Schwarzkopf Taft reaches 15% more households with CTV and Identity Alliance

BUSINESS OBJECTIVE 

Optimising campaign pacing with a cross-device identity solution 

Henkel, known for its consumer and industrial goods including the hair care brand, Schwarzkopf Taft, recognised the growing popularity and marketing power of streaming and connected TV (CTV). Henkel launched its first CTV campaign with The Trade Desk in Germany back in 2023 to elevate its consumer brands. The campaign was a success, and the company has been optimising its use of CTV ever since. 

After initially relying on pretargeted deals, Henkel shifted to audience targeting to increase net reach and control costs. To extend its message across more households, the team also began adjusting ad frequency to avoid oversaturation. 

Together with its agency, WPP Media, Henkel then tested the Identity Alliance, the cross-device identity solution, to unify exposure at the household level. The goal was to drive smarter pacing, reduce waste, and deliver more impressions in moments that mattered. 

SOLUTION 

Running an A/B test to evaluate Identity Alliance’s value 

To isolate the impact of Identity Alliance, Henkel and WPP Media collaborated with us to conduct a controlled A/B test. Two nearly identical CTV campaigns were launched for Schwarzkopf Taft’s Aloe Boost hair spray: one with Identity Alliance activated and one without. Both campaigns had the same budget, targeting, and inventory, with a fixed frequency cap. 

The campaigns were executed through our Kokai platform experience, which applied advanced decisioning to maximise net reach and optimise impression quality. With Identity Alliance activated, that campaign unified user identifiers across devices at the household level, enabling more effective frequency control and broader reach without overlap. 

RESULTS 

Improving pacing, frequency control, efficiency, and reach 

The Identity Alliance-enabled campaign delivered stronger performance across every key metric, confirming its value as a scalable solution for Henkel. Using the same budget, it reached 15% more households than the control campaign — and the cost per household was 13% lower. 

Campaign delivery was significantly improved through a 32% higher Decision Power Score. This allowed the brand to be more selective in choosing its most valuable impressions and improve pacing. Frequency management also saw marked gains: 43% fewer households were exposed to multiple ads per week, delivering a higher-quality user experience and budget savings that were then reinvested in the campaign, helping maximise reach. At the same time, audience quality improved, reflected in a 36% lift in the Quality Reach Index (QRI). 

While the total cost per thousand impressions (CPM) for the Identity Alliance campaign was slightly higher, it delivered a 2% lower media CPM, thanks to smarter, more selective buying. 

Discover how utilising the Identity Alliance solution can help improve reach and performance. Contact us or reach out to your account manager at The Trade Desk today.