign and prove ROI. Adjust’s CTV measurement solution provides advertisers with a comprehensive view of their CTV ad performance, including reach, frequency, and engagement. In addition to its CTV measurement solution, Adjust also provides users with a number of reporting tools that make it easier to share customized data visualizations and actionable insights.

5. Epsilon

The data-marketing company Epsilon has continued to make headway in the CTV measurement space by boosting its capabilities around targeting campaigns. Epsilon has launched two important partnerships around CTV in recent years. The first is a partnership with the credit reporting agency TransUnion, which makes Epsilon’s data available to TransUnion’s TruAudience Data Marketplace. The partnership effectively connects audience insights from Epsilon’s database of 250 million U.S. consumers to TransUnion’s household identity graph. The second important partnership for Epsilon involves iSpot, a company mentioned earlier in this article. That deal enhances Epsilon’s CTV measurement and reporting capabilities by linking the company’s CORE ID solution with iSpot’s Unified Measurement.