On March 18, 2025, the world of advertising technology took significant strides as several companies unveiled innovative solutions aimed at enhancing the relevance of digital ads. Mindbody, RAAS LAB, and Rokt each announced breakthroughs potentially transforming how advertisers deliver messages to their audiences.
Mindbody, the leading experience technology platform for the wellness industry, struck a partnership with Rokt to deliver more relevant advertisements to its membership community. This collaboration aims to revolutionize the customer experience on Mindbody’s app by leveraging Rokt's AI-powered capabilities. The initiative is poised to provide ads aligned with user interests, thereby ensuring non-intrusive messaging.
“Rokt’s technology enables us to deliver ad messaging...that complements the customer experience rather than disrupts it,” said Alice Shen, Director of Strategic Partnerships and App Ecosystem for Mindbody. She emphasized the platform's commitment to creating thoughtfully curated and relevant post-booking messages for their users, reinforcing the alignment of ads with their interests.
Rokt's advanced infrastructure is expected to power over 6.5 billion transactions throughout 2025, highlighting its scale and impact. Previously, the company reported remarkable growth, achieving over 40% increase in revenue, totaling $600 million by the end of 2024. With ancillary offerings such as the ACE generative AI tool and AfterSell acquisition, Rokt aims to supercharge the effectiveness of advertisements within wellness and fitness ecosystems.
Meanwhile, RAAS LAB introduced the Relevant Marketplace (RMP), touting it as the first of its kind aimed at optimizing ad delivery by marrying creative message with placement. This new platform streamlines the advertisers’ ability to curate inventory to achieve greater engagement per impression.
“AI is creating a new era of possibility,” said Thomas Ives, co-founder of RAAS LAB. He added, “as the only technology to optimise the combination of creative and media at the impression level, we are thrilled to have launched the RMP. With it, advertisers will...enjoy more effective monetization of their inventory.”
The RMP showcases advanced analytics to grasp the contextual relevance of both web pages and corresponding creative messages, enabling hyper-relevant placements. For example, if a user is reviewing BBQ products, the platform can dynamically serve related advertisements, ensuring higher relevance and consumer connection.
On another front, AI is reshaping contextual advertising at scale. Traditionally burdened by basic keyword matching, contextual targeting has seen revitalization through artificial intelligence, facilitating smarter placements and resolving historical challenges. Today, consumers increasingly demand ads aligned with the content they engage with, as indicated by 63% favoring relativity.
PepsiCo, for example, effectively applied AI-driven contextual targeting and experienced substantial results during Prime Day 2024: achieving a return on ad spend three times higher than traditional methods, slashing cost per acquisition by 62%, and extending their overall reach.
Defined as Contextual 2.0, these enhancements promote interaction through real-time data analysis, enabling brands to discover connections between content themes and consumer behaviors based on nuanced intent. They are set to deliver engaging, privacy-friendly experiences amid tightening regulations.
Blueair has also benefited from AI-driven contextual targeting, using the technology alongside Tinuiti. They remarked impactful results, including doubling their detail page view rate and significantly reducing their cost per thousand impressions. These results vividly demonstrate how contextual AI leads to tremendous benefits, facilitating engagement for brands and customers alike.
The evolution of contextual targeting, bolstered by substantial advancements through AI, positions companies like Rokt and RAAS LAB competitively within the advertising sphere. Integrations such as the RMP alongside innovative partnerships portend increased momentum for ad personalization, offering unmatched pathways for enhancing consumer experiences.
Overall, the announcements signify a broader shift for the advertising industry, spotlighting the continuous drive for relevance and compliance with stringent privacy standards. With new technologies and partnerships, the digital ad space is on the cusp of significant transformation, rekindling the importance of contextual relevancy as consumer expectations evolve.
