Leveraging CTV to diversify B2B marketing campaigns

Relying solely on traditional channels like social, email, and events to reach and influence B2B decision-makers is no longer viable in 2025. Advertisers need to adapt if they want to capture mindshare — and there is no better channel for this than CTV, especially in highly crowded industries.

CTV advertising enables B2B brands to reach their target audience where they consume content—on streaming platforms, smart TVs, over-the-top (OTT) services, and tablets. With the lines between work and personal life having been blurred for so long, CTV allows for additional impressions—literally and figuratively—that drive measurable engagement with potential buyers.

 

It’s about time for CTV

With viewing habits shifting away from cable, adult consumers in the U.S. are spending an average of 123 minutes each day with CTV¹ content on flatscreens, tablets, and phones—at home, at work, and on the go. And with screen time increasing, the Trade Desk estimates that “95% of advertisers plan to maintain or increase their share of spend on programmatic CTV in 2024.”² While long considered a B2C medium, CTV has evolved to become an essential component of a well-rounded B2B marketing strategy. In our recent conversation with Scott Stedman, founder of the boutique B2B advertising agency Imaginarium, he shared, “CTV is the most underutilized area of the marketing ecosystem. There’s still such an opportunity, surprise, and delight in B2B on CTV—because it’s not where most marketers are putting their budgets.”

The power of account-based CTV advertising

The ability to execute account-based targeting with CTV is what makes this channel work for B2B use cases. Bombora’s B2B audiences, delivered directly to platforms like The Trade Desk, allow brands to serve CTV ads directly to target personas within specific accounts. This means a high-level executive watching their favorite streaming show is served relevant brand messaging in an environment where they’re more likely to pay attention.

As Stedman explains, “With Bombora, the ability to take CTV and target viewers at an account level unlocks that channel in such a powerful way. You can efficiently reach your target accounts within your buying committee with video.”

 

Where CTV fits in the B2B funnel

While traditional digital channels remain critical for driving direct response and lead generation, CTV is particularly well-suited for upper-funnel awareness and engagement.

“We typically recommend CTV for the upper areas of the funnel— top of and mid-funnel— because when you get down to the lower stages, we like to have calls to action that we can start to measure, and you can’t do that with CTV as easily right now,” says Stedman. “That being said, CTV is uniquely memorable in B2B. It’s unexpected. And when you complement that with other channels like LinkedIn, where it might be more expected to see that messaging, it’s a very powerful alchemy.”

 

Overcoming the challenges of B2B CTV adoption

According to Stedman, B2B advertisers’ adoption of CTV faces a few hurdles, including:

1. Buying Complexity: Unlike LinkedIn or Google Ads, CTV media buying requires specific expertise. “You want to buy CTV? It’s a much more sophisticated process. You really need either to have a programmatic expert on your team or to have an agency partner,” Stedman advises.
2. Measurement and Attribution: B2B marketers often expect rigorous attribution models, which can be difficult with CTV. However, Stedman notes that “the metrics that you’re measuring in CTV are not that different. The CPMs might seem high at first, but the impact of having a 30-second or 15-second video in front of a decision-maker while they’re watching streaming content is vastly different from another LinkedIn ad in their feed.”
3. Awareness of Marketers: When asked how often agency clients are asking for CTV in their omnichannel campaigns, Scott Stedman responded, “I would say that we are recommending it more than people are coming to it. There remains an education piece to it. I don’t think people recognize how far the data partners like Bombora and the technology partners—the best-in-class DSPs—have unlocked that channel for B2B.”

 

The future of CTV in B2B marketing

As account-based campaign measurement continues to improve, the value of CTV in B2B marketing will only grow. “When you can tell a marketing influence story from awareness all the way through conversion, suddenly CTV is a part of that seamless journey,” says Stedman.

Moreover, as privacy regulations tighten and cookie-based audiences decline, CTV offers a privacy-friendly way to reach high-value audiences. “CTV is less impacted by some of the things that make people nervous around privacy and IP masking. Everyone is logged in when watching streaming content, making it a stable and effective channel,” Stedman adds.

 

Final thoughts

Despite slower adoption within B2B advertising, CTV presents a massive opportunity for brands willing to explore the potential. When integrated into an omnichannel strategy, CTV can elevate brand awareness and drive stronger engagement with key decision-makers.

Stedman sums it up well: “I see a lot of interest in CTV, and as we recommend that channel, there’s a lot more enthusiasm to test it out. When people test it out, they stick with it.”

For forward-thinking B2B advertisers, the message is clear: the time to diversify with CTV is now. To learn more about how Bombora’s B2B Audiences can help your team get the most out of CTV, please reach out to us.

 

1. https://onaudience.com/key-statistics-ctv-tv-advertising
2. TheTradeDesk_IntelligenceReport_2024CTV.pdf
3. https://www.iab.com/news/report-digital-advertising-growth-retail-media-ctv-social/