What is an Ad Unit? – Tips to Choose the Best Type for Your Business?

What is an Ad Unit? – Tips to Choose the Best Type for Your Business?

Whether you’re setting up ads for the first time or fine-tuning current ads on your site, you will notice different types of ad units. Most advertisers use specific ad units, meaning customers are likely to click on them. As a result, publishers can generate more significant revenue with some ad units than with others.

Understanding what works best for your business is essential to getting the most out of your marketing efforts.

What is an Ad Unit?

An ad unit is a specific space on a web page to place an advertisement. Ad units contain the advertising code necessary to display ads from the ad server. Publishers can have multiple ad units of varying sizes and types on the same page to accommodate different ads. To unify standards for digital advertising, the Interactive Advertising Board oversees standards for ads, including the sizes and types of digital ads.

Ad Unit Types

Several ad units are common among publishers, each with its own benefits.

Google Ads

Advertisers can use Google Ads to advertise products or services in Google search results and publisher sites. Google Ads come in several formats, including text, image, and video. They are also highly customizable, so you can tailor your ads to reach people interested in your message, product, or service.

Adsense Ad

Google AdSense lets those who own blogs and websites run ads on them, while AdMob can monetize and promote mobile ads. They’re powered by Google’s Adsense program, which allows website owners to place ads on their site and earn money from clicks. Once you add a piece of code to your site, Google will show ads customized to your site’s layout, saving time to change the code.

Playable Ads

Playable ads are video ads that allow users to interact with a game or app before they download it. They give users a taste of what your game or app is like, which can be a powerful way to convince someone to download it. After a playable ad, customers who download the game or app will know what to expect, lowering churn and install rates.

Your audience’s lifetime value increases when you attract users likely to play the game, resulting in better value for the money spent to develop the playable ad. For example, Me2Zen, a mobile app developer, raised the return on ad spend (ROAS) by 50% and generated a three-fold increase in in-app purchases.

Text Ads

Text ads usually appear as small blocks of text and links on websites. These types of ads are easy to implement since they allow flexibility for companies to change them as needed without editing graphics and videos. They work equally well on mobile devices, desktop computers, and laptops so that they can reach audiences on any device. You can use text ads on Google, Bing, Facebook, and LinkedIn, depending on where your customers spend the most time.

Google defines text ads as marketing communications that can appear in the search results and the Google Display Network to advertise their products and services. The Google Display Network is a network of websites displaying ads and other Google products such as YouTube and  Gmail.

For example, a company selling women’s clothing might target its ads to sites with a predominantly female audience. They can also show text ads on social media accounts and those searching online for women’s clothes.

Ad Units Text Ad Exaple

Native Ads

Native ads are a type of ad unit that blends with the surrounding content and appearance. They can appear as ads in social media feeds and search and promote ads at the top of the search results. Native ads include content recommendations beneath articles you’ve just read.

A Stanford University study found that consumers are aware of native ads. However, if a relevant and interesting piece of content makes native advertising more engaging, users will see and engage with them.

Ad Units Native Ad

Video Ads

Video ads are a type of ad unit that uses video to tell a story and promote a product, service, or brand. Online video ads can appear as linear ads that play before, during, or after video streams, just like commercials on TV. While watching video content simultaneously, customers can see video ads appear as an overlay. These video ads may also be accompanied by text and display ads.

Display Ads

Display ads feature text, images, and a URL that directs customers to a website to learn more or purchase products. They can come as static images or animated ads with several photos, videos, or changing texts. Most display ads are served through ad networks, which match advertisers with websites that have space on their pages for the ads.

The benefits of display ads are that they can reach a wide audience and be very eye-catching, making them effective at getting people’s attention. They can show up as retargeting ads on websites and search results for customers who have previously expressed interest in a brand.

Interstitial Ad

Interstitial ads are a type of online advertising that refers to the practice of loading a full-screen interactive ad in between two pieces of content. These ads can pop up on a website page or between game levels.

While interstitial ads can effectively get a person’s attention, they can also be intrusive. Using them excessively or without considering the user experience can quickly result in frustration and resentment.

Google may penalize a website if its content is not easily accessible to users because of interstitial pop-ups. However, the company has established website and mobile app standards to avoid intrusive interstitial advertising. As a result, businesses need to consider whether or not to use them carefully.

Performing Ad

Performing ads are a type of online advertising that uses dynamic creative to automatically serve the best performing ad to each individual based on real-time data.

For example, if an ad receives more clicks than other ads, it will rank higher and appear above them. The advertiser pays for clicks on the ad. Using performing ads can save businesses time and money by automatically serving the best performing ad, and they can improve click-through rates and ROI.

Ad Unit Formats

Sites and apps use ad units to display advertisements to customers. They are available in various formats, each of which is uniquely effective. These are the most popular ad unit formats:

Banner Ads Unit

Banner ad units are typically rectangular, containing a mix of text, images, or videos. They are most commonly used to display advertising messages on websites and social media.

They can also appear on either the top or bottom mobile apps. When a customer stays on the same app, the banner ad unit refreshes with new ads regularly. The consistent changes in banner ad units can help to engage customers and increase click-through rates. 

Responsive Ads

Responsive ad units automatically adapt to the space they occupy on your website or app. These units can fit any screen size, whether a laptop, tablet, or mobile phone. For instance, advertisers must enter their assets such as text and images when they need to generate an ad in the Google Display Network (GDN), a network composed of Google products, including YouTube and Gmail. Google then uses the data to adjust the ads to fit into any space within the GDN.

Interstitial Ad Unit

In an interstitial ad unit, a full-screen advertisement appears between breaks and transitions on a website or app. For example, an interstitial ad can show after a customer completes a level in a mobile game app. This type of ad unit commands attention from customers, especially when they display in the middle of desktop computer and laptop screens.

Playable Ad Unit

As the name suggests, playable ad units are interactive ads similar to gameplay or an in-app experience. Typically, these ads can appear as full-screen interstitials within social media platforms, gaming apps, and entertainment sites. When customers come across a playable ad in an app, they can try it out, making them highly engaging. 

Audio Ads

Audio ads are a type of ad unit format available in audio content, such as podcasts or songs. Audio ads are typically short, around 30 seconds in length, and can be played before or after the audio content they promote. Some streaming services like Spotify allow advertisers to have companion display ads to show up during audio ads.

Offerwall Ad Unit

Offerwalls ad units let users complete specific tasks, such as taking surveys or watching videos, in exchange for in-app rewards. Users can use these rewards to redeem prizes, such as gift cards.

Implementing an offerwall ad unit can help monetize a website or app because they provide users control over their rewards. In addition, offerwalls can be customized to match the look and feel of a website or app, making them more seamlessly integrated than other types of advertising.

Slider Ads With Overlay

Slider ads are designed to slide into view, typically from the side of the screen. They are usually semi-transparent, with a call to action (CTA) that allows users to close the ad if they wish. Since they are non-intrusive, users can continue to use the site or app without having their experience interrupted by an intrusive ad, providing a seamless experience.

