When you think of big-screen advertising–from movie theaters to smart TVs, billboards to bus stops–brand awareness is usually the name of the game. But times are changing. With streaming on the rise, connected TV (CTV) has become a hot spot for performance marketers not just to be seen, but to drive installs.
In this new CTV era, savvy marketers are going beyond awareness to unlock real, measurable acquisition. Whether you're new to CTV or curious how it fits into your strategy, this guide breaks it down.
Let’s start with the basics. connected TV (CTV) refers to any television that is connected to the internet. When it comes to how that connection happens, think smart TVs, Roku, Fire TV, Apple TV, or even gaming consoles.
CTV user acquisition (UA) is the strategy of running targeted ads on CTV devices with the goal of driving app installs or re-engagement. Really, it’s just like you would on mobile, but on the big screen. The goal these days isn’t just to get your app seen; it’s to get results.
Why is now the right time for UA campaigns on CTV? Well, the TV landscape has changed dramatically in recent years:
In short: More people are watching, and now you can actually measure the impact of your ads on TV. That’s a game-changer for mobile performance teams.
So, how is this data-driven marketing actually working under the hood? Here’s a break down of what’s happening behind the scenes when you launch a CTV campaign:
CTV UA campaigns aren’t just broad demographics like “ages 18–34.” You can tap into granular data: behaviors, interests, app usage, household data, and more, all with the option of the additional layer of contextual advertising.
Ads are bought and sold in real-time via programmatic exchanges, much like mobile ads. You bid for impressions in milliseconds, and your ad shows on relevant CTV inventory if your bid wins.
Here’s the magic: even though users see your ad on TV, they complete the app install on a phone. CTV platforms use cross-device graphs (think: anonymous matching of household-level devices) to attribute installs back to the TV impression.
With cross-device data from an MMP (or internal attribution data), marketers can measure install rates, cost-per-install (CPI), retention, and return on ad spend (ROAS). With real, transparent data, no guesswork is needed.
🎣 Basically, if mobile ads are like fishing with a net, CTV UA is like fishing with radar — you know where the fish are, and you can tell which ones bite.
❗One myth that clearly needs busting: CTV isn’t just for brand awareness.
Thanks to attribution tools and smarter targeting, CTV can drive performance metrics:
Take Tech Tree Games, the studio behind The Tower. They’d tried CTV before, but past efforts felt more like awareness campaigns than actual growth drivers. This time, they needed a partner who could deliver real performance. A.k.a. valuable installs, not just impressions.
Working with Adikteev, they aimed to:
And it worked.
Check out Tech Tree Games' full CTV UA case study
CTV works especially well for apps looking to scale beyond mobile-only channels. Here are some top use cases:
Across all verticals, there’s also a huge opportunity to tap into seasonal re-engagement. Win back users during key calendar moments like holidays, tax season, back to school, or high viewership moments like the Super Bowl.
If your audience is spending time streaming, CTV could be your next growth lever. The best part is, you don’t need to be a CTV expert to launch a CTV campaign. We do the heavy lifting for you.
We kick things off with an intro call to understand your goals, KPIs, app, attribution setup (MMP), and how CTV fits into your growth plan. This is where we align on feasibility and success criteria.
Once we’ve confirmed everything checks out, we gather the necessary inputs and hand them off to our Campaign Managers (CMs), who take it from there.
Our CMs build out tailored strategies and prepare the campaign setup based on your specific goals and app profile. Every setup is customized, not templated.
Your ads go live across premium CTV inventory. But behind the scenes, our CMs are hard at work actively monitoring and optimizing campaign performance. While our industry-leading predictive models support targeting decisions, there’s still a much-needed human decision-making layer, so your KPIs aren’t at the hands of automation.
In a nutshell? Simple. Scalable. Supported. Here’s how Adikteev brings something truly different to the CTV table:
This isn’t plug-and-play advertising. It’s iterate-and-optimize performance.
You're not alone. As more marketers look beyond crowded mobile ad spaces, CTV is becoming the next frontier for efficient, high-quality user acquisition. This is the time to get started in order to stay ahead of the competition.
Check out Adikteev’s CTV UA.
Part of our CTV Education Series. Stay tuned for more expert guides on optimizing performance, creative strategies, and scaling smart on the big screen.