Measuring Success in 2020: Part Three

The Trade Desk and Urban Science Team Up For Auto Advertising Innovation

{This is part three of a four-part series aimed at helping marketers up their programmatic game in 2020 by taking a more holistic approach to measurement. If you haven’t already, go back and read part one and part two first.}

One way to evolve beyond vanity metrics like the click is to partner with third-party solutions to improve their holistic view of the customer journey. We wanted to highlight one innovative way automotive advertisers can take advantage of better targeting and measurement with Urban Science.

At the end of last year, The Trade Desk and Urban Science joined together on stage at the JD Power Auto Revolution conference in Las Vegas to talk about the future of digital marketing and ROI for automotive advertisers.

The conversation served as a kickoff to a collaboration between the two companies, where automotive clients of The Trade Desk will now be able to measure the impact of digital advertising on automotive sales based on data collected directly from automakers.

During the session, insights from Oracle revealed how 80% of car buyers never visit the dealership webpage. That makes it that much more difficult for automotive marketers to learn and understand their audience as they increasingly research their car buying online.

“For the first time, we can now optimize automotive campaigns to business results,” said Lorenzo Moreno, RVP, Business Development for The Trade Desk’s Southwest Region. “I think we can agree that there’s never been a better time to be in auto marketing because we have finally achieved something that automotive advertisers have been in search of for years. Rather than a post-campaign report two to three weeks after the end of the campaign, we can move budgets between channels and strategies in the short term, based on what’s driving sales.”

And it’s not just about better measurement. Automotive advertisers can also take advantage of better in-market targeting segments to home in on the right prospects. “Leveraging our capabilities through The Trade Desk, marketers can access segments based on automotive purchase, taking the guesswork out of the equation, and giving them the best opportunity to find in-market consumers across the web,” said Carl Matter, Executive of Global Client Management with Urban Science.

Moreno also noted that while this collaboration represents a breakthrough measurement in automotive marketing, it’s important to think about the entire marketing funnel and overall goals from an advertising campaign. He discussed the implications for reach at the top of the funnel, along with new approaches to improve ad frequency. Lastly, he noted that auto sales may not be the only measurement an automotive advertiser may want; it may be for brand visibility, to bring a customer into a dealership, and more. Through The Trade Desk’s platform, all of these measures of success are possible.

For more information, watch the segment here.

Want to bring your measurement strategies up to date in 2020? Contact us to get started. And read our fourth installment of Measuring Success in 2020 here, where we’ll explain the strategies for proving your ads actually work (hint: it involves incrementality).