You may have heard the term “programmatic advertising” being tossed around in the last few years. And with the onslaught of marketing buzzwords, you may have tuned it out. What’s worse, you may have investigated it and given up due to its dense and complex nature. Either scenario is understandable, but there’s a reason strategies become buzzwords in the first place. The concept is picking up steam with no signs of slowing down. In fact, more than 80% of digital display ads in 2018 were purchased programmatically, generating over $46 billion in revenue. What’s more, this number is expected to reach $65 billion by 2020.

These numbers may be staggering, but they don’t answer the billion dollar question: what exactly is programmatic advertising?

Instagram’s Product Director, Ameet Ranadive, describes it as “the practice of implementing an automated set of business rules to efficiently target your most valuable customers and prospects with personalized ads.” Still sounding vague? Let’s strip it back a level. According to the Oxford Living Dictionaries, it means “of the nature of or according to a program, schedule, or method.” This simple explanation may provide more clarity than that of a leading expert. Programmatic advertising is essentially the use of automated computer programs to procure the purchases of digital ads. While it does not fully automate the digital ad-buying process, it removes some of its more time- and labor-intensive elements, including proposals, quotes and negotiation. This frees up time for marketers to devote to planning and optimization.

The software used in the programmatic advertising process uses complex algorithms which can help decide where advertising resources are best allocated in a manner much faster and more objectively than the human mind. What’s more, it can launch your campaign and monitor how your ad spend is performing while looking for areas that could improve.

Medical device manufacturers in particular are in a great position to utilize programmatic advertising. Regulations regarding patient privacy and protection of patient information have been hurdles for medical firms, but by removing identifying information and segmenting users with specific symptoms and conditions to market their products they can implement highly specified and effective marketing campaigns. What’s more, they can more easily target medical professionals, facilities and organizations in addition to individual patients. This can all happen simultaneously, and in the blink of eye – allowing marketing teams to spend more time marketing what matters instead of buying, bidding on and negotiating for ad buys.

This may be a lot of information, but it’s becoming increasingly critical to understand. Just look at the numbers listed above! A great glossary of programmatic advertising related terms can be found here. Programmatic advertising isn’t the only new marketing technology taking the industry by storm. Download our white paper on Disruptive Marketing Technologies to stay in the loop about new methods that can help you stay ahead – and stay tuned to our blog for more industry tips and insights.