6 Programmatic Advertising Examples That Deliver Real Results

Would you pay any attention to ads for fishing rods if you are looking for a new ski suit for the winter season? Probably not. But if you see a banner promising the best prices on well-known skiwear brands, it is highly likely that you will click on it. One of the main secrets behind any successful ad is the relevance of its messaging. The right user should see ads exactly when this person needs them.

And the role of AdTech tools and programmatic advertising in business growth and customer satisfaction shouldn’t be underestimated. It is proven by a row of successful real-life programmatic advertising examples from brands working across various domains.

In our article, we will talk about such cases and share programmatic ideas that you can use for your campaigns.

What is a Programmatic Ad Campaign?

Such tools allow companies to avoid time-consuming manual negotiations.

With this approach, advertisers do not need to look for publishers on their own and then discuss all terms and conditions to purchase ad space. Programmatic ad platforms combine automation, data-driven targeting, and real-time optimization. All this can deliver measurable results.

Programmatic technology uses real-time bidding (RTB), audience data insights, and algorithms to deliver the right ad to the right person at the right moment.

According to recent research, in 2024, the size of the programmatic advertising market was $833.16 billion. Now, it is projected that by 2032, it will reach $4397.68 billion. It means that over the forecast period of 2025-2032, it will be growing at a CAGR of over 23%.

Why do advertisers use programmatic campaigns?

• Higher efficiency.
• Lower manual labor.
• Better targeting precision.
• Improved ROI through real-time optimization.
• Scalability across multiple channels, including display, video, mobile, and CTV.

Programmatic Advertising Campaigns: What Makes them Successful?

Before we proceed to the analysis of programmatic advertising examples, let’s take a closer look at the factors that define their success. Such campaigns heavily rely on the correctly chosen strategy, data, technology, and constant optimization.

Though a huge part of the work is done by automation tools, marketers still need to guide the process. And to do it properly, they need to have clear objectives and make informed decisions. Here are the essential elements of winning programmatic ad examples.

Well-defined goals and KPIs

Every successful campaign begins with a clearly formulated programmatic advertising strategy.

Marketers and advertisers should understand the main aim of their efforts. It can be brand awareness, conversions, app installs, or retargeting. Based on this, it is possible to introduce measurable KPIs to ensure the campaign stays aligned with business objectives. Defined goals also become a foundation for the right choice of bidding approaches, targeting methods, and budget allocation.

Accurate audience targeting

Programmatic advertising significantly benefits from precision. Campaigns perform best when they leverage detailed audience segmentation based on demographics, interests, behaviors, location, and real-time contextual signals. The more accurate the targeting, the more likely ads are to reach high-intent users. And a lot of successful programmatic examples prove this.

Engaging creatives

Even with advanced algorithms, poor creatives will negatively affect the effectiveness of a campaign and can even become a reason for its failure. Eye-catching visuals, compelling copy, and personalized messaging catch users’ attention and boost performance. The best results can be achieved when creatives are tailored to different segments and formats. Programmatic advertising companies always recommend conducting A/B testing of multiple ad variants to identify what resonates most.

Reliable data and smart bidding strategies

Data is the foundation of programmatic ad success. Both first-party and trusted third-party data help platforms make real-time bidding decisions. Smart bidding strategies (like automated bid optimization, frequency capping, and dynamic pricing) can ensure efficient spend.

Cross-channel presence

Users interact with brands across multiple touchpoints. Successful campaigns combine display, video, mobile, native, and CTV to create consistent experiences. This improves brand recognition and increases opportunities for conversion.

Continuous monitoring and optimization

Programmatic campaigns require your close attention even after their launch. Real-time insights allow advertisers to adjust bids, pause underperforming creatives, refine targeting, and shift budgets toward high-performing segments. Continuous optimization keeps campaigns competitive and cost-effective even amid dynamic market conditions.

Fraud prevention measures

Campaigns must include safeguards against ad fraud, invalid traffic, and unsafe placements. Modern demand-side platforms (DSPs) provide powerful tools to ensure the desired security. For instance, they offer brand-safety filters, whitelists, and fraud detection mechanisms. When properly applied, they can ensure ads appear only in high-quality environments.

What is a Demand-Side Platform (DSP): How Does It Work

Learn how DSP platform enables advertisers to buy and sell digital ad space via real-time bidding in programmatic advertising.

Transparent reporting

Clear analytics make it easier to measure success. Access to detailed reporting gives marketers and programmatic advertising companies the insights required to evaluate performance and understand audience behavior. When businesses have such insights at hand, they can refine future programmatic ideas and strategies in accordance with the ongoing users’ needs.

Programmatic Advertising Examples to Pay Attention to

When you are planning to launch your programmatic advertising campaign, it will be useful to study not only theoretical basics but also some real-life cases that demonstrate the real potential of this approach to digital marketing. If any successful programmatic advertising example seems similar to your case, you can take it as a foundation for building your own strategy that will lead you to success.

In this article, we will consider the following cases:

• Sea Asia 2025.
• Surviveware.
• The Amanda Foundation.
• IHG Hotels & Resorts.
• AXE.
• The Economist.

Sea Asia 2025

Sea Asia is a leading maritime conference and exhibition held biennially in Singapore. It attracts professionals and organizations from across the global shipping industry.

Goal

The organizers of the Sea Asia 2025 maritime conference, held on March 24-27, 2025, wanted to increase event awareness and boost registration conversions among naval professionals.

What was done

They launched a location-based programmatic campaign that targeted mobile devices within 11 geofenced zones around the event venue. Audience segmentation relied on previous engagement data from similar B2B events. Creative messaging was tailored to the B2B context. It was professional and aligned with the maritime theme.

