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If you are exploring ways to increase your ad yield, you’ve probably stumbled upon ad refresh as a tool that can help you earn incremental revenue from the same users that visit your site. But what exactly is ad refresh and is it right for your site? In this article, we’ll answer these questions, as well as discuss some best practices and implications of its implementation. What is ad refresh? Ad refresh allows publishers to load new ads in a single user session without reloading the entire page. The refresh is activated on a specific trigger (such as time, event, or user action) and practically increases the ad impressions that publishers can monetize. Types of ad refresh Depending on the trigger that will activate the refresh, we differentiate between the following types: Time-based ad refresh As the name suggests, time-based ad refresh simply means that a new ad will be loaded after a predetermined time interval, such as 30, 60, or 90 seconds. The trigger will usually activate regardless of whether the user is browsing the page or not, which means they might have another tab open and not be looking at the page at all. This directly impacts ad viewability in a negative way and respectively results in lower rates for ads as advertisers are not willing to put their money on placements that are not being seen. Event-based ad refresh An ad refresh is considered event-based when a trigger is an event initiated by the publisher. Most commonly,…
Ad fraud has been a major concern in the digital advertising industry. According to data from Fraudlogix gathered across 35 million ad impressions in Q1 2022, bots and ad fraud make up 15.6% globally. In terms of the value of ad spending lost to fraud, it’s expected to reach $68 billion globally in 2022, compared to $59 billion in 2021. Juniper Research identified that 5 countries account for 60% of global losses: the US, Japan, China, South Korea, and the UK. But ad fraud is an issue with global implications and companies everywhere are taking measures to combat it. This article takes a closer look at ad fraud and examines recent trends in fraud detection and mitigation. What is ad fraud? Ad fraud is any attempt to mislead advertisers into believing that fake online activity is real. This is commonly done using bots but may include other methods. Ad fraud obstructs ads from being delivered to the actual target audience. Scammers deceive advertisers into paying for this fake activity, therefore skewing KPIs and misleading marketers. Common ad fraud indicators vary from unusually low performance and low conversion rates to sudden spikes in CTR or impressions. Types of ad fraud There are different kinds of advertising fraud across web, mobile web, and mobile apps, such as: Click fraud – Fake clicks generated using bots or click farms (teams of low-wage workers). Click injection – A type of mobile ad fraud where the user has a fraudulent app on their device. When…
With the rising popularity of native advertising, more and more publishers and advertisers are considering testing it and trying to understand how it compares to the old-school banner ads and which is a better fit for them. In order to answer these questions, it’s essential to first have a good understanding of what each format is and how they differ from each other, as well as each of their advantages and disadvantages. Let’s get right into it. What is display advertising? Banner ads, also known as display advertising, are your typical ads from the early days of online advertising and still going strong. Display ads have evolved from static images to various types of banners that have interactive and clickable elements (e.g. rich media files). They come in many sizes and can be placed across various parts of the webpage. Find out more about the best-performing banner ad sizes in this article. Display advertising has both its advantages and disadvantages and can be used successfully for various marketing purposes. Let’s look at the main pros and cons of banner ads. Pros Simple setup Banner ads are probably the most straightforward to design and implement. The variety of sizes makes them perfect for all kinds of websites and implementation is simple. High visibility The nature of display ads makes them clearly discernible from the main content on the page, which contributes to their high visibility, especially if a high-quality image is used or the ad is interactive. High fill rates As…
It’s no secret that data is crucial to efficient advertising. And in a world of big data, you need the respective technology to manage the vast amounts of information being generated by each and every person. Publishers and advertisers alike need tools to gather, store, analyze and manage such data and several technologies have emerged in ad tech that are essential to achieving scalable results. In this article, we will cover what data management platforms and demand-side platforms are, what each is used for and how they differ. Let’s get right into it. What is a DMP? Data management platforms, or DMPs, are essentially data warehouses. They help publishers, advertisers, and agencies collect, organize, store, analyze, and overall manage information about online users, most often cookie IDs. The data in DMPs can be first-, second-, and third-party. The information is used to better understand customers and audiences, optimize media buys, and execute better ad campaigns. For publishers, in particular, DMPs help build audience segments, which are more attractive to advertisers and can be pitched at premium prices. What is a DSP? Demand-side platforms, or DSPs, allow marketers, agencies, and buyers to optimize how they bid on ad inventory simultaneously across multiple ad exchanges in real-time. The technology helps them improve their ad spend strategies and gives bidders a number of tools to effectively manage ad campaigns, set maximum bids and budgets, define targeting, and monitor campaign goals. DSPs also give advertisers access to very granular data on audiences and campaign…
