Amazon Prime Video has just pulled off a slam dunk with an 11-year deal to stream NBA games, starting with the 2025-2026 season! This means regular season showdowns, intense playoff battles, and exclusive NBA content will be available to millions of Prime subscribers. Without a doubt, it’s a golden opportunity to tap into this enthusiastic audience using Amazon DSP. In this blog post, we’ll show you how to leverage this exciting partnership to boost your brand’s visibility and engagement.
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Why Advertise During NBA Games on Amazon Prime Video?
Starting in the 2025-2026 season, Amazon Prime Video will stream 66 regular-season NBA games, including major events like the NBA Cup and SoFi NBA Play-In Tournament. This partnership offers brands expanded global reach, especially in territories like Mexico, Brazil, and Europe, with exclusive streaming rights for NBA League Pass.
Prime Video’s audience for live sports, such as Thursday Night Football (TNF), attracts younger and more affluent viewers than those of traditional TV, making it an ideal platform for targeted advertising. Amazon’s DSP solutions, provide brands with a unique opportunity to engage basketball fans using Streaming TV (STV) ads.
What’s truly remarkable about Streaming TV ads is their ability to deliver personalized content to different viewers, even when they’re watching the same program. For example, two people streaming the same NBA game could each see a different ad based on their individual profiles.
Imagine one viewer seeing an ad for a luxury watch while another sees an ad for sports gear, all because Streaming TV ads leverage Amazon’s data to target each viewer with ads tailored to their interests and behaviors. This level of precision ensures that your ads are relevant and more likely to resonate with the viewer, driving higher engagement and conversion rates.
Besides that, advertising during prime-time slots allows brands to capture the attention of a highly engaged audience. By placing ads during key moments of the game, brands can maximize engagement, drive higher interaction rates, and improve overall visibility.
For instance, this video testimonial highlights how Hershey’s leveraged Amazon’s Streaming TV ads to precisely target their audience:
For more information on Streaming TV advertising on Amazon, you can visit Amazon’s comprehensive guide here.
How Targeted Streaming Ads Work
With Amazon DSP, you’re not just casting a wide net—you’re using detailed data to reach the viewers most likely to be interested in your product. Here’s how Streaming TV ads make this possible:
Demographics: You can target ads based on age, gender, income level, and location. For instance, if you’re promoting a high-end fitness product, you can focus on younger, affluent viewers who are likely to be interested.
Viewing Habits: Amazon knows what types of content people watch, so you can target ads to those who are already interested in similar topics. For example, if someone regularly watches sports, they’re more likely to see your ad during NBA games.
Engagement Levels: You can target viewers who are more engaged with the content—those who watch for longer periods or interact more with the platform. This increases the chances that they’ll not only see your ad but also remember and act on it.
In 2023, Amazon introduced advanced tools like Interactive Video Ads (IVA) and Audience-Based Creative (ABC) during TNF to enhance ad engagement. IVA allows viewers to interact with ads without leaving the game, driving higher engagement. ABC lets advertisers run different ads simultaneously, targeting specific audience segments within the same ad spot. These tools proved effective, with ABC campaigns showing a 114% increase in branded search rates and an 83% rise in purchase rates.
By leveraging these advanced tools and targeting options, your ad spend becomes more efficient, ensuring your brand reaches the right people and drives better results.
Performance Metrics and Reporting
Amazon DSP provides detailed metrics to track the success of your Streaming TV (STV) campaigns, similar to the successful outcomes seen with 2023 Thursday Night Football (TNF) ads.
Key metrics include:
Viewability & Delivered Impressions: Measures how many people saw your ad.
Unique Reach & Frequency: Tracks how many unique viewers were reached and how often they saw your ad.
Incremental Reach: Assesses how many additional viewers were engaged by your campaign.
Brand Lift: Evaluates the impact of your campaign on brand awareness.
Sales on and off Amazon: Tracks conversions and sales driven by your campaign.
For example, Branded Searches are a valuable metric—if a shopper views your Streaming TV ad and then visits Amazon to search for your brand, it indicates increased brand interest sparked by your ad.
Real-World Success: The 2023 Thursday Night Football campaign on Prime Video demonstrated how effective Streaming TV ads can be, especially in reaching younger, more affluent audiences. Metrics like viewability and incremental reach highlighted the superior engagement of Streaming TV ads compared to traditional TV ads, showing how brands can optimize their strategies to achieve better results.