Rewarded Ad Unit

This ad unit allows users to watch a short video or complete a simple task in exchange for access to premium content. For example, a customer might be asked to watch a 30-second video to unlock an article.

Rewarded ad units can be highly effective as they provide users with a clear value exchange and allow publishers to monetize their content without sacrificing the user experience.

Native Ads

These ads let you change the appearance and feel of the ads in your app. Google regards native ads as component-based ads created by the publisher instead of the advertiser. Native ads can appear in various layouts, from sponsored posts to in-app content. Choose the ad placement carefully, so they blend seamlessly with the surrounding content.

Video Ad Unit

Video ad units usually include at least one video ad and come in various types. Here are some of the most common:

Bumper ads

Video ads of this type are short and cannot be skipped before the main video content begins. Bumper ads are typically 6 seconds or less in length and are often used to promote a brand or product. Bumper ads can effectively drive awareness, as they are difficult to ignore and have a high completion rate.

Skippable in-stream ads

Skippable in-stream ads permit customers to skip after a certain amount of time, typically 5 seconds. They are typically 15-30 seconds in length and are often used to promote a brand or product. In-stream ads can effectively drive awareness, as they are difficult to ignore and have a high completion rate.

Non-skippable in-stream ads

Non-skippable in-stream ads are typically 15-30 seconds in length. These video ads cannot be skipped and must be watched until the end.

Outstream ads

Outstream ads are designed to be played outside traditional video content, such as on a website or social media platform. They are typically less than 30 seconds in length.

In-feed video ads

In-feed video ads play within a feed, such as on a social media platform or news site. For example, on YouTube, the in-feed video ads compose of a thumbnail image of your video and minimal text. These ads entice customers to watch the videos, which will play on their YouTube channels’ watch pages.

Masthead ads

A masthead ad is a video ad played at the top of a website’s main page. They are another form that is typically less than 30 seconds in length. For Google, this type of video ad unit is only available by reservation.

Ad Unit Sizes

You need to choose the right ad unit size to get the most out of your advertisements. An ad unit’s size depends on several factors, such as the size of the web page on which it will display, the amount of content, and the level of interaction with the ad. Consider which sizes work best for your web page and track their performance that can make a difference in your revenue.

Mobile Banners

Since 97% of Americans own cell phones, mobile banners provide ample opportunity for advertisers and publishers to increase revenue. The most popular size for mobile banners is 300 x 250 pixels since it is unintrusive and doesn’t interrupt the user experience.

Advertisers with large budgets can use the space to spread awareness of their brands. Smaller advertisers can use it to present the most critical information.

Display Banners

Larger display ads are effective since they provide more space for engaging visuals and rich content. For instance, a large rectangle display banner of 336 x 280 pixels can be placed on the sidebars and within the body of the page, making it noticeable for customers. Display ads of this size are usually available for advertisers who want to run highly visible campaigns.

Highest Performing Ad Sizes for Google

Google reports that its most effective ad size is the leaderboard, a 728 x 90 pixel ad. This size is suitable for the top of the website page and can get more ads. Other top ad sizes include:

  • 336 x 280: Large Rectangle
  • 300 x 250: Medium Rectangle
  • 300 x 50: Mobile Banner
  • 160 x 600: Wide Skyscraper

Highest performing Ad Sizes for Google

Managing Ad Units

If you are considering adding an ad to your site or app, you need to learn how to create an ad unit. It is also critical to be able to change it as needed according to your advertising campaigns.

How to Create an Ad Unit

Creating an ad unit is relatively simple and only requires a few steps:

  1. Choose the size of the ad unit. Ad units can be either static or responsive in size. Static ad units have a set width and height, while responsive ad units adjust their size to fit the available space on the page.
  2. Select a file format. The most common file formats for web banners are GIF, JPEG, and PNG. A JPEG image can be edited and compressed quickly, so it is a good choice for web images. The GIF format is ideal for animated ads since it can contain all animation frames and timing details in one file. PNGs are typically used for high-quality images that have transparent backgrounds.
  3. Choose a color palette for your ad unit. Stick to a limited number of colors so that your ad unit is easy to read and does not clash with the rest of the page.

How to Edit an Ad Unit

Before you can edit an ad unit, there are a few steps you need to take. These steps allow you to edit an ad unit to meet your needs.

  1. You need to create an account with the ad network. You can then log in and access the ad network’s interface.
  2. From here, you will be able to view all of the ad units that are available for purchase. Once you have found the ad unit you want to edit, you will need to purchase it.
  3. Once you have purchased the ad unit, you can access the code for it. You may edit the code to change the ad unit’s look or add new functionality.
  4. You can save your changes and upload the code to the ad network.

How to Archive Ad Units

Online advertising campaigns require careful ad unit tracking. One way to do this is to create an archive of all the ad units used in a campaign. This can be done manually by taking screenshots or saving copies of the ad units. For instance, a Google ad unit can be archived by checking the box next to it and clicking Archive. Archived ads can no longer generate revenue, and the users won’t see them anymore.

How to Make the Most of Your Ad Placement

The placement of ads is vital to see the effectiveness of the ads and whether customers click on them. Keeping user experience in mind when testing ads allows you to optimize your ads on your site.

Test Smaller Ads

Testing smaller ads is one way to maximize ad placement. Smaller ads are less intrusive and can be more effective in certain situations. For example, if you’re placing an ad on a website that has a lot of text, a smaller ad may be less likely to disrupt the reading experience.

An ad on a mobile website may be more likely to be seen and clicked on. 

Testing different sizes of ads can help you determine which size is most effective for your particular ad placement.

Show Multiple Ads with Google Ad Manager

If you’re using Google Ad Manager to place your ads, you can show multiple ads on a single page. This can be a great way to maximize your ad exposure and increase your chances of getting clicks. By showing multiple ads, you’re also increasing the chances that one of your ads will be relevant to the user, which can further improve your click-through rate.

Consider the User Experience First

When placing ads on your website, it’s crucial to prioritize the user experience. Your goal should be to place ads in a way that doesn’t disrupt the user’s experience or make it difficult to use your website.

For example, placing an ad on top of your homepage may be an excellent way to get exposure for your ad. However, a huge banner ad may make it harder for users to read the website’s content.

Improve the Performance of Your Website

The performance of your website can have a big impact on the effectiveness of your ad placement. Users may leave before seeing your ad if your website is slow to load. Similarly, if your website is challenging to navigate, users may not stick around long enough to see your ad.

Make sure to consistently test the page load times of your website before you place your ads. Customized reports can help you track how many customers clicked on your ads and how many impressions they made.

So, Which Ad Unit Brings the Highest CPM?

Some ad units tend to perform better than others. For example, video ads tend to have high click-through rates of 1.84% compared to other digital ad formats. Display ads tend to have lower click-through rates at 0.10% for the United States. Ultimately, it’s important to test different ad units to see which ones work best for your website and audience.

What’s Next for Your Ads

Ad optimization involves choosing the top-performing ad sizes with the right type of ad unit that will drive impressions and revenue for your site. There are various ads and sizes to choose from, and you must consider whether you want to incorporate images, videos, and text.

