What to Expect in Local CTV Advertising Spend for the Back Half of 2025

CTV Is the Fastest-Growing Local Digital Tactic

BIA reported that OTT/CTV local spending (without political) had a year-over-year (y-o-y) increase of 29.09%. That’s staggering!

CTV’s gain is traditional TV’s loss. Local companies that were once faithful advertisers in this channel are moving their dollars. They’ve realized the value of streaming advertising.

The industries that are investing in OTT/CTV the most include:

• Legal services: 30.5% y-o-y
• New car dealers: 24.8% y-o-y
• Grocery: 32.5% y-o-y
• Hospitals: 29% y-o-y

The CTV trend is advantageous for radio. You can capture dollars that once flowed to TV and deliver a measurable tactic.

Capitalizing on Spending Shifts

Even with increased dollars in the CTV bucket, some advertisers still need more awareness of the tactic. Here’s how to tell this story.

How CTV Ads Target Specific Audiences

Buying traditional TV spots affords no targeting. The buy is based on the perception of who watches a certain program. These “guestimates” aren’t data-driven.

CTV works like all programmatic advertising. You build an audience to match who the advertiser wants to engage. Targeting options include:

• Behaviors and interests
• ZIP codes
• State
• DMA (designated market area)
• Household demographics

With these capabilities, businesses can also tailor their messaging, which leads to content being more relevant to those who are watching it. The results of this can boost campaign performance, delivering goals like more website traffic and greater brand awareness.

Big Screen Exposure with More ROI

One thing local advertisers covet is being on a big screen, meaning TVs (and those screens keep getting bigger!).

CTV provides this, as these ads only play on connected TVs. Sometimes streaming ad buys lump together CTV and OTT. The latter describes ads that serve on mobile devices. However, some digital ad sales technology has an option for CTV blends. In this scenario, you can choose what percentage of ads play on CTV versus OTT, including 100% for the former.

Businesses get the big screen they crave with a measurable tactic with transparency around engagement.

The Competitor Angle

When discussing local CTV advertising, if customers have reservations, you may be able to use the competitor angle. If their competition uses them, it gives them an advantage because they are reaching people your customers may not be.

If you have examples of this, share them, so advertisers realize they need to have visibility in this channel.

Now, let’s look at some ideas for CTV campaigns for the industries adopting it.

Vertical Ideas for Local CTV Advertising

Explore some actionable ways to present CTV advertising to these industries.

Legal Services

• Recommend geographic targeting for areas where firms have little traction.
• Target certain household demographics with specific practice areas like estate planning.
• Explain the process of working with an attorney; it’s a simple message, but one that’s absent.

New Car Dealers

• Suggest highlighting specific promotions or vehicle models based on behavior and interest targeting.
• Try CTAs that drive folks to their websites to take actions like booking a test drive or starting the finance process.
• Promote their service and parts centers to audiences not in car-buying mode.

Grocery

• Highlight the specialty items stores have that cannot be found anywhere else.
• Emphasize shopper reward programs with a CTA to sign up.
• Spotlight order online and pick up in store, which continues to be popular.

Hospitals

• Tell stories about caring for real community members.
• Use CTV as a recruiting tactic to drive more healthcare workers to apply.
• Call out programs unique to the hospital in care, such as cancer treatments.