Do you remember which ads you scrolled through in your feed during your lunch break? How about the fun ads just before your favorite binge-worthy show? Exactly.
That’s why Connected TV (CTV) advertising deserves a spot in your 2025 B2B marketing plan. It’s where your audience is relaxed, and not frantically clearing unread spam on LinkedIn. So you can finally put your message front and center—literally—on the biggest screen in the house.
So, let’s talk about how CTV can help B2B brands break free from crazy CPL purgatory (we’re not naming names, but there’s a reason why we think it’s time you rethink your Demand Gen strategy…) and show up where their prospects are actually paying attention.
BTW, Connected TV or CTV refers to any television that connects to the internet to stream video content, either directly (via Smart TVs) or through devices like Roku, Amazon Fire TV, or Apple TV. Unlike traditional cable available to anyone anywhere, CTV allows for targeted advertising, making it an ideal playground for modern marketers to deliver ads tailored to specific audiences—right on the biggest screen in the house.
Why you should care about CTV ads
If you think TV ads are just for flashy B2C brands, please think again. B2B decision-makers are watching Succession too—and LinkedIn's data proves it:
- 98% of LinkedIn users watch CTV weekly (vs. 83% for traditional TV).
- 94% watch CTV with ads, making them a captive audience during prime viewing hours.
Yes, it’s true TV ads were out of B2B marketers’ scope for a long while–after all, who has the time (and budget) to target EVERYONE that turns on their TVs… Thanks to streaming services, this is changing. And that means your next best customer might not see your latest gated whitepaper—but they will see your CTV ad between episodes.
Still not convinced? Then you’ll definitely like the MAGNA Media Trials report about over 1,500 interviewees, out of which:
- 88% considered purchasing a product or solution,
- 79% started a free trial,
- 83% actually purchased the advertised product/service.
What makes CTV ads the good stuff
Alright, but how are CTV ads any different from all the others out there? Reddit ads are cheap, along with many other types of ads.
First, we don’t believe in single channel advertising. If you wanna go out there, you have to try to reach your audience where they are–and they are scattered everywhere.
And second, there are a few things in CTV ads that make them worth trying:
1. CTV ads are non-skippable… literally
How many ads have you scrolled past today on LinkedIn? How many of them can you actually recall? And you’re not alone–we’ve all trained skipping those as a skill by now. Otherwise we’d feel overwhelmed within the first 5 minutes on the platform. Unlike those, and unlike even YouTube ads that viewers can skip faster than you can say “5-second countdown” (although yes, they seem to be longer and longer…), CTV ads are unskippable. Your audience will see your message, making those marketing dollars of yours work harder.
2. You can use LinkedIn’s targeting
With limited budget and sales chasing for new high-quality leads, what’s the point in targeting everyone with TVs when we can spend that money better? This has probably been the biggest no-no for B2B marketers out there. CTV platforms change that–like LinkedIn’s new CTV option that lets you target by job title, industry, and even specific accounts. Welcome to ABM on the big screen.
And by the way, if it’s on LinkedIn… It’s also on HubSpot–which means you can track the performance easily directly from the platform.
3. Your audience’s actually paying attention
Your audience is tuned in, not just scrolling through social feeds. They’re more likely to remember your brand when they see it in between their favorite TV shows. What better do they have to do, if not write down your brand name on a piece of paper or Google you straight away?
4. It’s just cheaper
Now, the most important bit. From our previous campaigns, we’re seeing that CTV ads can deliver 6,000-10,000 views per month at a cost per view (CPV) of $0.15-$0.25. That's a serious bang for your buck—without the wild CPC swings of LinkedIn or Google ads. And you know PPC benchmarks on LinkedIn have been going mad over the years.
Best Practices for B2B CTV Ads
Getting on CTV is easy once you convince the leadership team. Standing out? Not so much. So we’re putting these tips out there to keep your ad from blending into the background.
1. Lead with a story, not a sales pitch
No one’s in the mood to request a demo when they’re halfway through a series binge. Create a story-driven ad that taps into real business challenges and how your product can help. You’ve got 15-30 seconds to make your point–so tell a story that resonates emotionally & save the sales pitch for the landing page.
2. Make your Brand memorable fast or be forgotten
Whatever makes your brand (and product) super-duper special should hit within the first few seconds. You’re building brand recall—not expecting viewers to pause their show for a product deep dive. And don’t forget that there are no CTA buttons on your CTV ads, so you want to make sure your message lands even if viewers never leave their couches. Just think of what one of our clients, Nuvei did with Ryan Reynolds last year (and yes, we’ll take that Ryan Reynolds is one big memorable advantage 😉)
3. Match the experience across your assets
Even the best ads out there–and yes, those with Ryan Reynolds included–will flop if the experience on your website doesn’t match anything you’re promising. Align the messaging, creatives, check the page speed again and refresh your socials before launching your ads. Otherwise folks will just get disappointed again, or worse–they’ll think it’s spam.
What’s next for CTV ads in B2B?
With CTV ad spending projected to hit $30 billion in 2025… we cannot really say it any clearer, but the time to get in the game is now. And it’s not just for CTV ads–but all the other lead gen and demand gen activities that go hand in hand with brand awareness, but don’t scream book a demo to successfully scare potential buyers off.
Want your brand on the big screen where prospects actually watch? You know where to find us.