When you are ready to try different ad units for your site, contact CodeFuel. You can work with us to connect with various ad exchanges and get advice about what ads you should run on your website.

How to Apply for an AdSense Account – Step by Step Guide

How to Apply for an AdSense Account – Step by Step Guide

If you own a website or are a blogger, chances are you thought about Google AdSense,as a way to earn money from it. Google AdSense is a technology that allows you to earn money by displaying advertisements on your site or blog. Applying to an AdSense account is easy to do if you own a website or blog that meets Google’s requirements.

Once Google has approved your application, you can start earning money as a publisher, offering your ad space. You don’t need to do more than registering and Google will display relevant ads on your site. If you want to know more about how to apply for Google AdSense, this step-by-step guide will help you create your AdSense account and start making money with your website or blog.

Why Choose Google AdSense?

There are many good reasons to choose Google AdSense for monetizing your website. AdSense is a simple and effective way to monetize your website or blog.

As a program managed by the world’s top search engine company, AdSense is among the most popular ad networks, consistently ranking among the highest-earning performers. In practice, many advertisers compete for advertising space on your site through AdSense, leading to higher ad revenue.

Additionally, AdSense is not only free of charge but also highly trusted by both publishers and advertisers, so you can be confident that you’re working with a reputable company no matter the size of your website.

You should choose Google AdSense because it is the primary and most popular website monetization method available.

Initial Requirements

Although AdSense is free and anyone can send an application, Google’s policies and requirements are strict. The company reserves the right to accept or deny anyone for any reason.

Read more about Google Policies HERE

However, most rejected accounts typically fail to meet one of the initial requirements necessary to obtain approval. The best way to increase your chances of getting your AdSense account approved is to ensure you meet the following conditions before applying:

  • You are at least 18 years of age.
  • You have a Gmail account that you use actively and isn’t already linked to another AdSense account.
  • You have a live website or blog at least three months old.
  • The content of your website or blog meets Google’s site behavior and terms of service requirements.
  • The content on your website or blog is high-quality, relevant, frequently updated, and provides value to visitors.
  • Your website or blog features a contact page and a privacy policy page.
  • Your website or blog receives regular traffic. Even though Google doesn’t specify numbers, the more, the better.

Steps to create AdSense account

  1. Sign in with your Gmail account
  2. Fill out the Google AdSense application form 
  3. Enter your details and verify your phone number
  4. Use your temporary AdSense approval wisely
  5. Verify your account for a permanent approval
  6. Start showing adds

Read More On Creating AdSense Account

Mistakes to avoid

To get approved for an AdSense account, you need to meet Google requirements, policies and rules.  Not all applications are approved. Avoiding the following mistakes can increase your chances of getting approved:

  • Your website is too new. Sites should be at least 3 months old.
  • It is not enough to have good content, you need quantity. Between 30 and 50 articles published can give you enough authority.
  • Your name or address are incomplete.
  • The website is not yours.
  • Your site has non-functioning links.

The site is on an unsupported language. AdSense supports 38 languages, make sure your site is written on one of them, here is the list

Step-by-Step Guide to Applying for a Google AdSense Account

If you meet the initial requirements and are ready to apply for a Google AdSense Account, here are the steps you’ll need to follow.

1. Sign with your Gmail account 

First you need to go to the AdSense website:

How to setup a Google AdSense Account

  • On the top right, click on Sign In. 
  • You will be directed to a page where you’ll be asked to sign in with your Gmail account. Enter your email address and password and click on Next.

The next page will show you a message that your account is not yet registered with AdSense and give you a link to Sign up.

2. Fill out the AdSense Program Application Form

If your account doesn’t already have an AdSense account linked to it, you should see a notification offering you to sign up for a new AdSense account. Click on “sign up.”

The link should redirect you to the Google AdSense application form, asking you to enter your website’s URL and email address. Select whether you want to receive customized AdSense help and suggestion emails, then click “Save and Continue.”

Google AdSense Application Form

Apply for an Adsense Account HERE

3. Enter Your Details and Verify Your Phone Number

The next page of the application form will ask you to fill out additional information about yourself, including the following:

  • Your Website (If you want to add your site later, leave this field empty and select I don’t have a site yet);
  • Your contact name
  • The name of the individual or business that runs the Gmail account
  • Your mailing address
  • Your Gmail address
  • Your phone number

It is essential to ensure all information entered during this stage is correct and up-to-date, as Google will employ two verification methods: phone number and mailing address. Upon entering your information, Google will send a verification code to your device to verify your phone number, then a PIN code via mail to the provided address.

Completing the phone verification process is critical to continuing the application. You should receive temporary approval status within 24 to 48 hours of completing phone verification. In specific instances, Google support warns that some cases may take longer to process, with a maximum possible wait time of 2-4 weeks.It is essential to ensure all information entered during this stage is correct and up-to-date, as Google will employ two verification methods: phone number and mailing address. Upon entering your information, Google will send a verification code to your device to verify your phone number, then a PIN code via mail to the provided address.

More information on Activating Your AdSense Account HERE

4. Take Advantage of Your Temporary AdSense Approval

Obtaining temporary AdSense approval allows you to place ad units on your website or blog and start collecting revenue. If you have multiple sites, you are not obligated to send an application for each of them; having temporary approval allows you to place ads on any website you own or manage.

Although you can place and show ads anywhere on your sites, remember to follow best practices and recommendations regarding optimal ad unit creation and placement. For instance, you should build your content and ad units to entice your visitors to click.

5. Verify Your Account to Gain Approval Permanently

To obtain permanent approval status and fully activate your AdSense account, you must verify the PIN code that Google mailed to you. PIN code mail takes between 1 and 10 days to arrive, depending on your location, postal services, and local conditions

Account verification will also require you to enter payment information. You will need to provide Google with the following details:

  • Bank account details
  • Tax information
  • Phone number

Completing this step and providing accurate information is critical if you wish to receive ad revenue payments.

 Note about the permanent approval: Keep in mind Google remains with the right to suspend your account anytime.

How to Log in?

After signing up for a new Google AdSense account, the sign-in process is straightforward. Simply follow these steps:

  1. Visit the Google AdSense homepage.
  2. Click on the “Sign in” button.
  3. Enter the email address you used during the signup process.
  4. Enter the password associated with that email address.
  5. Click “Sign in.”

If you haven’t yet done so, Google may remind you to read the latest version of the Google AdSense Terms and Conditions and confirm that you have read and acknowledged them. Check the “I agree” checkbox when you have.

Connect your site to AdSense

How to Add Google AdSense to Your Site?

If you already have an active Google AdSense account and a site or blog ready to receive ads, here are the steps to follow to add Google AdSense to your site.

1. Ensure Your Website is Compliant with Google Policy

Websites participating in the Google AdSense program must meet Google’s terms of service and not break any of the rules outlined in the AdSense Program policies.

