The future of brand growth isn’t in bigger buys – it’s in smarter, more strategic ones.
On any crisp fall Saturday in Ann Arbor, Michigan, you’ll find generations of fans gathered outside the Big House—grandparents in maize and blue, students in face paint, alumni reliving their glory days.
Miles away in South Florida, neighbors crowd into a living room draped in Florida Panthers jerseys, trading banter as they cheer on the team entering a new season following their third straight Stanley Cup win.
Scenes like these play out across America, from Friday night lights to local news coverage of community parades. In these moments, divides fade and something more unifying takes center stage: rabid local pride.
For decades, advertisers have chased national dominance, convinced that bigger buys meant bigger impact. But the real impact often happens closer to home—and that’s where today’s smartest marketers are starting to place their bets.
From National Dominance To Local Relevance
Not long ago, watching your local professional team was a free, shared experience. That value eroded when regional sports networks drove up costs and limited access. But the tide is turning. Broadcasters are reclaiming local connections by bringing live sports back to free TV, unlocking massive scale for audiences and advertisers. As fans rediscover their teams, they are rewarding the brands that show up alongside them.
This isn’t just passion—it’s purchase behavior. CMOs recognize that emotional connections built through sports translate directly into action. These are sticky, high-frequency touchpoints that national TV alone can’t consistently deliver.
Local: The Modern Equalizer
For years, the challenge was scale. Local impact was powerful but difficult to deliver with the precision and efficiency modern marketers demand. That’s changed. Connected TV (CTV) and Free Ad-Supported Streaming TV (FAST) now combine the emotional pull of local with the reach and measurability of digital, reshaping how and where audiences tune in:
- Streaming now accounts for 47.3% of all U.S. TV viewing (Nielsen, July 2025).
- 7 in 10 viewers watch FAST (Free Ad-Supported Streaming TV) channels monthly (Hub Research, November 2024).
- Live sports remain the top driver of viewing, with the NFL representing 72 of the top 100 U.S. broadcasts in 2024 (Nielsen).
CTV is also the fastest-growing ad channel, with U.S. revenue at $28.75 billion in 2024 (eMarketer), up nearly 19% year-over-year. Yet many still view it through a national-only lens. In reality, the rise of addressable targeting and consumer adoption makes local CTV one of the most powerful and accessible tools in a marketer’s playbook.
Unlike traditional national TV, local CTV and FAST allow brands to target precisely, measure rigorously and connect authentically with audiences. For challengers, it’s a way to punch above their weight. For incumbents, it reinforces trust where it matters most.
Taken together, these shifts mark a new era in brand growth—one driven by connection, relevance and efficiency. Local CTV and FAST deliver all three, meeting audiences where passion runs deepest and attention is highest.
Making Local CTV A Power Play For Brands
For many brands, local is coming off the bench as a key player in a sophisticated, multi-channel strategy. If you know how to activate it, you can out‑punch competitors with far bigger budgets. Here’s how:
- Anchor To Passion Points
Local loyalty is tribal. Whether it’s Friday night lights highlights on local news or coverage of the community weekend event. Start by finding the cultural and community events your audience cares about most in each market, then build your buy around those moments in streaming environments.
- Design for The Streamer’s Mindset
Gen Z and Millennials are building their affinities on streaming. Hook attention in the first few seconds, deliver the brand cue early and create versions that fit different screens. Today, it’s becoming easier than ever for brands to produce the right ads for the right audiences through the use of AI tools that can produce new versions of creative tailored for specific platforms. Additionally, self-service tools can help an advertiser make the leap from social to digital with ease.
- Pair Big Storytelling With Clear Action
CTV can inspire and convert in the same campaign. Run emotive brand spots alongside creative with clear next steps—QR scans, offer codes, “find it near me” prompts—to turn awareness into measurable lift to collapse the purchase funnel in real time.
- Target The Moment, Not Just The Market
Don’t stop at ZIP codes. CTV lets brands layer in first‑party data, behavioral signals and contextual triggers. Seeing an ad for the local wing spot while watching the game on a chilly October day just hits different—and it means delivery by halftime.
- Measure Like A Performance Channel
CTV lets you track what matters: store visits, web traffic, incremental sales. Set market benchmarks and test against control regions so you can prove exactly where local CTV is moving the needle.
- Plan For Mid‑Flight Moves
CTV gives you the agility to optimize creative, shift targeting or double down on high-performing creative in real time. Build in flexibility so you can ride trends, not chase them.
The Bottom Line For CMOs
The media landscape is shifting. Brands that cling to national-only strategies will keep paying more for less. Meanwhile, competitors leaning into local video and CTV and FAST are building durable affinity, measurable outcomes and community-powered connection.