Blog Post By: Kali Kraft, Baer Performance Marketing Intern
Automatic Content Recognition, or ACR, is a relatively new technology that could have major implications on advertising as we know it. Its identification and analysis of ad information allows advertisers to provide a more interactive and consumer-focused experience for viewers. Here is a quick rundown of what ACR is and how it could impact ads in the future.
What is ACR? ACR is a kind of technology that identifies content being played on internet-connected devices without any input from viewers. It also collects data about the viewers of the ad, allowing advertisers to more accurately measure and target their audience. ACR has been incorporated into many commonly used media devices, such as smart TVs, which can create personalized lists of suggested programming based on what you already have watched.
How do the ads work? ACR allows advertisers to truly customize their brand messaging. The technology can provide additional information about products it knows people have recently viewed ads about. For example, a viewer might see an ad about a product, and then the option for them to put in their phone number might appear, which results in them being sent a coupon for the product. Or, a family could view a commercial about a restaurant on their TV, and then an ad for that restaurant could be sent to their mobile devices. This provides a customized ad experience for the viewer and helps the advertiser target the right people.
How does this help advertisers? In previous decades, advertisers were generally unable to accurately measure who is seeing what ads where and for how long. As a result, they would target future advertisements incorrectly or neglect to measure them at all. [1] ACR allows advertisers to see a wide variety of data about their ads, eliminating this uncertainty and allowing for more accurate marketing and the ability to incorporate the data in future messaging to viewers.
Automatic Content Recognition is an interactive way to engage your audience and target the right people. Though ACR is a relatively new technology, it soon could become the next big thing in the world of advertising.
[1]https://viantinc.com/news/blog/what-every-advertiser-needs-to-know-about-tv-acr/
2 http://www.adweek.com/tv-video/6-steps-to-an-automatic-content-recognition-campaign/
3 https://www.acrcloud.com/docs/acrcloud/introduction/automatic-content-recognition/