Complete list of actions that can invalid your approval status:

The following actions can invalidate your approval status (whether temporary or not) and cause you to lose access to revenue:

The following actions can invalidate your approval status (whether temporary or not) and cause you to lose access to revenue:

  • Invalid impressions: Do not click on your own ads, generate your own traffic, or otherwise artificially inflate your website impressions, including manually.
  • Non-rewarded inventory: Do not incentivize or deceive your visitors into clicking the ads placed on your website. For example, offering compensation in exchange for clicking on your ad units is unacceptable.
  • Improper ad placement: Although Google incentivizes experimenting with different ad formats and placement methods, using excessive amounts of ad units or invasive placement methods (e.g., pop-up ads, spam emails) is not allowed.
  • Improper ad behavior: You may modify your Google AdSense ad codes as long as the modifications do not harm advertisers or artificially increase ad performance.
  • Traffic source violations: Google AdSense ad units cannot be placed on web pages receiving traffic from specific sources. For instance, participating in AdSense prohibits you from using third-party services and methods to generate impressions, such as pay-to-click programs or unsolicited mass emails.
  • Deceptive navigation elements: Do not create and place ads intentionally, so visitors can easily mistake them for navigation elements (e.g., menus, download links).
  • Improper site behavior: Google requires websites with AdSense to meet specific standards for ease of navigation. You will lose approval if your website changes user preferences without the user’s consent, initiates unexpected downloads or redirects to irrelevant or unwanted websites, opens excessive amounts of pop-ups or pop-unders, or contains viruses or malware.

Complete AdSense Online Terms of Service For Each Country

2. Configure Your Ad Units

After verifying that your site is compliant, you may begin configuring your ad units and decide what ads you want to run on your website.

Open your AdSense dashboard, navigate to the left-hand menu, and look for “Ad units” under “Content.” Click on “Ad units” to open the menu of the same name. From there, you can start creating and configuring ads.

Google provides different ad sizes and formats, for example, Large Rectangle and Leaderboard, for you to experiment with and test how well they fit with your content. If you’re unsure which ad sizes you need, Google also provides recommendations in the form of green checkmarks. Ad formats featuring the green checkmark are among the most popular for advertisers.

You can also configure text and search result ads with the Text & Display Ads function. Google may display a green checkmark next to this function if it has determined your website may benefit from using this type of ad. Don’t forget to configure ad styles and ensure they match your website’s color pattern.

More Information About Ad Units HERE

3. Insert Your AdSense Ad Code

Once you have configured your ad units, scroll to the bottom of the menu and click “Save and get code.” You will obtain an HTML code snippet; copy it and insert it into your website’s code according to where you want to place them.

If you have little website coding experience or prefer a more guided approach, you can also use ad management plugins (e.g., AdSanity) to help insert your ad codes into your website.

4. Update Your Privacy Policy and Contact Page

As per Google guidelines, all websites participating in the AdSense program must have an up-to-date contact page and a privacy policy page. Ensure that your website features both and that your privacy policy page complies with Google’s required content guidelines.

How Does the Payment Work?

If your account is active and Google has validated your banking and tax information, you are eligible to start receiving ad revenue payments.

Payment Options

Google offers multiple payment method options to AdSense account owners, depending on the account owner’s country of origin and preferences. The available payment options are:

  • Direct transfer to your bank account
  • Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT)
  • Wire transfer
  • Checks sent to a mailing address
  • Western Union payment

If you haven’t specified a preferred payment option, Google will be unable to pay you even if you are otherwise eligible. To select or verify your payment preferences, open the AdSense dashboard, click “Payments,” and check the “How you get paid” window to see your currently selected method. To choose or change an existing one, click “Manage payment methods” and follow the instructions.

Payee Names and Changes

The payee name is the name with which you sign up to Google AdSense. It is extremely important that your payee name is the same name that appears in your bank account. Any discrepancies, and Google payments won’t reach you.

What happens if you make a mistake? Changing the payee name of your account can be difficult, if not downright impossible. The AdSense Terms and Conditions only allow you to change your payee name in case of marriage, death or company mergers.

In some countries, like India, it is straight up forbidden to change the payee name once you’ve signed up. The list of countries where you cannot change the payee name is not public. How would you know if you can do it? If the option is not available to you, it means your country is not supported.

More on AdSense Country Restrictions Find Here

Minimum Thresholds

According to Google terms and conditions regarding payment, active AdSense accounts must meet specific thresholds before account owners can select a payment method or start receiving money in their bank account.

The minimum threshold to select a payment method is either 10 USD or an equivalent value in your currency. For example, accounts set to receive in Mexican pesos (MXN) must meet the equivalent of 10 USD or approximately 202.55 MXN (as of August 2022).

You must meet the minimum payment threshold corresponding to your currency to start receiving money on your account. This threshold is distinct from the payment method threshold: each currency has a fixed threshold value that does not necessarily correspond to the current exchange rate.

For example, accounts in USD must hit the minimum threshold of $100 before the owner or manager can receive the money. AdSense accounts set in Euros (EUR) must reach a 70 EUR threshold.

Table of supported currencies and minimum payment thresholds:

Currency
 United States Dollar (USD)
 Australian Dollar (AUD)
 Canadian Dollar (CAD)
 Chilean Peso (CLP)
 Czech Koruna (CZK)
 Danish Krone (DKK)
 Euro (EUR)
 Great Britain Pound (GBP)
 Hong Kong Dollar (HKD)
 Hungarian Forint (HUF)
 Indonesian rupiah (IDR)
 Israeli Shekel (ILS)
 Japanese Yen (JPY)
 Mexican Peso (MXN)
 Moroccan Dirham (MAD)
 New Zealand Dollar (MZD)
 Norwegian Krone (NOK)
 Peruvian Sol (PEN)
 Polish Zloty (PLN)
 Singaporean Dollar (SGD)
 South African Rand (ZAR)
 Swedish Krona (SEK)
 Swiss Franc (CHF)
 Tunisian Dinar (TND)
 Turkish Lira (TRY)
 Emirati Dirham (AED)
 Uruguayan Peso (UYU)
Minimum payment threshold
$100
A$100
C$100
CLP$60,000
Kc 2,000
Kr 600
€70
£60
HK$800
Ft 20,000
Rp 1,300,000
₪400
¥8,000
Mex$1,200
DH 800
NZ$130
Kr 600
S/300
zł 300
S$150
R1,000
Kr 700
Fr 100
DT 200
₺200
DH 350
U$2,400

Payment Schedules

Google AdSense pays monthly, typically between the 21st and the 26th of each month. Most users should receive their payments within the first 48 hours of this period, although some delays may occur.

If you are experiencing significant payment delays, ensure that your banking and tax information is correct and that you have met the minimum payment threshold for the month.

Review the Guidelines and Terms & Conditions

Due to differences between laws and regulations in every country, Google AdSense terms and conditions vary depending on your country of origin, which Google determines based on your billing address. If you wish to read and review the Terms & Conditions for your country, visit this page and select your country from the drop-down menu.

Besides the terms and conditions, AdSense account owners and managers are expected to know and understand the program’s guidelines and policies, which apply worldwide.

