Channel Factory Data Reveals Brands Are Targeting the Wrong Audiences with Sustainability Content
For Earth Day 2026, Channel Factory Shows How Smarter Audience Targeting Can Cut Media Waste by 30% and Lift ROAS by 82%
NEW YORK, April 14, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- With Earth Day approaching, Channel Factory, the global contextual advertising company powering performance across walled gardens, has released new campaign data showing most brands are targeting the wrong audiences with sustainability content.
While most brands target the young, passive, awareness-stage consumers, the data reveals that the sustainability audiences that create greater campaign performance outcomes skew older, with 44% aged 55 and above, and are more likely to be homeowners, financially stable, and actively in consideration mode.
“Sustainability and environmentally friendly advertising have historically been an ethical signal aimed at younger, awareness-stage audiences,” said Chelsea Goldberg, Senior Vice President, US Sales Operations & Central Sales at Channel Factory. “This is a planning problem, not a messaging one. Brands need to move beyond assumed ‘eco audiences,’ align creative to what actually drives decisions, such as cost, performance, and longevity, and build for consideration, not just awareness.”
Even with clear performance gains, some brands still see sustainability environments as niche or upper-funnel. Channel Factory data shows campaigns running in sustainability-aligned environments achieved approximately 39% view rates, 34% completion rates, and 3% click-through rates, while contextual precision reduced media waste by up to 30% and increased ROAS by up to 82%.
There’s an environmental cost to this strategy as well. OVO, a UK energy brand committed to reaching net-zero carbon emissions, partnered with Channel Factory to eliminate media waste in its YouTube campaigns without compromising performance. Using Cedara, a leading carbon accounting platform for media, to measure emissions at 1.39g of CO₂ per impression, OVO reduced wasted impressions by 34% and saved 131 metric tons of CO₂, the equivalent of over 330,000 miles driven by a gas-powered vehicle.
Channel Factory embeds sustainability as a system, operationalized through its 3As framework of Audit, Avoid, Amplify, to ensure every impression works harder, wastes less, and delivers more. This Earth Day, the message is simple: better targeting is better for business, and better for the planet.
About Channel Factory
Channel Factory is a global technology and data company that optimizes business performance and protects brand reputation across walled-gardens. Utilizing proprietary AI and contextual targeting technologies, Channel Factory ensures ads are placed on brand-safe, contextually relevant content across YouTube, CTV platforms, and social media, including Meta and TikTok. Through its conscious media planning, Channel Factory is committed to promoting sustainability, diversity, and positive content, helping brands achieve their goals while fostering a healthier digital ecosystem.
Channel Factory has a presence in 54 countries across the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and ANZ, providing advertisers with IAB standard category lists and customized content options in 50+ languages. For more information about Channel Factory, please visit http://www.channelfactory.com.
Media Contact:
Aimee Miller
Legal Disclaimer:
EIN Presswire provides this news content "as is" without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above.
