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The Data Speaks: Why Content Matters
For years, the advertising industry has been obsessed with audience data—demographics like age, gender, and income levels. But data alone isn’t enough. The real driver of performance has always been content. When ads align with the context of the content audiences are already engaged with, the results we've found speak for themselves:
- Family and parenting content outperforms other genres for protein brands, delivering higher engagement and purchase rates.
- Athletic apparel campaigns perform best when paired with cooking videos, leveraging aspirational lifestyle content.
- Ads that align with relevant content see measurable boosts in engagement, turning passive viewers into active customers.
This principle is at the core of TikTok’s success. The platform’s dynamic algorithm doesn’t wait for users to tell it what they want. Instead, it learns their preferences, curating highly personalized “For You” pages that keep users scrolling—and buying.
TikTok by the Numbers
TikTok’s meteoric rise is a testament to the power of short-form video content:
- TikTok’s worldwide user base has grown by 93% since 2020, from 465.7 million to over 900 million today.
- In the U.S., 150 million people use TikTok monthly, and nearly 5 million businesses are active on the platform.
- Users spend an average of 54 minutes per day on TikTok, and the platform is projected to lead in daily engagement by 2025.
- TikTok's Advertising Spend increased by 57.4% from 2021-2024, showing that in-content and native-style advertising was appealing to brands and businesses.
- Ads on TikTok inspire action, with 92% of users taking some type of action after watching a video and 37% making a purchase based on something they discovered on the app.
The Content Explosion
With 17,000 years’ worth of video content currently in existence and projections showing that number will skyrocket to 100,000 years by 2025 (thanks in part to AI-generated content), navigating this vast landscape is becoming increasingly complex. Advanced AI tools are now essential for identifying the right moments and aligning ads with content that drives impact.
Lessons from TikTok: Context Is King
TikTok’s success demonstrates that content isn’t just a component of advertising—it’s the driving force. Ads that feel like natural extensions of the content that audiences are already enjoying perform better. This is the key to TikTok’s appeal: its ads don’t feel like interruptions; they feel like they belong.
For advertisers, the lesson is clear. It’s no longer just about targeting audiences—it’s about targeting the right moments. By aligning ads with contextually relevant content, brands can create campaigns that feel authentic, engaging, and effective.
The Future of Video Advertising
Despite the controversies surrounding TikTok—including privacy concerns, cybersecurity risks, and the potential for a U.S. ban—the platform has demonstrated the transformative power of content-driven advertising. But what if you could achieve the same level of engagement, precision, and results without relying on a single app?
This is where the broader future of video advertising comes into play. Connected TV (CTV) and online video offer unparalleled opportunities to connect with audiences in a way that feels tactile, immersive, and, most importantly, sustainable. Unlike apps that face regulatory risks, these channels are built to deliver long-term value for advertisers and publishers alike.
At Qortex, we believe in empowering brands to leverage On-Stream—our innovative video advertising solution—to align ads with the right content across CTV and online video. With On-Stream, you can achieve the kind of contextual alignment that drives engagement without the risk of platform-specific bans or controversies. Book a demo if you're interested in hearing more.
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