FAQs

  • How much does Google AdSense cost?

    Google AdSense is free. No fees are required to apply for a new account or maintain an existing one.

  • How do I know my AdSense account’s approval status?

    Log into your AdSense account and visit your dashboard. If you see earning statistics, your account is currently approved, either temporarily or permanently.

  • How much can I earn with AdSense?

    Although it’s impossible to predict how much you can expect to earn accurately because earnings vary depending on multiple factors. These include the amount of traffic you receive, where your visitors come from, the type and relevance of your content, which niche your website belongs to, and how you have configured your ads.

  • Which site niches are the most profitable?

    As of 2022, some of the most profitable site niches for AdSense are law, cryptocurrency, insurance, automotive, electronics, health & fitness, and marketing.

  • Can I have more than one AdSense account?

    It is against the terms and services for a single person to have more than one Google AdSense account. If you attempt to run multiple accounts from the same billing address, Google may suspend or terminate all of them.

  • How much does Google AdSense cost?

    Google AdSense is free. No fees are required to apply for a new account or maintain an existing one.

  • How do I know my AdSense account’s approval status?

    Log into your AdSense account and visit your dashboard. If you see earning statistics, your account is currently approved, either temporarily or permanently.

  • How much can I earn with AdSense?

    Although it’s impossible to predict how much you can expect to earn accurately because earnings vary depending on multiple factors. These include the amount of traffic you receive, where your visitors come from, the type and relevance of your content, which niche your website belongs to, and how you have configured your ads.

  • Which site niches are the most profitable?

    As of 2022, some of the most profitable site niches for AdSense are law, cryptocurrency, insurance, automotive, electronics, health & fitness, and marketing.

  • Can I have more than one AdSense account?

    It is against the terms and services for a single person to have more than one Google AdSense account. If you attempt to run multiple accounts from the same billing address, Google may suspend or terminate all of them.

Get Help Setting Up Google AdSense with CodeFuel

Properly configuring your Google AdSense account and settings is essential if you wish to monetize your website and start earning money through one of the world’s most popular ad networks.

If you need help setting up your account, optimizing ad placement, or boosting website monetization, our experts at CodeFuel have the skills and resources to assist you. Contact us today for more information.

What is a Vast Tag? 4 Key Elements Publishers Needs to Know

What is a Vast Tag? 4 Key Elements Publishers Needs to Know

The Video Ad Serving Template (VAST) standard allows publishers to serve video ads from multiple ad sources. VAST tags improve ad delivery efficiency and provide greater control over the video ad experience for both publishers and advertisers.

Learn everything you need to know about the VAST standard, how to create a VAST tag, how it works, what versions exist, and how to troubleshoot potential errors.

What is a VAST Tag?

A VAST tag is a script to facilitate communication between an ad server and a video player. VAST tags are defined and standardized by the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), allowing relevant ads to play on any combination of websites, user platforms, and video players.

VAST tags are separated into two categories: client-side and server-side.

  • Client-side VAST tags are a category of scripts where the user’s media player requests advertisements from the ad server, which are then injected and displayed to the user’s video or media player at the right time.
  • Server-side VAST tags are scripts where the ad server generates the advertisements, then inserts them into the content to be viewed by the user’s media player directly.

How Does VAST Work in Video Players and Ad Servers

Ads served using VAST tags function according to a simple 3-step process: sending a VAST request, receiving a VAST inline response, and pinging the tracking URLs.

1. VAST Request

The user’s video or media player sends a request to the ad server to retrieve a video ad of the correct type and format.

2. VAST Inline Response

When the ad server receives the request for an ad, it returns an inline response. This response contains all appropriate media files and tracking URLs.

3. Pinged Tracking URLs

After receiving and playing the media files to display the ad, the media player activates the tracking URLs to record impressions, allowing the ad server to collect impression data on the ad and help publishers evaluate its performance.

Key Elements of VAST Tags

VAST tags comprise three essential elements: the media file, the video format, and the tracking URL.

  • Media File

The media file contains an advertiser’s ad creative; in other words, the video or interactive element the user will see. A VAST tag typically includes a link to the corresponding media file, allowing the media player to pull it up and play it.

  • Video Format

The diversity of user devices, browsers, and media players means that ad servers looking to play their ads to as many users as possible must maintain multiple versions of the same ad creative, often in different file formats.

Consequently, the VAST tag must also define the creative’s file format. Common examples include MP4 and MOV. Non-video file formats such as GIFs are also commonly employed for simpler ads due to their high level of compatibility and low footprint.

  • Tracking

Tracking URLs are also sometimes known as “tracking pixels,” as they often take the form of a 1 x 1 transparent pixel. Its primary purpose is to collect specific data and track the performance of an ad. Some types of information tracked include:

  • Viewability (number of times the ad media file has been played and therefore viewed)
  • Number of users that clicked on the ad to access the corresponding content
  • Number of users that interacted with the ad (if the ad has interactivity features, e.g., a demo of a game)
  • Additional Attributes

Besides these three essential elements, a VAST tag can also include extra components and attributes defining its type and appearance. For example, advanced tag options let a publisher define the type of ad (e.g., pre-roll, mid-roll, etc.), the video file’s length, or the ad’s resolution (height and length in pixels).

How to Create a VAST Tag?

Creating your own VAST tag is a relatively straightforward process accessible to any developer or publisher. Three recommended methods are available: manual set-up and coding, Google Manager or a similar ad server, or third-party tools.

  • Manual Set Up with VAST XML Schema (Extensible Markup Language)

Publishers and developers with experience using the XML (eXtensible Markup Language) format can build their own VAST tags with the <VAST> XML tag.

Remember that all VAST tags open with <VAST version=”x”> and close with </VAST>. Without removing the quotes, replace “x” with the VAST version you wish to use (e.g., 4.1).

  • Through Google Ad Server

Publishers looking for a more accessible solution can use the predefined parameters in Google Ad Manager.

Follow these steps to create VAST tags in Google Ad Manager:

  1. Sign in to your Google Ad Manager account.
  2. Find the Inventory menu on the left-hand panel, click on it, then click on Ad Units.
  3. Select the ad unit corresponding to the creative you want to build a VAST tag for, then click on Tags.
  4. Fill out the four options: Tag Type, Tag Options, Additional Tag Parameters, and Tag Results.
  5. Review your options, ensure they meet your specifications, then click Copy Tag.
  • Using Third Party Tools

If you need an alternative to the Google Ad Manager tag builder, third-party tools such as VAST tag generators can help you create VAST tags for your ad creatives. However, each such tool is different and comes with its own instructions. Familiarize yourself with your preferred tag generator before proceeding.

Examples of VAST Tags

Here are a few samples of inline linear VAST tags for VAST versions 3.0 and 4.2.

