Hello, community! There are many content formats. But video is the most popular one today. Users do not only watch videos on something like YouTube. Short videos are even more popular now: TikTok, Reels, and Shorts.
This also affects the advertising market. New formats are emerging there too, and we can use them to get even more traffic. In-Stream advertising is one of the clearest examples. That is what we will talk about today.
Before we begin, let us remind you that we recently covered UGC creatives. We recommend checking it out!
In-Stream Advertising — What Is It?
In reality, almost everyone has seen In-Stream advertising. Especially those who consider paying for a YouTube Premium subscription a bit too much.
In-Stream is an ad format shown on streaming platforms. Usually, this refers to video. Although, technically, even ad inserts in Spotify can be considered In-Stream. But in most cases, people mean video specifically.
In-Stream can be integrated in different ways. These are not only pre-rolls shown before the main content starts. Ads can also appear in the middle or at the end of a video.
In-Stream advertising can also include banners that appear during the viewing of the main content. Or even simple text ads. The important thing is that they are shown on a streaming service while the main content is being watched. That is when such advertising can be considered an In-Stream format.
How Does In-Stream Advertising Work?
The mechanics are fairly simple and clear. Let’s break it down using pre-rolls as an example, since they are the most popular:
- A user sees a video in the recommendation feed.
- They start watching it.
- At the beginning, they see an ad that, in most cases, they almost never have the option to turn off.
The idea is quite simple. It is believed that at this exact moment, the user is most “vulnerable” to advertising, so the ad should perform best.
A CTA button will also appear above the video. When users click it, they are redirected to a landing page.
All In-Stream advertising can be divided into two types:
- Skippable. Ads that can be skipped.
- Non-skippable. Ads that cannot be skipped.
But these types differ not only in how annoying they are. They also differ in cost, which is much more important for us.
What Is Out-Stream Advertising?
There is also another format — Out-Stream. This is also advertising that exists on streaming services. However, it differs significantly from In-Stream.
Out-Stream advertising is not integrated into the player. It is placed outside of it.
In fact, this can also include traditional contextual advertising from Google. And we have already discussed its advantages enough.
So, in fact, Out-Stream advertising is a broader category. We will talk about it in more detail in separate materials.
Advantages of In-Stream Video Advertising
In-Stream video advertising is one of the most effective and accessible traffic sources in affiliate marketing. Its key advantages are:
- No banner blindness. The ad is displayed inside the video player, so it is difficult to miss.
- High engagement. The user is already ready to watch video, so the ad is perceived more naturally.
- Low cost. CPM is usually 2–3 times lower than with popunders, while reach and conversion remain high.
- Higher CTR. The video format shows better click-through rates compared to many other types of advertising.
- Versatility. Suitable both for increasing brand awareness and for lead generation and sales.
- Precise targeting. You can configure impressions by GEO, devices, OS, language, and other parameters.
- Easy scaling. Large ad networks provide millions of impressions daily, which makes it possible to quickly increase the volume of successful campaigns.
The only real disadvantage is the difficulty of promoting openly grayhat verticals. They usually cannot be advertised properly on more or less high-quality platforms. The only option left is to use websites with pirated TV series, which are still quite popular and can generate a substantial amount of traffic.
Conclusion
In-Stream advertising is a simple yet effective way to attract an audience through video content. Thanks to high visibility, strong CTR, and broad targeting options, this format remains one of the most attractive traffic sources for affiliates.
Of course, it has its limitations, especially for grayhat verticals. But for most offers, In-Stream can become an excellent tool both for testing funnels and scaling already profitable campaigns. The key is to choose the right creative, audience, and ad placement.
Do you work with In-Stream advertising? Share your experience in our Telegram community, where we always discuss interesting ways to generate traffic!
Sincerely, Your Geek!
Frequently Asked Questions
In-Stream is advertising that appears directly while users are watching content on streaming platforms. It can be shown before a video, during playback, or after it ends.
There are two main types: Skippable, where the ad can be skipped, and Non-skippable, where it cannot. They differ not only in user interaction format, but also in placement cost.
This format provides high visibility, strong CTR, precise targeting, and relatively low traffic cost. In addition, In-Stream campaigns are easy to scale after finding a profitable funnel.