As the production of AI-generated articles and videos online continue to increase, marketers may end up inadvertently placing their ads next to low-quality or inaccurate content. In this blog, we will explore the risks associated with programmatic advertising due to the rise of generative AI – and how PBS solves this for marketers by offering a brand-safe alternative with a stronger ROI (return on investment).
Risks of Programmatic Advertising and Generative AI
A recent report by NewsGuard showed that major global brands’ programmatic ad buys are appearing on AI-generated websites that churn out thousands of articles a day with little to no editorial oversight. These websites contained misinformation, plagiarized content from other news sites, and error messages from AI chatbots. The report found that over 140 major brands’ programmatic ads were served on over 50 AI-generated websites, and the number of unreliable AI-generated websites is growing rapidly.1 Advertisers often are not even aware that their ads are running on these websites, as they typically use third-party platforms like Google for advertising placements.
Unfortunately, studies show that consumers hold brands most responsible for the content ads appear adjacent to online.2 Not only that, but being associated with unsafe, misleading, or inappropriate content has a significant negative impact on brand perception, consumer trust, and purchase intent.3 As a result, companies may be putting their ad dollars towards media placements that are actually having a negative effect on their brand. Furthermore, the cost in time and management incurred by agencies and marketing teams to audit and mitigate inappropriate ad placements generates an additional cost to AI-driven programmatic campaigns that are often unidentified in ROAS (return on ad spend) analysis, but has a very real impact on marketing budgets. To avoid this, marketers must take a hard look at their campaign strategies and make sure they are putting their money in media placements that will elevate their brand awareness and not harm their brand’s reputation.
PBS: The Brand-Safe Alternative for Marketers
PBS is known for producing award-winning, best-in-class content that reaches large audiences across all media platforms. In contrast to the web pages that monetize AI-generated content, PBS creates well-researched, high-quality content across pbs.org and its series sites with videos and articles ranging in topics from drama and history to science and technology. In fact, 86.5% of PBS primetime viewers say PBS provides content that they trust.4 PBS’s quality-first approach to its content has earned the platform credibility and trust with its viewers, and as a result, brands benefit from this positive association. 70% of PBS viewers say they feel more positive about the companies that sponsor PBS.4
Besides guaranteeing that brand messages will run alongside quality, credible content (online, streaming, or traditional linear), investing in a PBS corporate sponsorship makes good business sense, removes the cost of auditing and managing poor campaign placements, and ensures that your campaign spend is paying off. Unlike programmatic advertising, PBS offers brands control over which PBS series they choose to sponsor and where their sponsor messages appear. Additionally, PBS corporate sponsors stand out in pods that are limited to three to five brands (depending on the series), and provide category exclusivity on each series they sponsor. PBS’s unique environment pays off for corporate sponsors as viewer purchase preference is 50% greater for PBS sponsors than it is for commercial streaming VOD advertisers.4
While AI provides organizations great benefits, it also poses a risk to brands using programmatic advertising. Incorporating a brand-safe platform into their media buys can help brands offset this risk. A PBS corporate sponsorship provides a safe option for marketers to reach engaged consumers while associating their brand with credible and quality content, elevating their brand’s reputation and ensuring value from their campaign spend. Contact us to learn more the benefits of a PBS national corporate sponsorship package.
Sources:
1 News Guard Tech: https://www.newsguardtech.com/misinformation-monitor/june-2023/
2 Integral Ad Science Report: https://go.integralads.com/rs/469-VBI-606/images/AMER_DiversityandInclusion_Research_IAS.pdf
3 Cheq, IPG, and BMW study: https://martech.org/study-confirms-brands-worst-fears-about-unsafe-content/
4 Kantar | SGPTV, US Video Audience Insights 2023