  • VAST 3.0

<VAST version=”3.0″ xmlns:xs=”http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema”>

<Ad id=”20001″>

<InLine>

<AdSystem version=”4.0″>iabtechlab</AdSystem>

<AdTitle>iabtechlab video ad</AdTitle>

 

<Pricing model=”cpm” currency=”USD”>

<![CDATA[ 25.00 ]]>

</Pricing>

 

<Error>http://example.com/error</Error>

 

<Impression id=”Impression-ID”>http://example.com/track/impression</Impression>

 

<Creatives>

<Creative id=”5480″ sequence=”1″>

<Linear>

<Duration>00:00:16</Duration>

<TrackingEvents>

<Tracking event=”start”>http://example.com/tracking/start</Tracking>

<Tracking event=”firstQuartile”>http://example.com/tracking/firstQuartile</Tracking>

<Tracking event=”midpoint”>http://example.com/tracking/midpoint</Tracking>

<Tracking event=”thirdQuartile”>http://example.com/tracking/thirdQuartile</Tracking>

<Tracking event=”complete”>http://example.com/tracking/complete</Tracking>

<Tracking event=”progress” offset=”00:00:10″>http://example.com/tracking/progress-10</Tracking>

</TrackingEvents>

 

<VideoClicks>

<ClickTracking id=”blog”>

<![CDATA[https://iabtechlab.com]]>

</ClickTracking>

<CustomClick>http://iabtechlab.com</CustomClick>

</VideoClicks>

 

<MediaFiles>

<MediaFile id=”5241″ delivery=”progressive” type=”video/mp4″ bitrate=”500″ width=”400″ height=”300″ minBitrate=”360″ maxBitrate=”1080″ scalable=”1″ maintainAspectRatio=”1″ codec=”0″>

<![CDATA[https://iab-publicfiles.s3.amazonaws.com/vast/VAST-4.0-Short-Intro.mp4]]>

</MediaFile>

</MediaFiles>

 

</Linear>

</Creative>

</Creatives>

<Extensions>

<Extension type=”iab-Count”>

<total_available>

<![CDATA[ 2 ]]>

</total_available>

</Extension>

</Extensions>

</InLine>

</Ad>

</VAST>

  • VAST 4.2

<VAST version=”4.2″ xmlns:xs=”http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema” xmlns=”http://www.iab.com/VAST”>

<Ad id=”20001″ sequence=”1″>

<InLine>

<AdSystem version=”1″>iabtechlab</AdSystem>

<Error><![CDATA[https://example.com/error]]></Error>

<Extensions>

<Extension type=”iab-Count”>

<total_available>

<![CDATA[ 2 ]]>

</total_available>

</Extension>

</Extensions>

<Impression id=”Impression-ID”><![CDATA[https://example.com/track/impression]]></Impression>

<Pricing model=”cpm” currency=”USD”>

<![CDATA[ 25.00 ]]>

</Pricing>

<AdServingId>a532d16d-4d7f-4440-bd29-2ec0e693fc80</AdServingId>

<AdTitle>iabtechlab video ad</AdTitle>

<Creatives>

<Creative id=”5480″ sequence=”1″ adId=”2447226″>

<Linear>

<TrackingEvents>

<Tracking event=”start” ><![CDATA[https://example.com/tracking/start]]></Tracking>

<Tracking event=”progress” offset=”00:00:10″><![CDATA[http://example.com/tracking/progress-10]]></Tracking>

<Tracking event=”firstQuartile”><![CDATA[https://example.com/tracking/firstQuartile]]></Tracking>

<Tracking event=”midpoint”><![CDATA[https://example.com/tracking/midpoint]]></Tracking>

<Tracking event=”thirdQuartile”><![CDATA[https://example.com/tracking/thirdQuartile]]></Tracking>

<Tracking event=”complete”><![CDATA[https://example.com/tracking/complete]]></Tracking>

</TrackingEvents>

<Duration>00:00:16</Duration>

<MediaFiles>

<MediaFile id=”5241″ delivery=”progressive” type=”video/mp4″ bitrate=”2000″ width=”1280″ height=”720″ minBitrate=”1500″ maxBitrate=”2500″ scalable=”1″ maintainAspectRatio=”1″ codec=”H.264″>

<![CDATA[https://iab-publicfiles.s3.amazonaws.com/vast/VAST-4.0-Short-Intro.mp4]]>

</MediaFile>

<MediaFile id=”5244″ delivery=”progressive” type=”video/mp4″ bitrate=”1000″ width=”854″ height=”480″ minBitrate=”700″ maxBitrate=”1500″ scalable=”1″ maintainAspectRatio=”1″ codec=”H.264″>

<![CDATA[https://iab-publicfiles.s3.amazonaws.com/vast/VAST-4.0-Short-Intro-mid-resolution.mp4]]>

</MediaFile>

<MediaFile id=”5246″ delivery=”progressive” type=”video/mp4″ bitrate=”600″ width=”640″ height=”360″ minBitrate=”500″ maxBitrate=”700″ scalable=”1″ maintainAspectRatio=”1″ codec=”H.264″>

<![CDATA[https://iab-publicfiles.s3.amazonaws.com/vast/VAST-4.0-Short-Intro-low-resolution.mp4]]>

</MediaFile>

</MediaFiles>

<VideoClicks>

<ClickThrough id=”blog”>

<![CDATA[https://iabtechlab.com]]>

</ClickThrough>

</VideoClicks>

</Linear>

<UniversalAdId idRegistry=”Ad-ID”>8465</UniversalAdId>

<UniversalAdId idRegistry=”Foo-ID”>4444323</UniversalAdId>

</Creative>

</Creatives>

</InLine>

</Ad>

</VAST>

History of VAST Tags

The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) released the first version Video Ad Serving Template standard, VAST 1.0, in 2008. Since this initial release, the IAB has updated and improved VAST multiple times. 

The major milestones in VAST history are the primary version numbers: 1.0, 2.0, 3.0, and 4.0. Smaller and more incremental changes are represented with decimal numbers (e.g., the changes from 4.0 to 4.1).

  • VAST 1.0 was released on August 1, 2008, supporting basic functionality (play, pause, stop) and basic linear tracking capabilities. The only formats supported at the time were MP4, 3GP, and MOV.
  • VAST 2.0 increased the number of supported formats and added new functionality, such as player and quartile event tracking (e.g., linear, non-linear, companion, etc.). VAST 2.0 is the oldest version for which VAST 4 offers backward compatibility.
  • VAST 3.0 offered publishers more modern functionality, such as compliance with OBA standards, skippable ads, and better error reporting functions.
  • VAST 4.0 is the latest major version, offering additional improvements such as separated options for video and interactive ads, server-side stitching, support for mezzanine files, and closed captioning (CC).

Here is a complete list of VAST versions and release dates:

Version number Release date Status (as of August 2022)
VAST 1.0 August 2008 Deprecated
VAST 2.0 March 2012 Supported Backward compatible with 4.0+
VAST 3.0 July 2012 Supported Backward compatible with 4.0+
VAST 4.0 January 2016 Supported
VAST 4.1 November 2018 Supported
VAST 4.2 June 2019 Supported

Difference Between VAST XML and VAST URL

When using Google Ad Manager or a third-party generator, you may have noticed that VAST tags are available in two formats: XML and URL.

