For most of its history, television advertising was a game only large brands could play. The production costs, the minimum spends, and the impossibility of meaningful audience targeting all conspired to keep local and regional businesses out of the living room. That reality has quietly changed.
Connected TV — the delivery of streaming content through internet-connected devices — has opened broadcast-quality advertising to businesses that wouldn’t have considered it three years ago. And the agencies adding CTV to their service offerings are discovering that demand from local and regional clients is far larger than they expected.
What Changed
The shift happened at multiple levels simultaneously.
First, audiences moved. US adults now spend more time watching streaming content than traditional broadcast or cable television. Platforms like Hulu, Peacock, Paramount+, and a growing list of ad-supported streaming services have collectively captured viewing time that once belonged exclusively to network TV. Where the audience goes, advertising follows — and the audience has moved decisively toward streaming.
Second, the buying model changed. Traditional TV was purchased through broadcast stations, cable companies, or upfront network deals — all of which required significant commitments and high floor spends. CTV inventory is now purchased programmatically, meaning it can be accessed through digital ad-buying platforms with the same flexibility and budget control as display or paid social. Minimum spends that once required a brand to be a major national advertiser are now within reach of local businesses with modest budgets.
Third, the targeting capabilities improved dramatically. Traditional TV advertising was essentially demographic targeting at scale — you bought an audience based on who was statistically likely to watch a given program. CTV allows advertisers to layer in first-party data, geographic targeting down to the zip code, behavioral and interest signals, and retargeting based on prior digital interactions. A local auto dealership can run a CTV ad specifically to in-market car buyers in their designated market area who have already visited their website. That level of precision simply didn’t exist in broadcast.
What Agencies Are Getting Wrong
The agencies struggling with CTV are usually approaching it incorrectly in one of two areas.
The first is creative. CTV is a lean-back environment. Viewers are watching on their televisions in a mode of relaxed, sustained attention. The ad formats that perform — 15 and 30-second non-skippable spots — demand creative that holds up at the TV level. An ad that looks like a repurposed Facebook creative on a larger screen typically underperforms. Agencies that invest in CTV-appropriate production see meaningfully better outcomes.
The second is measurement expectations. CTV sits at the top of the funnel. It drives awareness and consideration, not immediate conversions. Agencies that sell it as a direct response channel set clients up for disappointment. The right measurement framework looks at brand search lift, website traffic increases among the targeted audience, and downstream conversion rate improvements — not last-click attribution.
Agencies that get both of these things right find CTV to be one of the most compelling additions to their service stack. Local businesses respond strongly to the legitimacy that television-format advertising confers — there’s a reason “I saw your commercial” still carries real weight with consumers.
How Agencies Are Adding It
For most agencies, the practical challenge with CTV isn’t client demand — it’s execution. Programmatic video buying requires access to the right inventory platforms, the ability to traffic creative correctly, and the technical knowledge to structure campaigns that reach the right audience efficiently.
This is why many agencies now deliver CTV through structured white label OTT advertising partnerships rather than building the capability from scratch. The fulfillment infrastructure is already established, the inventory access is already in place, and the agency can bring a polished CTV product to clients without becoming a programmatic video specialist overnight.
The Window Is Still Open
CTV adoption in the local advertising market is still in its relatively early stages. The agencies that move now — before CTV becomes a standard expectation in every agency pitch — have the advantage of being first. Clients who haven’t been offered CTV by their current agency are often receptive, particularly when it’s framed correctly as a complement to their existing digital spend rather than a replacement for it.
That window won’t stay open indefinitely.