These detailed reports are essential for refining your ad campaigns. They provide insights into what’s working and what needs adjustment, helping you optimize your ads to reach more people effectively and improve overall performance.
Timeline for Booking Ad Slots
Ad bookings for the Amazon Prime NBA deal will start well ahead of the 2025-2026 season. It’s crucial to plan early to secure prime ad slots. Here are the steps to coordinate with your Amazon DSP representative:
- Initial Consultation: Schedule a meeting with an Amazon DSP representative to discuss your advertising goals.
- Campaign Planning: Work with the representative to develop a strategy and choose the best ad types and targeting options.
- Booking Slots: Reserve your ad slots early to ensure availability during key NBA events.
- Setup and Launch: Finalize your ad creatives and launch the campaign with the support of Amazon’s team.
Costs Associated
Details on the pricing model for these placements are forthcoming and will be shared as they become available. Depending on the number of viewers for a particular spot, the relevance and quality of the creative, and the number of advertisers vying for the spot you want, eCPM will vary.
To further discuss pricing and potential ROI, we invite you to explore our DSP services or schedule a no-pressure chat with us.
Tactics for Creating Effective DSP Campaigns for the NBA Amazon Deal
Leveraging Amazon DSP during NBA streams provides a unique opportunity for brands to significantly enhance their visibility and engagement. Here are some tactics to effectively capture the attention of a highly engaged audience:
Analyze and Target Specific Audiences
Every marketing campaign starts with identifying your main objective and target audience. As such, it is crucial to first analyze the viewing habits and preferences of NBA fans to determine whether they are the right audience for you and to tailor your ads effectively. Review data to determine whether many NBA viewers are also interested in your product.
Use Amazon’s first-party data by accessing insights through their advertising platform. This would provide you with demographics, purchasing behaviors, and viewing patterns. You can also use Amazon DSP’s audience segmentation tools to identify relevant audience segments based on their interaction with sports content.
Outside of Amazon, you can analyze trends in how NBA viewers interact with similar brands and products through third-party analytics tools like comScore and Kantar. Your team can also analyze your competitors’ ad campaigns that target NBA fans using tools such as SEMrush.
Likewise, your team can monitor social media platforms for discussions and trends among NBA fans. Consider conducting surveys that target NBA viewers to better understand their habits and preferences. It also helps to identify influencers within the NBA community as they can provide insights into viewer preferences.
Create Dynamic Content
When it comes to creating ads for the NBA Amazon deal, ensure that they are engaging and resonate with NBA enthusiasts. Craft a compelling narrative that highlights the unique benefits of your product, all while using effective storytelling techniques that convey your brand message effectively.
Before creating your content, ensure that your creative team is well-oriented with your brand’s logo, colors, and tagline to ensure consistency throughout the campaign. High-quality visuals are a must as well, so make sure to invest in professional videography and photography. Experiment with different techniques such as slow-motion, close-ups, and dynamic shots to create more engaging content.
One thing to pay close attention to is the use of music, voiceovers, and visuals that evoke emotions. This will make your ad more memorable and highlight the aspirational aspects of your product. Done right, they will effectively show viewers how your product can improve their quality of life.
It is surprising as well how many ads do not end with a strong, clear call to action that directs viewers to take the next step, whether it is to make a purchase or simply remember your brand name. Finally, it is also important to ensure that your ad looks great on different mobile devices because many viewers will watch on their phones, laptops, or tablets.
Run Ads During Key Moments
To maximize impact, place ads during high-stakes moments like key games, playoffs, or other crucial events when viewer attention is at its peak. Highlight special promotions or limited-time offers to capitalize on the heightened excitement.
You can also enhance your strategy by combining video ads during game breaks with display ads on related content and web pages. This creates a cohesive and consistent brand presence across multiple touchpoints.
Let’s say you are a tech gadget brand that wants to boost recall and engagement. You can run a video ad during halftime and simultaneously display banner ads on sports websites to ensure your viewers see the brand in multiple touchpoints.
Conclusion
Every step, from analyzing your target audience to crafting dynamic, mobile-friendly content, is critical in maximizing brand visibility through the Amazon NBA deal. To secure a high ROI, it’s essential to fine-tune your DSP strategy now to capture the attention of this highly engaged audience.
With limited prime ad slots available, immediate action is crucial. Don’t miss out: schedule your free call with us today to get personalized insights and ensure your brand is fully prepared for the 2025-2026 NBA season on Amazon Prime.
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