Typically, you should always use the VAST XML format. However, specific Demand-Side Platforms (DSPs) can only support the VAST URL format. Check your DSP to determine the best format to use.

How to Validate a VAST Tag

Because most VAST tags employ XML, it is critical to test and validate them before deployment to ensure they contain no bugs and don’t generate any VAST errors.

Multiple VAST tag validation tools are available: Google Video Suite Inspector, Springserve’s VAST Tag Tester, or the IAB’s VAST Tag Validator. To run a tag tester and validator, copy the full XML code of your VAST tag, paste it into the tag tester of your choice, then run it using the Submit button (or an equivalent).

How to Debug a VAST Tag

If your VAST tag returns an error during the validation process, you may need to perform debugging operations. The general principle of debugging is to investigate the error code, locate the source of the problem, and make the necessary corrections (e.g., editing the VAST tag’s XML code).

Examples of common VAST errors and recommended debugging processes:

  • VAST Error 100

An Error 100 is an XML Parsing Error. It typically indicates an issue with the VAST tag’s XML document or VAST redirect URL. Re-read the VAST tag’s code and ensure it is correctly formatted with no missing or out-of-order symbols.

  • VAST Error 101

Error code 101 indicates a VAST Schema Validation Error, typically caused by missing or unrecognized XML elements in the VAST tag’s code. The debugging process is similar to debugging an Error 100; investigate the VAST XML and ensure all required elements are present and correctly formatted.

  • VAST Error 102

A VAST Error 102 means Response Version Not Supported. If you see this error code, the target video player does not support the VAST version specified in the VAST tag. Alternatively, it can indicate a lack of a specified version. Publishers can debug this error by verifying the opening <VAST> tag specifies the correct version.

  • VAST Error 301

VAST Error code 301 means Redirect Timeout Reached. Although high latency (slow or unstable Internet connections) or poorly optimized web pages are sometimes responsible for this error code, other potential culprits include invalid URIs or incorrect creative dimensions.

Potential debugging methods include verifying the VAST tag features the correct URI and the correct height and length if an ad size is specified.

Benefits of VAST Tags

VAST tags and tools to create and edit them easily have helped ad publishers drastically improve their ability to monetize websites and capitalize on their online ad campaigns.

Here are some of the primary benefits offered by using the VAST standard:

  • Creating and editing VAST ad tags is relatively easy and does not require an extensive programming background.
  • VAST tags have simplified communication between an ad network’s servers and media players.
  • The VAST tag error processing and debugging processes are standardized, reducing playback errors.
  • Adhering to the VAST standards saves publishers significant time and money.

VAST tags are an essential aspect of modern ad tech. Taking advantage of VAST and the functionality offered by the latest versions (4.0 and beyond) is necessary to maximize the effectiveness of your video ad campaigns.

What is Ads.txt? – Full Guide of How to Use it (for Publishers)

What is Ads.txt? – Full Guide of How to Use it (for Publishers)

The online advertising industry has faced widespread ad fraud for years, leading to lost revenue and frustration for publishers and advertisers. In 2019, about 20% of American ad impressions were fraudulent. With sophisticated ad fraud and bots threatening the digital advertising ecosystem, publishers have been scurrying to tackle transparency issues in the ads marketplace.

The introduction of Ads.txt or Authorized Digital sellers file provides transparency and safety and ensures all clicks and impressions are genuine. Here’s what you need to know about ads.txt and how to implement it on your website.

Brief History of Ads.txt

Cybercriminals carry out ad frauds using fake botnets that mimic human behavior and help generate thousands of counterfeit clicks and visits to sites displaying ads. In addition, domain spoofing allows pirate sites, bot-driven websites, and sites with dubious content to monetize sites otherwise excluded from advertisers or blacklisted by changing the ad tags.

These methods of ad fraud deceive ad exchanges and other platforms into believing the user is visiting a legitimate site when the ad appears on a separate, illegal site.

CNBC reported that advertisers lost $16.4 billion in revenue in 2017 compared to $12.5 billion the previous year. However, due to organizations like the International Advertising Board (IAB) in the spring of 2017, the IAB Tech Lab introduced Ads.txt to help publishers and buyers fight fraud in programmatic advertising.

What Is Ads.txt?

Ads.txt or Authorized Digital Sellers text file is a list of all partners, including publishers authorized to sell your inventory. It ensures that the ad inventory displayed on publisher websites across any ad exchange is legitimate.

Ads.text was initially intended only for online advertising, but now it is also used for mobile apps such as streaming services. The equivalent of Ads.txt files for these streaming services is called app ads.txt. It adds support for mobile app ads and ensures the ad inventory is only sold through authorized channels.

Need of Ads.txt for Publishers and the Advertising Industry

Ads.txt files protect publishers from unauthorized inventory sales and let advertisers check the seller to stop suspicious transactions. For the advertising industry, these files offer transparency in a brand-safe environment.

Increased Transparency

When an advertiser accesses an Ads.txt file and sees that another company has listed their domain as an authorized seller for that specific website, they know there’s no chance it could be fraudulent or unsafe for them to purchase ads from that source. This transparency helps prevent bad actors from selling fake inventory through a publisher’s site without their knowledge and consent.

Ensure Brand Safety in Advertising

Brand safety refers to instances when ads end up on inappropriate websites due to the lack of transparency. Ads.txt helps address these issues by providing a way for advertisers to understand which companies are authorized sellers of ad inventory on a given domain name. It also helps ensure that ads are only displayed on reputable sites and protects brands from inadvertently associating themselves with objectionable content.

Enhances Mobile Advertising

Advertisers always look for ways to reach their target audiences and make the most of their advertising budget. App ads.txt lets advertisers and publishers have more reliable and safer options for reaching mobile audiences. In addition, publishers can control who can sell ads in their apps with the app-ads.txt file.

Benefits of Ads.txt

Creating an Ads.txt File requires little technical skill and knowledge. Publishers can easily create and install Ads.text files on their sites.

Creating an Ads.txt file is Easy

Ads.txt files are easy to create and only take a few steps to upload to a website. This file is saved as a text file and uploaded into the root domain with all the authorized sellers.

Straightforward Updates to Ad.txt files

If a publisher has access to the root domain, they can easily alter and update the Ads.txt file. All they need to do is create a new file with the .txt extension with the updated information and make sure the new.txt file replaces the old.txt.

Secure Access to the Website

Publishers are the only people who can upload Ads.txt files to their websites. This private access ensures no cybercriminals can edit or corrupt the file unless they have the proper credentials to enter the site. They also can’t trick advertisers into selling fake ad inventory.

How Does Ads.txt Work?

Publishers install the Ads.txt file on their websites, confirming their ownership of the domains. They also signal the partner accounts, including ad networks and other publishers, to sell their ad inventory. As a result, advertisers can easily view the authorized partners and their ad inventories.

