New Year, New Goals for your 2026 CTV Advertising Digital Media Planning Strategy

New year, new you!

At this point, we probably don’t need to convince you why CTV advertising deserves a spot in your demand generation marketing strategy, or digital media planning mix. But even if you’re already running TV ads, there’s still plenty of room to make CTV work harder for your marketing plan in 2026. And what better time to start trying out new approaches than when you’re the bright eyed and bushy tailed Q1 version of you?

Especially when you consider this: CTV now accounts for over 20% of total time spent with media in the U.S., yet CTV advertising still represents less than 8% of total ad spend. That gap creates a real opportunity for brands willing to test smarter digital media planning strategies before everyone else catches up.

Here are a few new advertising strategies and best practices for setting goals in CTV advertising to focus on as you build out your marketing plan for 2026.

1. Learn which media buying TV placements drive real impact

With Paramount Ads Manager, you can reach audiences watching TV’s hottest shows, movies, and sports. But did you know that you can also zero in on the categories that you want your ads to run on?

Of course, you could take a broad approach using our Peak Placement option, which lets the platform deliver your ads across a mix of Paramount’s popular content offerings. Or, you can get even more specific by testing placements against different content categories, like Sports, Drama, or Thrillers.

The key is treating media buying placements as something to learn from as you hone in on your target audience’s interests. By running campaigns across different show categories, you can start to understand where your audience is most engaged, then shift budget toward what performs best.

2026 goal: Test different content placement categories early in the year, identify where your audience responds most, and concentrate spend where engagement is strongest. Bonus points if you take those insights a step further and start shaping creative around the content categories you now know that your audience loves.

2. Use CTV to make every channel work smarter

CTV shouldn’t sit in its own silo. Findings from our latest report show that when TV campaigns run alongside search, social, and other digital channels, it helps warm audiences, reinforce messaging, and improve downstream performance. Many advertisers that follow this practice for best marketing strategies see higher conversion rates, stronger click-through rates, and better overall efficiency when CTV is part of the mix.

When it comes to best practices for integrating CTV advertising into omnichannel strategy, they key is alignment. When your TV, search, and social campaigns share consistent messaging and creative cues, it becomes easier for audiences to recognize your brand and move from awareness to action.

2026 goal: Plan your CTV campaigns to run in tandem with search and social, using consistent creative and messaging to support performance across the full funnel.

3. Test out different Campaign Goals to optimize every stage of the funnel

TV has built a reputation as a top-of-funnel channel for a brand awareness campaign. And while it is certainly a great way to bring in impressions, there are plenty of ways to utilize the channel to drive measurable impact at every stage of your buyer’s journey.

Paramount Ads Manager offers multiple Campaign Goals that let you align TV spend with specific objectives:

• Brand Awareness is a great place to start if you’re introducing your brand to Paramount audiences and want to maximize reach. Use this goal for campaigns focused on shaping perception, telling your brand story, and building familiarity at scale.
• Site Traffic is designed to move viewers from the TV to your website, making it a strong fit for consideration or conversion-focused campaigns. This is where you can highlight products, offers, or customer stories that encourage viewers to take the next step. FYI: This goal requires the Paramount Ads Manager pixel, so if you haven’t installed it yet, consider adding that to your 2026 to-do list.
• Foot Traffic is ideal for brick-and-mortar businesses looking to drive in-person visits. Ads running with this goal should clearly communicate what the in-store experience looks like and give viewers a reason to get up, grab their keys, and head your way.
• Retargeting, our newest objective, helps you re-engage audiences who have already visited your website or interacted with your ads. It’s a powerful way to extend the impact of your TV campaigns and reinforce messaging with viewers who’ve already shown interest. Like Site Traffic, this objective also requires the pixel.

2026 goal: Move beyond awareness-only TV campaigns. Install your pixel and test objectives that support consideration, conversion, and re-engagement.

4. Create ads that are fully optimized for TV

Simply resizing a social ad and calling it a TV spot usually doesn’t cut it. TV audiences are used to a different viewing experience with longer attention windows, clearer storytelling, and strong visual pacing. The good news is you don’t need to start from scratch.

By repurposing your best-performing social creative and adapting it for TV ad creative best practices + CTV ad tech specs, you can get strong results from your video marketing strategy without reinventing the wheel.

In-platform tools like Creative Express or our managed offering, Creative Plus, make it easier to turn existing assets into TV-ready ads - whether you want to move fast with our ad builder or collaborate with the Paramount Ads Manager team.

2026 goal: Make video ads that are fully optimized for TV, and tap into Paramount’s creative tools and services to speed up the process.

Make 2026 the year CTV becomes your hardest-working channel

If “get our brand on TV” has been lingering on your marketing to-do list, 2026 is the year to check it off. With the right digital media planning strategy, CTV advertising can help you:

• Reach audiences where attention lasts
• Strengthen brand perception
• Improve performance across channels

Ready to start hitting those 2026 goals? Start running ads >