The news: OpenAI plans to start testing more visual ads in ChatGPT later this month with an initial group of US advertisers, the company announced Monday. A new format could help consumers imagine how a brand’s products and services can be used, potentially encouraging more purchases.

Visual ads will be tested in ChatGPT’s image-generation experience, where they will appear as users create images but remain clearly labeled and separate from the generated image.

Why it matters: ChatGPT is pushing toward being a fuller advertising platform—the new ad format arrives alongside expanded measurement capabilities and brand-suitability tools.

OpenAI’s strengthened ad measurement efforts include:

• Boosting support for attribution partners such as Kochava to help advertisers connect ChatGPT Ads with existing web and app measurement systems.
• Shifting to pricing ads based on clicks over impressions and partnering with LiveRamp.

It’s addressing brand safety standards by:

• Investing in brand suitability partnerships with DoubleVerify and Integral Ad Science to help advertisers verify that their ads aren’t appearing alongside content that’s not appropriate for the brand.
• Introducing exclusion targeting to help advertisers control the context in which their campaigns appear.

Shifting away from text-focused ads could draw user attention more effectively. That could make ChatGPT’s still-unproven ad offerings more appealing to advertisers who are interested in marketing within AI chatbots but unconvinced on their potential and wary about high costs.

Recommendations for marketers: OpenAI’s additions add appeal to its still-evolving ad offerings—but marketers should approach ChatGPT ads with a test-and-learn mindset. The platform is most valuable for brands that have room to experiment and are curious to learn about AI-era advertising.

• Lower the cost of entry through ad tech partners. Partners like Criteo and StackAdapt can reduce upfront costs by thousands while simplifying product feed integrations to make running initial tests more feasible and less risky.
• Start small and avoid major investments before ChatGPT proves that it can consistently drive outcomes. As the platform’s offerings evolve, document which contexts and formats work best and take advantage of evolving measurement capabilities.

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