Programmatic Display Advertising in Fashion

Programmatic display has won you over and you think it’s the best thing to happen since the Alexander McQueen leather jacket; but now you have to explain to your boss or your board of investors why you need the cash to buy into it, the programmatic display that is – buy the leather jacket anyway! So when it comes to making said case, I’ve put together this article to help you argue why your fashion brand needs to be involved with this increasingly popular platform. Programmatic buying is so unbelievably smart that it’s bordering on science fiction levels of intelligence. But unlike hoverboards, it’s here now. Here’s why your brand needs it:

Programmatic buying for the fashion industry

One of the main reasons why programmatic display planning and buying is so important is simply due to the fact it is one of the most useful, time-saving tools on the market. It automates a myriad of very time consuming and usually fairly tricky processes. We always set the budget and the goals we want to achieve but the system then takes that information and rapidly adjusts a number of parameters concerning audience and behavioural data, finding that audience most suited to you and then placing that content in front of them.

It will learn and improve constantly

Programmatic algorithms act like the eager office intern who wants to impress. Although it won’t get you coffee, it will continue learning and adjusting campaign variables on its own. It will not only place the right adverts in front of the target demographic, but it will also trial adverts in front of other groups which match their behavioural profile.

When the system finds out that the adverts are working and generating engagement, it will expand the activity automatically. If it finds that these adverts aren’t working, it will cut off automatically and reallocate the spend elsewhere. This all happens in real time and gradually gets better, improving constantly and providing a better service with each passing day. This means we spend less time trawling through endless spreadsheets and more time on what really counts: creating better ideas and coming up with new creative.

How soon is now?

As time goes on, the already impressive programmatic display algorithm will only become more sophisticated and will no doubt boast a dominant market share of the display sector. With this in mind, no one can ignore this channel any longer. Turning a blind eye to this valuable tool means you’re missing out on valuable touch points with your audience and creating more work for everyone in your team, including that poor office intern.

Andy Donaldson is a fashion and retail digital marketing specialist and the director of Hit Search, an agency specialising in SEO, PPC, CRO, social media and content marketing.