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Jun 05, 2023

Unlocking the power of local TV: How precision and reach drive results

In June, Locality emerged from the union of streaming pioneer Gamut and local-broadcast leader CoxReps as a new distinct brand, helping TV advertisers connect with highly-engaged local audiences on a

In June, Locality emerged from the union of streaming pioneer Gamut and local-broadcast leader CoxReps as a new distinct brand, helping TV advertisers connect with highly-engaged local audiences on a large scale across premium streaming and broadcast content.

As brands fight a fiercely competitive battle for viewers’ attention, it is essential for advertisers to allocate their ad spend strategically, honing in on the most relevant viewers in their key markets.

“Bringing together two specialized teams in the local TV advertising space, to now cover both streaming and broadcast, better positions our brand partners to reach the consumers who matter most to them at the largest scale,” said Ann Hailer, president of broadcast at Locality.

The one-stop shop combines more than 150 of the most popular streaming TV publishers, 300-plus broadcast TV stations, 100% of U.S. DMAs, and serves more than 4,500 advertisers and 1,500 ad agencies. Locality's direct inventory partnerships offer first-look access to the most premium local broadcast and streaming inventory at the largest scale - before any inventory reaches the programmatic process. By eliminating DSP or SSP intermediaries, this direct approach grants advertisers complete control over vital advertising elements like recency, frequency, and competitive separation. The result is an elevated viewer experience and optimized revenue for inventory owners.

Locality understands the importance of reaching consumers at scale, while personalizing to diverse consumer preferences, shopping behaviors, demographics and cultural traditions that exist across different regions.

“Precision reach," a term coined by Locality, blends the targeting of streaming with the vast reach of broadcast, allowing brands to personalize their messages based on local preferences and interests. This approach establishes a powerful emotional connection that deeply engages audiences on a meaningful scale, impacting the bottom line.

“We pride ourselves on helping brands achieve their desired outcomes through smart local broadcast and streaming buys, under one roof,” said Keith Kazerman, president of streaming at Locality. “With streaming, we target the most relevant, high-value viewers, while local broadcast maximizes exposure within the same optimal markets. It’s the combined power of ‘precision reach’ that ensures our clients' needs are met.”

The value of streaming doesn’t end with ad targeting. Ad formats and creative personalization go beyond traditional TV advertising, engaging consumers on a deeper level. Locality’s ad tech and data partnerships help the company create multiple ad versions within their streaming footprint by layering personalization, such as the weather, store locations, seasonality and other factors over the original ad creative. For example, a retailer can show a specific store address based on the viewer’s proximity, and even offer viewers a unique QR code for local promotions or driving in-store traffic.

For local broadcast TV, Locality powers its unmatched reach with decades of local market data to custom-tailor campaigns, collaborating with such resources as Comscore, Nielsen, MRI-Simmons, the Television Bureau of Advertising (TVB) and BIA Advantage.

Locality's commitment to community engagement goes even further through its strong local broadcast station relationships, enabling custom brand integrations within local programming. This includes everything from in-store segments with local messaging to vignette series showcasing brand initiatives in their communities. By forging these meaningful partnerships, Locality ensures heightened community exposure, fostering a genuine connection that resonates with viewers and strengthens brands' local presence.

By strategically targeting ads to relevant consumers within high-yielding locations, brands can capitalize on the immediacy and convenience of consumption, resulting in less waste on ad spend.

For broadcast, this eliminates waste common to network campaigns by focusing on the key revenue-driving markets. This means isolating regions, states, and DMAs in one streamlined execution to maximize the relevance of the ad message and avoid unnecessary spending.

For streaming, national campaigns often heavily skew viewership to the most populated markets, resulting in lighter coverage of a brand’s key locations. A local streaming TV approach drives reach to consumers in optimal markets at scale, resulting in heavy coverage where it matters most. This not only enhances customer engagement, but also drives meaningful results in a competitive landscape.

Beyond targeting, accurate measurement is key to advertising success. Through a partnership with iSpot, Locality enables advertisers to assess the true incremental reach of their streaming campaigns beyond traditional linear TV, providing deeper insights into the real impact of cross-platform strategies. In its commitment to advancing the industry, Locality has also joined the Coalition for Innovative Media Measurement (CIMM) to support innovation, improvements, and best practices in measurement, metrics, and data across the media landscape.

Furthermore, Locality is participating in a joint study with CIMM, the 4A’s and the TVB to develop an action plan for supporting the evolution of local TV measurement in the U.S. The goal is to achieve improved, standardized measurement across all platforms.

In the midst of this fervent election season, reaching and connecting with constituents at the local level is equally crucial for candidates. Local broadcast stations saw political ads roll in at a record pace last year, and this election cycle is expected to yield similar results. With the rising popularity of streaming, political campaigns are recognizing the potential of engaging voters through this dynamic and rapidly expanding medium.

“In politics, precision isn't merely a tactic; it's a responsibility. Leveraging Locality's wide-reaching blend of broadcast and streaming, political campaigns can foster genuine connections with voters in their communities. Our approach resonates with voters at wide scale, ensuring messages are not just heard but make a tangible impact. In an era of division and noise, we're committed to helping candidates engage with their constituents effectively and meaningfully,” said Mica Hansen, executive VP, political, at Locality.

Locality’s unified broadcast and streaming TV solutions provide access to premium local inventory in every congressional and legislative district. This means finding and engaging important voters using geo-location, demographic, behavioral, voter status, and voter preference data to measure, optimize, and deliver political campaigns in full.

The essence of successful politics lies in its local roots, and with Locality’s comprehensive solutions, candidates can solidify their connections with the communities they aim to represent and navigate a path towards victory.

About

Locality is the industry’s pre-eminent local television solutions provider, committed to addressing the evolving needs of advertisers by unlocking the power of local and driving dollars to the local video marketplace. Formed through the union of CoxReps and Gamut, Locality brings together the best talent in both broadcast and streaming. Locality helps brands tap into the mindset of the local consumer and precisely reach optimal markets nationally. Having served more than 1,500 ad agencies and 4,500 advertisers, to date, Locality offers the best premium inventory that the industry has to offer to help brands optimize their spend and target audiences at scale. Our team resides in 11 office locations across the U.S. designed to strategically service 100% of DMAs. For more information, please visit www.locality.com.

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