Case Study
Marketwake and Skai help Yamaha expand audience reach and omnichannel performance with Sponsored TV
Products used:
Goals
- Expand reach to new audiences with video ads across channels
- Tap into new ad formats to showcase the brand
- Influence deeper engagement throughout the customer journey
- Build brand awareness among new and diverse audiences
Approach
- Implemented Sponsored TV ads for the first time to expand upper-funnel omnichannel strategy
- Used rich shopper audience insights from Amazon Ads to expand reach
- Set up Skai automated alerts on performance changes to accelerate optimization decisions
Results
- 55% increase in paid social CTR following the addition of Sponsored TV
- 58% increase in paid search CTR following the addition of Sponsored TV
- 30% lower CPM for Sponsored TV ads compared with other connected TV tactics
Yamaha Boats and WaveRunners, a global brand that is revolutionizing fun on the water, already had a keen understanding of the value of rich audience insights from Amazon Ads. Although Yamaha didn’t sell its products on Amazon, they understood the potential for new customers there. Yamaha participated in a Sponsored Display beta program in 2023 and was successful at reaching new audiences for the brand’s Women Run the Water campaign.
In 2024, working closely again with Marketwake, a national growth marketing communications agency, diversifying channel mix was important alongside successful paid search and paid social campaigns. However, the team wanted to build upon those existing campaigns and engage prospective customers in new ad environments.
Taking advantage of new ad opportunities
Teaming up with Skai, an Amazon Ads advanced partner, Marketwake tested Sponsored TV—where advertisers connect with viewers as they watch their favorite content—to attract and engage new audiences in spaces where the brand previously did not have a presence. They also needed to deploy this strategy in a very cost-effective way. Marketwake used existing video assets from the brand to deliver a cohesive brand story across Yamaha’s paid social and Sponsored TV ads.
Marketwake’s omnichannel strategy for Yamaha focused on connecting with these audiences across TV and mobile. Skai’s agency team and Marketwake used resources and guides provided by Amazon to set up Sponsored TV for Yamaha, understand best practices for video ads, and develop strategies for relevant audiences to test.
Optimizing ad strategies with insights
To stay on top of performance by catching day-over-day shifts in spend, Marketwake set up automated alerts in Skai. Yamaha’s Sponsored TV spend was initially split equally between two interest-based Amazon shopping audiences: Boating-related products and WaveRunner-related products. Soon after launch, Marketwake was alerted that spending around boat-related audiences exhausted the budget very early in the day. Marketwake turned these insights from Skai’s automated alerts into action. They quickly reallocated a large portion of spend from WaveRunner audiences to shoppers of Boating-related products for the remainder of the campaign. This strategic shift reduced the effective cost per mille (CPM) by $1 during the campaign.1
Embracing new ad formats like Sponsored TV is thrilling, but it can be challenging for performance marketers. From selecting the right creative to establishing effective reporting to analyzing success across the entire digital environment, there’s a lot to consider. What truly excites me is how Skai’s omnichannel platform seamlessly lets our clients experiment and succeed with cutting-edge ad formats. This not only benefits our clients but also drives success for our partners at Amazon. We’re incredibly enthusiastic about the emerging world of connected TV in commerce media, and we’re proud to work alongside Amazon Ads as they pioneer this space.
—- Noa Reikhav, vice president of product, Skai
Boosting CTR while improving cost efficiency
Skai and Marketwake took a holistic approach to analyze their omnichannel strategy. With Skai’s consolidated reporting platform, the agency was able to see performance from Yamaha’s paid search, paid social, and Amazon Sponsored TV campaigns all in one place.
They analyzed click-through rate (CTR) for paid search and social during the 6-week period before the Sponsored TV launch and compared it to the 6 weeks post-launch.
Overall, Marketwake’s recommendation to expand the strategy into Sponsored TV helped drive greater impact across Yamaha’s other paid channels. The CTR of Yamaha’s paid social ads increased by 55% in the post-launch period, and the paid search CTR grew 58%.2
In addition, Marketwake noted 30% lower CPM by using Amazon’s Sponsored TV ads compared to other connected TV strategies that had been used.3
At Yamaha, we’re always seeking ways to maximize our media investments by testing new approaches and engaging with consumers wherever they are. Strong and open collaboration with our partners ensures that innovative opportunities are always on the table. This approach has led to better results, as Marketwake has been able to use audience insights from Amazon with exceptional efficiency and optimize performance to create a well-rounded and robust media mix. We’re thrilled with the results we’ve achieved and are eager to keep exploring ways to find and connect with audiences where they are.
— David Manders, advertising supervisor, Yamaha Boats and WaveRunners
1–3 Yamaha, US, 2024