Remember when reaching your target audience was as simple as buying a TV spot during prime time? Those days are long gone. Today's consumers are everywhere—binge-watching their favorite shows on streaming platforms, competing in mobile games, and endlessly scrolling through social feeds.
For advertisers, this fragmentation presents both a challenge and an opportunity. While traditional TV viewership continues to decline, new digital channels offer unprecedented targeting capabilities and engagement opportunities. At Bowman Advertising, we've helped countless businesses navigate this shifting landscape to find their audiences wherever they might be.
Let's explore how you can reach potential customers in the places they're spending most of their time in 2025.
The Streaming Revolution: OTT and CTV Advertising
The numbers don't lie: Connected TV (CTV) now captures 41% of total TV viewing time, while traditional cable has dwindled to just 26%. With 238 million Americans now engaging with streaming content, this is where your audience lives.
Over-The-Top (OTT) and Connected TV (CTV) advertising delivers your message through internet-connected streaming services like Hulu, Peacock, and YouTube TV. Unlike traditional TV, these platforms offer:
- Precise audience targeting based on demographics, interests, and viewing habits
- Reduced ad waste by only serving impressions to your ideal customers
- Measurable results that go beyond basic impressions
- Flexible ad formats that can engage viewers in new ways
"The shift to streaming has democratized TV advertising," says Mark Bowman, founder of Bowman Advertising. "Small and mid-sized businesses that could never afford broadcast TV can now reach targeted local audiences with premium video content."
For example, we recently helped a regional dental practice implement a targeted CTV campaign that delivered their ads specifically to families within their service area who showed interest in healthcare content. The result? A 38% increase in new patient appointments at a fraction of what traditional TV would have cost.
Want to learn more about how OTT/CTV advertising can work for your business? Visit our OTT/CTV advertising page for more information.
Gaming: The Untapped Advertising Frontier
With over 3 billion gamers worldwide spending approximately 8.5 hours weekly in virtual environments, gaming represents a massive opportunity for brands. Yet many advertisers overlook this channel or implement it poorly.
Effective in-game advertising requires understanding different formats:
- Native in-game ads that appear on billboards or objects within the game world
- Rewarded video where players voluntarily watch ads in exchange for in-game benefits
- Playable ads that offer interactive mini-game experiences
- Esports sponsorships that connect brands with competitive gaming audiences
The key to success is integration that respects the gaming experience. Players have highly developed aversion to disruptive messaging that interferes with their entertainment.
"The brands that win in gaming environments are those that add value rather than interrupt," explains Bowman. "When advertising feels like a natural part of the experience or offers genuine benefits to players, engagement skyrockets."
One of our clients, a regional energy drink brand, saw tremendous success by sponsoring local esports tournaments and placing subtle product integrations within racing games. Their approach focused on authentic community building rather than hard selling, resulting in a 27% increase in brand awareness among their target demographic of 18-34 year olds.
Social Media: Mastering the Scroll
Social platforms remain powerful advertising channels, but the strategies that worked even a year ago may no longer deliver results. Each platform has distinct algorithms, audience behaviors, and creative best practices that advertisers must master.
Here's what's working across major platforms in 2025:
TikTok rewards authentic, trend-aligned content. Their "Market Scope" analytics now categorize audiences into awareness, consideration, and conversion segments, enabling highly targeted messaging. Videos between 15-30 seconds that incorporate popular sounds and feel native to the platform consistently outperform traditional ads.
Instagram favors visually striking vertical formats between 6-15 seconds with clear value propositions. The algorithm prioritizes aesthetically refined creative with strong visual narratives.
Facebook still delivers strong results for local businesses, especially when content stimulates comments and shares. Community-focused messaging that generates meaningful social interactions performs best in the algorithm.
The science behind scroll-stopping content is fascinating. Users scroll through social feeds at approximately 1.2 meters per second, giving you just 0.25 seconds to capture attention. Successful ads use movement, contrasting colors, or recognizable faces to interrupt the scroll, then deliver a clear value proposition within the first three seconds.
Our digital team follows the "4 Cs" framework for social creative:
- Community-based content that aligns with platform culture
- Captivating elements utilizing unexpected visuals
- Credible authenticity through genuine storytelling
- Clear value communicated immediately
Learn more about our paid social advertising strategies and how we're helping businesses stop the scroll.
Geofencing: Connecting Digital Ads to Physical Locations
While consumers spend more time in digital environments, they still live in the physical world. Geofencing advertising bridges this gap by delivering targeted messages to mobile devices based on a user's real-world location.
This location-based targeting allows you to:
- Reach customers near your business location
- Target competitors' locations to attract their customers
- Engage attendees at relevant events
- Retarget previous visitors to drive repeat business
"Geofencing creates a powerful connection between digital advertising and physical action," notes Bowman. "When you can deliver the right message to someone at exactly the right place and time, conversion rates increase dramatically."
A restaurant client recently implemented a geofencing campaign targeting office buildings within a three-mile radius during lunch hours. Their targeted ads offering lunch specials delivered to mobile devices resulted in a 42% increase in weekday lunch business. Discover how geofencing advertising can work for your business.
Building an Integrated Cross-Channel Strategy
The most successful advertising approaches in 2025 don't treat streaming, gaming, social, and location-based advertising as separate channels. Instead, they create cohesive customer journeys across these environments.
Consider this integrated campaign we developed for a regional furniture retailer:
- Awareness: CTV ads targeting homeowners in specific zip codes showed during home improvement and design content
- Consideration: Geofencing around competitors' locations delivered special offers to shoppers actively furniture shopping
- Conversion: Social media retargeting with specific product recommendations based on browsing behavior
- Loyalty: Email marketing with personalized design tips and early access to sales
This omnichannel approach delivered a 3.5x return on ad spend and increased store traffic by 28% compared to previous single-channel campaigns.
The key to success is data unification across environments. Modern Customer Data Platforms (CDPs) can integrate signals from streaming, gaming, social, website visits, and physical store interactions to create unified customer profiles. This enables consistent messaging regardless of where your audience encounters your brand.
Conclusion: Meeting Your Audience Where They Are
The days of relying solely on traditional TV advertising are behind us. Today's most successful brands adapt their strategies to reach audiences across the diverse environments where they spend their time—streaming platforms, gaming worlds, social feeds, and physical locations.
At Bowman Advertising, we specialize in helping businesses navigate this complex landscape with strategic, data-driven approaches that maximize return on investment. Our integrated campaigns ensure your message reaches the right people at the right time, regardless of where they're consuming content.
Ready to go beyond TV and reach your audience where they actually are? Contact us today for a free consultation on building your cross-channel advertising strategy.