Roku CTV (Connected TV) advertising puts your video ads on streaming TV. Your ads appear on Roku devices connected to actual televisions in people's homes.
Why it matters: Traditional TV advertising requires media buying agencies and minimum budgets of $10,000+. Roku's self-serve platform starts at $500, making TV ads accessible to businesses of any size.
Access Roku CTV through Advertising:
If you don't have a Roku Ads account:
Once connected, ILLIXIS syncs audiences to your Roku account automatically.
ILLIXIS audiences can be synced to Roku for CTV retargeting:
How Roku matches users:
Example: You have a 10,000-person audience from GA4. After syncing to Roku:
Track sync status in Advertising:
|
Status |
Meaning |
|---|---|
|
Not Synced |
Audience has not been synced to Roku |
|
Syncing |
Upload in progress (typically 10-30 minutes) |
|
Synced |
Audience available for targeting in Roku |
|
Error |
Sync failed (check error message) |
Audiences auto-sync every 24 hours to include new members.
ILLIXIS automatically keeps your Roku data synchronized:
|
Process |
Schedule |
Description |
|---|---|---|
|
Audience Sync |
Daily at 7:00 AM UTC |
Uploads new audience members and removes unsubscribes |
|
Performance Metrics |
Every 6 hours |
Refreshes campaign performance data from Roku |
|
Impression Tracking |
Daily |
Updates impression and completion counts |
|
Audience Recommendations |
Weekly (Mondays) |
Analyzes performance to suggest new audience segments |
What this means for you:
Manual sync: If you need data updated immediately, click Sync Now in the audience detail view. Manual syncs don't affect the automated schedule.
DMA (Designated Market Area): Target specific TV markets like "San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose" or "New York."
State-level: Target all households in specific states.
Zip code: Target individual zip codes or groups of zips.
Target by viewing behavior and interests:
Use your synced audiences from ILLIXIS for precise retargeting:
Roku accepts video ads in these formats:
|
Spec |
Requirement |
|---|---|
|
Format |
MP4 (H.264 codec) |
|
Resolution |
1920x1080 (1080p) |
|
Aspect Ratio |
16:9 |
|
Duration |
15, 30, or 60 seconds |
|
File Size |
Under 500MB |
|
Bitrate |
5-10 Mbps |
Videos created in Video Production automatically meet Roku's specs:
TV-optimized creative:
What works on TV:
What doesn't work:
Campaigns are created in Roku Ads Manager (not in ILLIXIS):
Minimum spend: $500 per campaign
Recommended budgets:
Pacing: Roku paces spend evenly across your campaign duration to avoid burning budget too quickly.
Minimum: 7 days Recommended: 30 days for meaningful data
Shorter campaigns don't gather enough data for optimization. Plan 4-week campaigns minimum.
View Roku performance in Advertising dashboard:
Audience Metrics:
Note: Full campaign metrics (impressions, completions, spend) are tracked in Roku Ads Manager. ILLIXIS shows audience availability only.
Delivery Metrics:
Engagement Metrics:
Cost Metrics:
Co-viewing lift: Roku tracks whether multiple people watched (households often view together on TV).
Cross-device attribution: Track whether TV viewers later visited your website on mobile/desktop.
Conversion tracking: Send conversion events from ILLIXIS to Roku to close the attribution loop.
Connect TV ad views to downstream actions:
Conversion tracking is automatic if:
No additional implementation required.
Your first Roku campaign should retarget warm audiences:
Cold prospecting on TV is expensive. Warm audiences convert better.
Content readers: Reference the topic they read about in the ad.
Example: Audience of "marathon training" readers sees ad for marathon coaching program, not generic fitness offer.
Cart abandoners: Show the actual product they viewed.
Lead magnet viewers: Offer the next logical step in your funnel.
Run 2-3 creative variations per campaign:
Let Roku optimize toward the winner.
Video Completion Rate (VCR) is the key metric. High VCR = relevant ad.
Target VCR: 70%+ is excellent. Below 50% means creative isn't resonating.
How to improve VCR:
CTV works best as part of a multi-channel strategy:
CTV + Social: TV builds awareness, social drives clicks.
CTV + Search: TV drives brand searches. Capture them with paid search.
CTV + Email: Email subscribers who also see TV ads convert 3x better.
Don't run TV in isolation. Coordinate with your other channels in Distribution Planner.
Q: Do I need an existing Roku Ads account? Yes. ILLIXIS connects to your Roku Ads account but doesn't create one for you.
Q: What's the minimum budget? $500 per campaign. Roku recommends $1,000+ for meaningful results.
Q: Can I use ILLIXIS videos in Roku campaigns? Yes. Videos from Video Production export in Roku-compatible format (1920x1080 MP4).
Q: How long does audience sync take? 10-30 minutes for initial sync. Updates happen automatically every 24 hours.
Q: What's a good match rate? 30-50% is typical. Higher if your audience skews toward streaming TV viewers.
Q: Can I run Roku campaigns outside the US? Roku CTV is currently US-only.
Q: How does Roku track conversions? Roku uses hashed email matching and deterministic cross-device tracking. If someone sees your TV ad and later converts using the same email, Roku attributes it.
Q: Should I target broad or narrow? Start narrow (retargeting specific audiences). Expand to broader targeting once you have proof of concept.
Q: How is this different from YouTube ads? YouTube is online video (watched on phones, tablets, computers). Roku is TV (watched on actual television screens). Viewer mindset and engagement are different.
Q: Can I A/B test on Roku? Yes. Upload multiple creatives and Roku will optimize budget toward the best performer.
What This Does
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Location: Advertising → Audiences → LinkedIn Opportunities bell notifications