Result

The campaign achieved over 12,000 impressions from a potential audience of more than 1 million maritime professionals. Over 80% of clicks resulted in a conversion.

What has made this campaign successful? It was targeted at people physically at the event venue. Apart from it, its timing was just around the event dates. It means that the message was timely and contextually relevant. Though B2B audiences are harder to work with than the broader B2C sector, the micro-targeting of the campaign brought its fruits.

Surviveware

Surviveware is a US-based brand known for high-quality first aid kits and outdoor survival gear, which primarily sells through the Amazon platform.

Goal

The company started noticing that a lot of shoppers who viewed their products and then left Amazon didn’t return to finish a purchase. That’s why one of the key goals for a new ad campaign was to find ways to push shoppers to come back to the website and place an order.

What was done

Ahead of Amazon Prime Day, Surviveware launched a programmatic campaign through Amazon DSP. The team used Amazon’s dynamic ecommerce ad templates to quickly generate branded display ads that pulled real-time product details directly from their listings. These templates enabled fast setup and leveraged Amazon’s trusted branding.

Result

The campaign launched in time for Prime Day and was further optimized for the upcoming holiday season. Over one month, the DSP strategy generated more than $64,000 in sales from just $6,000 in ad spend. It means that the company achieved a 10.4× ROAS (return on ad spend), which made it a very successful programmatic advertising example.

It is also important to mention that over 70% of sales came from new-to-brand customers.

The Amanda Foundation

The Amanda Foundation is a Los Angeles-based nonprofit animal rescue organization dedicated to saving and rehoming pets.

Goal

The foundation aimed to increase pet adoptions by connecting specific animals with potential adopters who matched their lifestyles and preferences.

What was done

The Amanda Foundation ran a campaign that became one of the best programmatic display ads examples. It was called Digital Pawprint. The organization used browsing behaviour and demographic data to tailor ad creatives. For example, they showed ads for energetic dogs to active-lifestyle users. At the same time, people who have more sedentary lifestyles could see ads for calm pets.

Result

This campaign brightly demonstrates the value of collecting and using insight data (behavior, preferences, demographics, etc.) to match your offers with the most appropriate audience. Dynamic creative optimization helps deliver many tailored messages at once without the need to create separate variants for each user group manually.

IHG Hotels & Resorts

IHG Hotels & Resorts is the global hospitality group behind brands like Holiday Inn, Crowne Plaza, and InterContinental. It operates thousands of hotels worldwide.

Goal

IHG faced a growing challenge as nearly 20% of travelers began booking through online travel agencies instead of directly on hotel websites. The goal of its campaign was to shift user behavior back toward direct bookings.

What was done

The campaign was targeted at potential guests who were already applying metasearch or price-comparison tools. The key idea was to drive users back to IHG’s own sites. IHG used programmatic display ads with messaging that was expected to convince users that direct booking could ensure the lowest prices.

Result

The campaign was powered by advanced audience targeting (behavioral, interest, intent). As a result, the ads could reach relevant audiences at the right moment. It appeared to users who were already comparing hotel prices or searching travel-related channels. Such efforts helped the hotel operator to redirect a significant part of users to its websites.

This successful programmatic advertising example demonstrates that such campaigns can be launched not just to achieve specific performance (and to get clicks or conversions) but also to ensure a strategic brand-channel shift.

AXE (by Unilever)

AXE, a men’s grooming brand under Unilever, is known for its bold, youth-focused marketing campaigns.

Goal

AXE had a goal to promote its brand among young male consumers in Brazil, and to do it, the brand launched a highly personalized and creative video campaign.

What was done

The campaign was dubbed Romeo Reboot. It was inspired by the classic Romeo and Juliet story, but in this case, the ad creatives were dynamically tailored to different viewer segments.

The campaign segmented the audience into several groups and designed creative assets tailored to their interests and behaviors. They created up to 100,000 unique video variations by combining different scenes (for example, sci-fi, crime story, romance, and others) and adjusting elements, such as music, tone, and visual style, according to the viewer’s profile. Instead of showing one generic ad to everyone, the brand preferred to reach users with versions that resonated with their interests, like music tastes or subculture cues.

Result

The campaign used programmatic video delivery tools to serve the right version of the video to the right user in real time. Daily, the campaign produced around 43,000 unique videos. The results exceeded benchmarks by about 10-20% in audience engagement.

The Economist

The Economist is a globally respected British publication with a history of over 150 years. It is renowned for its in-depth reporting on politics, economics, and world affairs.

Goal

The brand was well-known among a certain demographic (mainly white‑collar audiences), but it became harder for The Economist to widen its appeal. The journal had difficulties in attracting younger, more digitally oriented readers who were hesitant to subscribe. That’s why its goal was to increase subscriptions and refresh brand perception.

What was done

The magazine relied on programmatic advertising to drive new subscriptions, boost awareness, and disrupt a previous image of being a handbook for the corporate elite. The Economist identified multiple segments of potential readers (those interested in finance, politics, technology, social justice, etc.) who had not yet subscribed.

Using data about user behavior and the pages they visited, the campaign placed targeted ads in contexts that matched the interests of these people. For example, when a person was reading an article about military technology, the ad might link to a related piece on The Economist platform.

Result

The campaign generated 650,000 new prospects. The return on investment was reported at 10:1, which means that The Economist received £10 revenue for every £1 invested.

Wrapping up

Programmatic advertising has proven to be a game-changing tool for conducting targeted and measurable campaigns. The programmatic marketing examples highlighted in our article demonstrate how businesses can leverage this technology to achieve impressive results.

With programmatic ad platforms, you can benefit from dynamic retargeting and address different audience segments with highly personalized messages based on their needs and interests.

This approach to running your digital ad campaigns can ensure significantly higher engagement and maximize ROI.