Digital advertising
MarTech is your source for digital advertising content. You’ll find a variety of up-to-date and authoritative resources, including the latest news, tactic-rich tutorials, and the latest data to help you work smarter and make better decisions.
What you read here is written by our experienced in-house team of editors and research professionals, and subject matter experts from leading brands and agencies.
Why we care:
Advertising isn’t just about growing brand awareness or planting a seed. Advertisers and their adtech partners can reach audiences big and small at any stage of the funnel, delivering cross-channel ads across multiple touchpoints. And they aren’t just using traditional demographics and ratings, they’re leveraging device-level or user-specific data, as well as contextual insights, to serve the right message to the right customer at the right time.
Don’t miss out! Get MarTech delivered daily to your inbox. Subscribe for free!
DOJ seeks sale of Chrome in Google antitrust case
The Justice Department also reportedly wants to expand advertiser control and transparency and ban exclusive search contracts.
How TikTok is transforming brand advertising
Here’s how versatile ad formats, like search ads and Smart+, enhance visibility, engagement and ROI, transforming TikTok into a must-have marketing platform.
Can attention really drive campaign success?
Attention is key to effective advertising, but it’s not the whole story. Data quality, context and creative execution are also crucial.
New horizons for data-driven direct mail marketing
The way direct mail combines digital with, well, mail can look like the way CTV combines digital with, yes, TV. And the ROI is still good, marketers say.
Marketing artificial intelligence (AI)
AI-powered martech news and releases: October 31
Do customers trust AI? 60% said yes in one survey, but 52% are worried about it in another survey. Do they trust companies with AI? Not much.
Political ad spending shifts regional CTV costs for brands
As national advertisers divert spending to non-swing states, regional advertisers get some relief.
Reaching consumers in the age of AI: What you need to know about search and social media
Search still reigns supreme with consumers, but the cracks are showing as younger demographics increasingly use social media.
Google Performance Max gets new AI-powered video creation, asset testing
Company integrates advanced Imagen 3 AI model for creative optimization, along with testing and ad rank Performance Max capabilities.
Google shakes up ad auction dynamics for holiday shopping
Changes to PMax and Standard Shopping campaigns require advertisers to adjust strategies during this holiday shopping season.
IAB Tech Lab releases protocol for private sharing of conversion data
IAB Tech Lab is inviting your feedback on ADMaP, a new protocol for sharing exposure and conversion data while securing privacy.
Marketing artificial intelligence (AI)
AI-powered martech news and releases: October 10
Siteimprove’s acquisition of MarketMuse connects content strategy with digital experience, helping to make sure all the content getting churned out finds its audience.
Google blasts DOJ’s ‘radical’ proposed breakup plan
Company argues a breakup would make advertising less valuable, while harming publishers and merchants.
What Oracle’s exit from advertising means for the adtech space
Two adtech executives representing very different consumer engagement offerings reflect on what the Oracle Advertising closure means to them professionally — and personally. UPDATE: Fresh news on GumGum's and Experian's offerings now added.
Google’s cookie pivot leaves 88% of industry in uncertainty: IAB
Google’s shock cookie shift complicates measurement, addressability and future planning for digital advertisers.
Lyft Media expands measurement and targeting capabilities
New partnerships are powering the rideshare service’s ad platform with measurement that ties riders and ads to outcomes.
2024 online holiday spending set for record year with $240 billion in sales
Adobe expects an 8.4% increase over last year’s online spending, nearly twice the increase seen last year.
How brands are handling the lack of transparency in major ad platforms
The tension between consolidation and transparency is shaping brand strategies, media spend diversification and advanced measurement tactics.
7 weak spots in Google’s defense against DOJ antitrust claims
Google's put on a strong defense, arguing its advertising practices benefit customers and are not anti-competitive. Will they hold up under attack?
How to balance ROAS, brand safety and suitability in social media advertising
Balance short-term profitability with long-term brand equity with a holistic approach to social media advertising.
QR code alternative introduces shoppable video ad tool
IRCODE combines app, advanced computer vision and an AI neural network to make out-of-home, video and TV ads scannable and shoppable.
TikTok Search Ads Campaign launches in US
Tiktok's keyword-based search ad solution allows brands to target users directly in search results, stepping up its competition with Google's ad business.
Retail media networks evolve with new in-store measurement standards and omnichannel strategies
Calls for standards and in-store experiences prevail at IAB Connected Commerce Summit: Retail Reimagined in New York.
CTV viewership rebounds to near pandemic-era levels
Viewership is up 5% YoY, and the average session increased 7% over the same period, according to a CTV study from Wurl.
How brands can turn the political ad blitz into an advantage
Stay ahead of the political ad wave with AI-Powered Precision
Google adtech antitrust trial: Everything you need to know
The antitrust trial over allegedly monopolistic practices in the $200 billion digital advertising industry could lead to huge changes for the tech giant and digital marketing.
2024 elections playbook works for brands too
Brands can take advantage of contextual strategies and CTV to fuel their holiday push.
Marketing artificial intelligence (AI)
Salesforce launches new, ‘more trustworthy’ generation of AI bots
Agentforce is designed to take actions on its own using guardrails and can be customized without much technical know. CEO Marc Benioff calls it, "AI for the rest of us."
Nearly half of US consumers feel ignored by marketers
Paying more attention to values and preferences could lead to more business with turned-off customers.
Meta to restrict data in Business Tools, impacting ad targeting
Data restrictions aim to enhance privacy, but may complicate ad targeting and potentially pause ads with highly targeted UTMs.
EU hits Google with $2.6 billion fine in antitrust case
The decision by the European Union's highest court came on the 2nd day of Google's latest US antitrust trial.
Google vs. DOJ: Why Google’s ‘hundreds of competitors’ claim doesn’t add up
Company defends its ad tech dominance by pointing to market competition, low fees and benefits for businesses. Is it true?
Foursquare introduces Sales Impact attribution features
The new offering combines location and purchase insights for mobile and multichannel campaigns.
Scaling local advertising with automation in the new media landscape
How to improve performance and efficiency.
Optimistic marketers increase expected ad spend
Growing economy has ad buyers increasing their 2024 ad spend projections to 11.8%, up significantly from last year.
Google Ads to deprecate enhanced CPC for search and display ads
Company will begin phasing out enhanced CPC in October, with the goal of transitioning all remaining campaigns to manual CPC by March 2025.
US vs. Google, round 2: Government targets digital ad business
The DOJ says Google used anticompetitive tactics to get its huge market share. People using the market aren't so sure.
Free trial vs. demo: What’s more effective in B2B SaaS ads?
An analysis of $20 million in paid search ad spend yields interesting results for practitioners of product-led strategies.
One way or another, cookies are going away
Adtech platform Quantcast is back in education mode, explaining to customers that Google has not saved cookies. They're going away and something will replace them.
Marketing artificial intelligence (AI)
How brands are using AI in Meta’s Advantage+ campaigns
Meta’s growing roster of AI-powered tools help Tuckernuck and Kitsch scale up creative and discover new customers in time for the holidays.
Marketing artificial intelligence (AI)
Data analysis and market research top list of AI use cases
Marketers seek practical AI applications for campaigns, study finds. And CTV eclipses AI among consumer interests.