Comcast’s Universal Ads division continues to establish roots in the fragmented but large and opportune SMB sector. By doing so, it democratizes a longstanding holy grail of local advertising. As we’ve examined, video ads are in high demand among SMBs, but are largely seen as out of reach.
Universal Ads lowers those barriers through both production (a developing story) and distribution. The latter is where it’s natively advantaged, given that it’s Comcast after all. It has first-party access to video ad inventory in its many channels, including traditional broadcast & cable, as well as CTV.
The company furthered its local play this week through a channel partnership with SearchKings that will build another bridge to SMBs. For those unfamiliar, SearchKings is a digital marketing provider that’s particularly well-established and works with 5000+ service-based businesses in North America.
The collaboration with Comcast takes shape in a new offering called SearchKingsTV (SKTV). It offers SMBs a UX-friendly dashboard to manage video ads and campaigns. It does this specifically by integrating Comcast’s Universal Ads API, thereby plugging its functionality into the SKTV environment.
Under the Hood
That last part is a key factor, as it brings robust video campaign management to a place where SMBs are already comfortable. We’re talking service-based SMBs that are time-starved and tech-challenged. In other words, they don’t want to learn a new platform, so the one-stop-shop approach is well placed.
Going under the hood, what does that one-stop shop look like? In short, SKTV users can set budgets, define hyper-local targeting, and monitor campaign metrics. All the above is accessible through SearchKings’ mobile app – a smart play to accommodate ‘deskless’ service businesses.
Platform particulars include:
Integrated Measurement: View TV advertising performance data alongside search metrics directly within the SearchKings app. This gives busy business owners one view of their multi-channel marketing campaign, enabling easy campaign adjustments based on performance.
Geo-Targeted TV Ads: Amplify search advertising performance with TV advertising that can be delivered with zip-code level precision, along with interest-based targeting, reaching the right audience at the right time. This enables precise targeting to specific service areas by using Comcast’s first-party, privacy-compliant data from 30 million households.
Managed Creative and Production: Develop high-quality TV commercials quickly for businesses, without the time or cost typically associated with commercial production.
Good Wins
Backing up, this is a logical collaboration with good wins on both sides. For Comcast, it’s a direct channel – or a bridge, as noted – to 5000+ home services SMBs. For SearchKings, this expands its platform and makes it more attractive and sticky to SMBs. TV ads were previously a gap in its feature set.
And that enticement is strong, given premium inventory that Comcast brings to the table. Universal ads’ reach includes the likes of A+E, AMC Networks, DIRECTV, Fox Corporation, Fuse Media, LG Ad Solutions, NBCUniversal, Paramount, Roku, Scripps, Spectrum Reach, Vizio, and Warner Bros. Discovery.
And it’s working well so far, given the results from trial partners. Hi-Tech Plumbing & Air’s cost per lead (CPL) decreased by 45 percent; lead volume grew by 47 percent; and organic calls increased 100 percent. HVAC service Air Clinic meanwhile grew revenue and decreased cost-per-lead by 22 percent.
“The option to focus on specific markets with a limited budget opened up a new channel for us — one that used to be available only to the big guys,” said AirClinic owner Jesse Murphy. “And the fact that we could air a professionally-produced TV commercial without any production costs made it even easier.”
