Vertical Trends for Advertisers in 2023

Online advertising spending globally hit $600 billion in 2022.

As we enter the fourth year since the pandemic began in 2019, verticals that previously experienced a healthy existence in the market are resurging in 2023. 

Vertical marketing is a crucial yet understated part of effective online advertising. Reducing outreach efforts and, allotting time for business strategies, finding the correct vertical can significantly affect the margins. While advertisers have numerous verticals, you shoulder consider targeting dating, iGaming, sports, and VPN in 2023.

Dating 💜 

Minimum distances, mandatory masks. Some or all of these apply depending on where you are in the world. The ability to meet in person again and see one another face-to-face has encouraged people to hop back into the dating pool. 

As shown in the map below created by Statista, the dating world is experiencing a healthy rebound from 2020. Projections before 2020 are returning to similar expectations, particularly in online dating. 

The “dating” vertical is unique. Regardless of the time of year, dating is in every season. If you’re in the affiliate marketing world, then dating should absolutely be a vertical on your radar.

Key Metrics

Active Dating Advertisers: 60 Active Dating Publishers: 1,000+ Active Dating Campaigns: 700+ Top 10 Countries for Dating:  USA, UK, Canada, Italy, Spain, Mexico, France, Brazil, Germany, Australia

iGaming 🎰 

In 2022, the iGaming industry leaped to nearly $2 billion in advertising.

The world of iGaming is a neat vertical as it is often intertwined with other verticals, such as sports. iGaming continues to be popular despite some geographical areas in the US, such as Ohio, Massachusetts, and Maryland, not having sports wagering as an option starting in 2023. However, with states like California signing off on sports betting, we could see those American states mentioned earlier approving sports betting as well. Why are we bringing this up? Well, this means not only do more Americans have access to sports wagering online, allowing for higher ROAS and increase in profits but also that other areas globally may experience an online sports betting launch, too.

Key Metrics

Active iGaming Advertisers: 180 Active iGaming Publishers: 1,200+ Active iGaming Campaigns: 1,500+ Top 20 Countries for iGaming:  USA, UK, Argentina, Canada, Italy, Spain, Mexico, France, Colombia, Brazil, Germany, Peru, Portugal, Poland, Ecuador, Greece, Chile, Turkey, Netherlands, UAE

Why Advertise With Adcash?

Rome wasn’t built in a day, and neither were we. A performance-driven ad tech firm accessible in 195 countries, Adcash brings 15 years of experience in online advertising, dedicated account managers, anti-fraud technology, and an automated CPA targeting feature which optimizes ROAS.

Vertical Targeting is a tedious task as it requires thorough and continued research. To minimize time spent on market research, our advertiser platform offers both user interest targeting and website category targeting. Both of these advanced campaign creation features allow you to penetrate niche markets to achieve your advertising goals.

Sports ⚽️ 

Most, if not all, countries globally are back in full swing of things in the sporting world. With major international tournaments and domestic competition playing out across the year, this vertical offers plenty to advertise. Capitalizing on sporting events is extremely simple with the Adcash advertiser platform. After successfully creating your campaign, you only have to ensure it is live during the game for maximum relevancy. For increased impressions and solid reach performance, capitalizing on traffic activity during the event hours will have a higher conversion rate.

It ain’t about the money, money, money. Well, actually, in this situation, it is about the money. A sizable budget, able to compete in many campaigns, provides you with more and higher opportunities for ROAS.

Key Metrics from October – December 2022

Top ad format: Pop-Under Website Category: “Sport” (campaign running on “sport” supply only) Conversion rate sign-ups from ad impression: 0.055%

VPN 🌐

A popular way to browse a secure network is the Virtual Private Network (VPN) vertical. Global Web Index reported that globally, 35% used a VPN every day or almost every day, with 94% using a VPN at least once a week. With numbers like that, it’s no wonder to include VPN as a vertical in your online advertising strategy.

Adcash conducted its own case study, highlighting the top converting VPN offers. Some campaigns had such a successful performance in this vertical that they experienced more than a 600% return on investment (ROI). In addition to the impressive ROI, the results demonstrated the efficiency and efficacy of both interstitial and pop-under ads. With a total ad spending of roughly $1,350 during a five-month period, one of the campaigns saw nearly 6 million impressions and over $9,500 in total revenue earned.

Furthermore, campaign optimization as a tool for higher ROAS proved to be true with all the examples. For ways to effectively test your ads, read here.

If you already have an account manager with active campaigns and are considering targeting these verticals, contact them for more tips and tricks. And for those with campaign targeting focusing on a more specific type of vertical, you can check out this list. 

 

Let us know if there’s anything we can help you with.

 

For now, that’s it. Good luck with your 2023 online advertising strategy.

-Adcash Team