From today, advertisers in the US will be able to measure campaign success using Ad Studio’s new Click optimization goal—helping them to create an auction strategy that prioritizes reaching users who are more likely to click on an ad.

Not only that, but Call-to-Action (CTA) cards are now also available to use for ads placed in music playlists. When integrated into a campaign, these clickable ad units will show up in various places on a listener’s screen after they’ve heard an ad, helping them engage with the brands they’ve heard about while listening.

Below, we break down the ins and outs of these two new Ad Studio features—and how they can help you to achieve your advertising objectives with Spotify Advertising in 2023.

What is the Click optimization goal and how does it work?

In short, the Click optimization goal is a new bidding goal now available in Ad Studio, designed to drive mid-to-lower funnel outcomes—like clicks on a specified URL—for advertisers.

When creating a campaign, advertisers will be able to select ‘Clicks’ as a bidding goal, and purchase impressions on a CPM pricing model. The goal incorporates ‘click model scores’ in order to serve impressions that have a high probability of being clicked by a predefined target audience.

How are click model scores calculated?

Click model scores are calculated based on anonymous user behavior. There are around 40 signals analyzed, from user demographics, user location, and ad request information. A listener’s ad interaction history is also taken into account—we consider how often they click vs skip an ad, what type of ads they are likely to respond more positively to, and so on.

What are CTA cards, and how do they surface in the Spotify app?

If you’ve ever run a podcast advertising campaign with Ad Studio, CTA cards may not seem like anything new. Showing up on screen during and after audio ads, these eye-catching formats help to drive lower-funnel metrics like click-through rate (CTR).

But now, CTA cards can appear across various surfaces of the Spotify music app up to eight hours after an audio ad is heard—creating multiple opportunities for listeners to take action and visit an advertiser-specified website. That moment could occur during the morning commute as listeners prepare for the day ahead, during working hours when listeners are more focused and likely to see your CTA card on desktop, or in the evening when listeners might be cooking, or chilling on the couch. Think of all those touchpoints—by now your listener may have heard and seen your ad numerous times, recalled it, and felt curious enough to take action.

There are several places a music CTA card can show up, including the fold between the Spotify player and a song’s lyrics, and a new screen a listener can view when they tap “See all” for a view of all the CTA cards they’d have previously heard an ad for.

How can I use CTA cards in my campaign?

If you want to take advantage of this dynamic format, brand new for Ad Studio, it’s important to know that CTA cards are only available for advertisers that select the Click goal when creating a campaign. Any clicks generated by CTA cards will be rolled up into the existing audio format reporting column.

What sort of results can I expect?

Success is never guaranteed, but in November 2022, we launched the Click optimization goal in open beta in the UK and Canada—and analysis has revealed that when combined, the Click goal and CTA cards deliver roughly double the average CTR of both Impressions and Reach bidding goals.

Ready to optimize for clicks and take advantage of CTA cards in Ad Studio?

Get started on your next campaign, today.