Ad tech terminology can get a bit confusing, even for seasoned professionals. Especially when terms are so similar to one another. In this article, we will see what exactly Automatic Guaranteed and Programmatic Guaranteed are all about, and how they differ. Let’s get right into it. What is Automated Guaranteed? The term Automated Guaranteed is used for advertising agreements that were traditionally executed via direct deals (insertion orders) and are now possible end-to-end as a programmatic direct deal. The transaction is agreed upon directly between the buyer and seller via a mediation platform and the inventory volume and pricing are fixed. Publishers usually package their inventory and present it to advertisers at guaranteed volumes. Price is negotiated and once an agreement is reached, the deal elements are plugged directly into the publisher’s ad server via the ad server’s API, which is what distinguishes Automated Guaranteed from other programmatic direct deals (such as Programmatic Guaranteed). Advantages Automated Guaranteed allows publishers to present their inventory to buyers in a way that makes the sales process more efficient and less resource-intensive. Media owners can shift the focus towards building relationships, discussing performance and strategic partnerships, while selling impressions in an optimized automatic way and filling their pipeline efficiently in the meantime. Buyers can browse through the available options, and build their own campaigns, which eliminates the need for ongoing communication on those elements and saves both sides precious time, effort, and possible misunderstandings. The price of the inventory is determined by both the…
Native advertising is growing. Since the start of the pandemic, users have been more and more exposed to ads. This has made traditional online advertising less effective, urging advertisers to focus on non-intrusive native campaigns. The numbers speak loudly and clearly. Native display ad spending increased from $47.33bn in 2020 to $57.27bn in 2021. That trend is expected to last. The native advertising sector is predicted to continue growing, reaching $400bn by 2025. Let us take a closer look at native advertising, what makes it so popular, and some of the latest trends. What is native advertising? Native ads are meant to blend in. While they’re still paid ads, they’re designed to look as natural as possible, without disrupting the user experience. Unlike display ads, native ads have the same feel and function as your website content or app. To differentiate them from editorial content, they’re labeled as ‘Sponsored’, ‘Promoted’, etc. Native ads usually contain less text, relying on captivating images to get users to click. Native CPMs and CPCs are higher than those of display ads. Forms of native advertising include in-feed ad formats (e.g. on social media platforms), content recommendations (a.k.a. recommendations widgets), sponsored posts, and paid search ads in search engines, among others. Why is it trendy? Users have come to expect more from online advertising. They’ve grown more resistant to intrusive ads. Therefore, creatives are expected to be more tasteful and more relevant to user interests. Since native ads rely on a softer, more natural feel,…
In web monetization, there are many numbers you need to be constantly aware of. Ad Fill Rate is one of them. But what does it stand for? What determines it? How can you optimize your fill rate and is it supposed to be 100%? Read below to find out the answers to these questions and more. What is Ad fill rate? The fill rate represents the ratio between the number of successfully delivered ads versus the number of ad calls made. Or, to put it simply, fill rate is the percentage of ad calls that resulted in a filled ad spot. How do you calculate it? You can calculate your fill rate as follows: Divide the number of ads served by the total number of ad requests. Then, multiply by 100 to get a percentage. So for example, if 60,000 ads were delivered out of 100,000 ad calls, that gives you a 60% fill rate. Should you aim for a 100% fill rate? As you’re probably aware, reaching a 100% fill rate is almost impossible. But should you actually strive to achieve a perfect fill rate? Not really. Your fill rate is just one of the indicators of monetization success – and a high fill rate doesn’t always mean higher revenues. Usually, as the fill rate increases past a certain point, CPM rates will decrease. After your premium ad inventory is filled with top-paying ads, the remnant inventory that’s left will generally be filled at progressively lower rates. It’s best…
Video content has gained impressive popularity. It’s engaging, it’s creative, and it’s mobile-friendly. Hence, video advertising has also been widely used. Many businesses (86% to be exact) use video marketing to generate buzz about their products. And publishers are eager to maximize video ad revenue. As a result, there are more and more ad networks specializing in video monetization. That’s why we decided to take a closer look at video advertising and what are the best ad networks to explore. What is video advertising? As the name suggests, these are ads that involve video content. There are in-stream ads that appear before, during, or after video content (called pre-, mid-, and post-roll, respectively). These could be considered irritating at times, so to ensure a good user experience, publishers take different measures. They may allow users to skip pre-roll ads after 5 seconds, limit the number of video ads shown per video, or refrain from using mid-roll or post-roll. There are also outstream ads that are displayed alongside static content (in-content or as a sticky). These use existing ad units and do not require publishers to offer video content. The IAB categorizes video ad formats into three groups: Linear video ads – videos shown before, during, or after the video content. Non-linear video ads – videos shown along with video content without interrupting it (i.e. overlays). Companion ads – display ads, or banners, shown alongside the video. What is a video ad network? Ad networks are intermediaries that help advertisers and…
Demand Side Platforms have been a major part of programmatic advertising. But as they grew in popularity, they grew in numbers, making it harder to choose the best one. Our article is here to help. It starts off by covering what a DSP is and what it does and continues with a useful list of some of the most sought-after platforms. What is a demand-side platform (DSP)? As the name suggests, DSPs cater to the demand side in digital advertising, i.e. advertisers, ad agencies, and app developers. It enables them to create ad campaigns and buy ad inventory from publishers. The ad impressions are sold via real-time bidding (RTB). To improve the process, DSPs use data from Data Management platforms (DMPs). What are its benefits? The advantages of using a DSP include: Advertisers can connect to various Ad exchanges and Supply-side platforms (SSPs), and gain better access to ad space All connections are managed via a single interface Allows for multi-channel campaigns and cross-channel retargeting Better targeting capabilities for audience segments based on demographics, online user behavior, etc. Top DSP List Whether they offer a multichannel approach or mobile-only, a self-service or managed solution, each platform has its strengths and key selling points. Here is a selection of some popular DSPs worth exploring. Adcolony Adcolony (part of Digital Turbine) has been around since 2011 and is dedicated entirely to mobile advertising. It has a vast total reach of more than 1.5 billion users, including a direct supply of 135 million…