One of the hottest topics in the world today is sustainability. And as carbon-tracking groups started measuring emissions generated by digital ad campaigns, sustainability also became a hot topic in the programmatic advertising industry. Thankfully, the technology that makes digital advertising possible has now created a solution to offset its carbon footprint.
To discuss Viant’s Adtricity program and how it helped one of our clients achieve their sustainability goals, we sat down with Account Executive Alyssa Haggerty.
Q: Alyssa, before we get started, can you discuss Viant’s Adtricity program, specifically our Supply Decarbonization Initiative, and how it can help agencies and advertisers reduce their carbon footprint?
A: A few years ago, there was a lot of news around greenhouse gasses and the digital advertising industry, and I think it served as a call to action to leaders in the space that change was needed. As a company, we achieved carbon neutrality in 2023, but we wanted to take things a step further by helping to reduce carbon emissions across the industry as a whole. Viant developed the Adtricity program to create a more sustainable future for digital advertising by reducing the environmental footprint of programmatic campaigns run through our platform.
The Supply Decarbonization initiative, which falls under the Adtricity program, ensures that ad campaigns executed through the Viant DSP are powered by 100% renewable energy. This extends beyond just Viant, even including SSP and publisher emissions, making the whole Viant supply chain carbon neutral. As a part of this, digital ads executed through Viant now include a “Carbon Label” which is a green leaf icon that indicates that an ad was delivered through the purchase of renewable energy which adds a layer of transparency for consumers who receive these ads.
Q: Say I’m a new Viant client — how do I get started with Adtricity?
A: The good news is, all Viant clients are participants in the Adtricity program simply by executing campaigns through our DSP. Regardless of how advertisers choose to run (managed service, self service, etc), their campaigns are powered by 100% renewable energy and are helping decarbonize the supply chain.
For clients who are interested in making an even larger impact, there is the Adtricity Customer Incentive Program. Through this program, renewable energy credits (RECs) are delivered for media investment in the DSP at no extra cost, allowing them to support their own carbon reduction efforts.
Q: Let’s talk more about the Adtricity Customer Incentive Program. We recently had an agency client, Novus, go the extra mile with Adtricity for more sustainable advertising. Can you tell us why they were interested in a sustainable solution?
A: We know that some advertisers have lofty sustainability goals of their own and, as a result, the topic often comes up in new business conversations and as agency partnerships continue to develop. Novus (and other agencies we work with) already have a lot on their plate serving as stewards of their clients’ media dollars, so adding on the responsibility of helping their clients achieve their sustainability goals is a big task! I think that’s why the Adtricity program, and the Adtricity Customer Incentive Program more specifically, is so appealing. Novus can leverage our Adtricity program to help their clients achieve their sustainability goals without having to build a solution from the ground up on their end. Their advertisers win by reducing carbon and earning RECs by doing something they were already planning to do (run programmatic campaigns), and Novus serves as the facilitator of the whole process, bringing an additional layer of value to their partnerships with advertisers. I think Novus really views this program as an opportunity to help their clients’ ad dollars work even harder, driving business results and reducing environmental impact at the same time. It’s a win-win!
Q. Can you discuss the Adtricity onboarding journey for Novus?
A: The onboarding process for enrolling in the Adtricity Customer Incentive Program is simple! Since we already had a Viant MSA in place with Novus, we simply needed to get the Adtricity Addendum signed — this outlines all of the nitty gritty program details (e.g., when RECs are issued, how compliant REC transfer occurs, etc.). From there, Novus continues to leverage the DSP to execute their clients’ campaigns and at the end of the year, once spend is finalized, we’ll deliver the retired RECs.
Q. Let’s pivot to the industry as a whole — what if agencies have their own sustainability goals? How does Adtricity work with them to achieve these goals?
A: It feels like now more than ever I’m connecting with agencies that have sustainability goals of their own and Adtricity is beneficial to them as well! One agency I work closely with recently became B Corp certified, a certification process that includes an environmental stewardship requirement. We’ve talked a lot about how Adtricity aligns so well with that requirement by “minimizing negative impact and pursuing positive impact.” The Adtricity Customer Incentive Program, and the RECs earned through that program, offer flexibility regarding who the end receiver is. For some partners, it means that the individual advertisers receive the RECs to drive impact against their carbon reduction goals, and in other cases, agencies may choose to receive the RECs to support their own sustainability initiatives. I love that the program has flexibility to allow our partners to leverage these sustainability initiatives in the way that makes the most sense for them.
Q. As sustainability becomes more of a focus in upcoming years, why do you think our Adtricity program is a winning solution for agencies and advertisers?
A: As someone who spent eight years on the agency side, I think the turnkey nature of the Adtricity program is what makes it a winning solution. The sustainability space can be overwhelming, and being able to lean on Viant as a partner with a solution already in place to help address carbon reduction is huge! No need to change your strategy or jump through a million hoops — you can help your agency or advertisers reach their sustainability goals by tapping into the Viant DSP. What marketer or time-strapped trader wouldn’t love that?!