An advertiser needs to match the publisher ID with the Ads.txt when they receive a bid request from the publisher. If the publisher ID and the Ads.txt match, the advertiser can trust the publisher. If publishers and ad networks have adopted ads.txt, buyers can check ad tags to verify their authenticity. Conversely, when the publisher ID is invalid, the advertiser can choose not to bid on the publisher’s ads.

How to Create and Implement Ads.txt?

A publisher can create an Ads.Txt file using any text editor such as Notepad and Microsoft Word. The IAB Tech Lab specifies that ads.txt files must be formatted with commas between all the lines. Each line in the Ads.txt file should contain the following:

  • Domain Name

    Publishers must include the canonical domain, or the preferred domain, that will sell the ad inventory. It establishes the domain’s ownership for advertisers. The canonical domain is important, especially if the publishers use multiple domains to sell ads. For example, a domain name must be google.com for seller accounts in Google.

  • Publisher/Account ID

    This line represents the unique publisher ID for advertisers to verify the publishers. Publishers can also obtain their publisher IDs through Google Adsense. For example, the publisher ID appears as pub-0000000000000000.

  • Type of Relationship

    Advertisers can know if a publisher is authorized to sell directly or through another party. This line indicates whether the relationship is DIRECT or RESELLER. The DIRECT value means publishers have entered into a direct contract with an ad network. A RESELLER value refers to the publisher authorizing a third party to sell ad space through the domains indicated in the first line on its behalf.

  • Certification Authority ID

    Some advertising networks are verified. Publishers must add the certification authority IDs. Advertisers can use the certification authority ID to identify an ad network within that authority. The Trustworthy Accountability Group (TAG) acts as the certification authority, and the TAGID acts as the ID. For example, a TAG Id can look like this f08c47fec0942fa0.

How to Upload Your Ads.txt File

Once the publisher puts the file together, they can upload it to the site. They can upload Ads.txt files to the domain’s root using FTP or a file manager. Additionally, many web hosts use file managers to deploy Ads.txt files. Upon uploading it to the domain’s root, the file should show as website.com/ads.txt.

How to Set Up Ads.txt

Publishers can set up Ads.txt files through WordPress, Google AdSense, or Google Ad Manager. They must go through a different process to upload the files if they have mobile apps.

WordPress

Various free plugins that manage Ads.txt files are the easiest way to set up Ads.txt in WordPress.

  • Install the ads.txt plugin on your WordPress website.
  • Click on Settings > Ads.txt in the left panel to customize the settings.
  • Add the Ads.txt file and save the settings.

If there is no need for a plugin, a publisher can navigate to the Media tab in the menu. Choose the Add New Button and upload the Ads.txt file there.

Google AdSense

The publisher must first sign in to the Google AdSense account to start uploading the file. From there, they can take the following steps:

  • Click on Sites and go to the downward arrow. This will open the message to create an ads.txt file.
  • Choose the Download button. The Ads.txt is automatically downloaded.
  • Place your ads.txt file in the root directory of your website.

Publishers can check if the upload was successful in their web browser by typing the ads.txt URL such as https://website.com/ads.txt.

Google Ad Manager

Accessing the Ads.txt manager in Google Ad manager requires having at least one connected Ad Exchange account and allowing a user to manage the Ads.txt file.

  • Select the Web ads.txt tab from the Ads.txt management menu, and then choose to Create an ads.txt file.
  • A dialog window will pop up for the user to verify the file and its lines.
  • Two options are available to set up the Ads.txt file: Copy the text to the clipboard before pasting it into your own ads.txt or download the file.
  • The user can then upload the file into the domain.

Mobile Apps

Uploading an Ads.txt file for a mobile app is similar to setting one up for a website. However, the publisher must create a developer website first to educate customers about their apps and other content. Then, the website must connect to a listing in an app store like Google Play Store, App Store for Android, Apple Store, and other ad networks to prove an app’s ownership.

The publisher can then upload the Ads.txt file to the developer website’s root domain. Verify that the domain matches what appears in the app store. Firebase Hosting is one of the options that Google recommends if your website does not support the publishing of app-ads.txt.

FAQs

  • How much does Google AdSense cost?

    Google AdSense is free. No fees are required to apply for a new account or maintain an existing one.

  • How do I know my AdSense account’s approval status?

    Log into your AdSense account and visit your dashboard. If you see earning statistics, your account is currently approved, either temporarily or permanently.

  • How much can I earn with AdSense?

    Although it’s impossible to predict how much you can expect to earn accurately because earnings vary depending on multiple factors. These include the amount of traffic you receive, where your visitors come from, the type and relevance of your content, which niche your website belongs to, and how you have configured your ads.

  • Which site niches are the most profitable?

    As of 2022, some of the most profitable site niches for AdSense are law, cryptocurrency, insurance, automotive, electronics, health & fitness, and marketing.

  • Can I have more than one AdSense account?

    It is against the terms and services for a single person to have more than one Google AdSense account. If you attempt to run multiple accounts from the same billing address, Google may suspend or terminate all of them.

  • How much does Google AdSense cost?

    Google AdSense is free. No fees are required to apply for a new account or maintain an existing one.

  • How do I know my AdSense account’s approval status?

    Log into your AdSense account and visit your dashboard. If you see earning statistics, your account is currently approved, either temporarily or permanently.

  • How much can I earn with AdSense?

    Although it’s impossible to predict how much you can expect to earn accurately because earnings vary depending on multiple factors. These include the amount of traffic you receive, where your visitors come from, the type and relevance of your content, which niche your website belongs to, and how you have configured your ads.

  • Which site niches are the most profitable?

    As of 2022, some of the most profitable site niches for AdSense are law, cryptocurrency, insurance, automotive, electronics, health & fitness, and marketing.

  • Can I have more than one AdSense account?

    It is against the terms and services for a single person to have more than one Google AdSense account. If you attempt to run multiple accounts from the same billing address, Google may suspend or terminate all of them.

  • Are Ads.txt files mandatory?

    Google recommends adding an Ads.txt file, but it is not mandatory. However, publishers can benefit from having an ads.txt file by stopping counterfeit inventory purchases and ensuring the ad inventory is valid.

  • How do I fix an Ads.txt file?

    If you have incorrect information in the original file, you can replace it by downloading it and making your changes. It is essential to include all the information, including the domain name, publisher ID, and account relationship. Once you’ve modified the file, save and upload it.

  • How do I verify an Ads.txt file?

    Online ads.txt validators offer the most straightforward method for validating ads.txt files. Insert the ads.txt URL into the validator to verify the publisher ID, the domain, and all fields are complete.

  • In what ways does Google enforce Ads.txt files if I use them?

    Google can decide which publishers can show ads using the Ads.txt files in the domain. Then, the company can run an auction for ads on sites with Ads.txt files and the correct publisher IDs. There’s no auction if the publisher ID in the file is incorrect.

  • Can Ads.txt files be on a subdomain?

    Google can search and implement Ad.txt files in subdomains when there is a line for subdomains in the files.

    You add a subdomain= declaration to the ads.txt file if you want to reference a subdomain. For instance, if your ads.txt file for website.com has to include the subdomain subdomain.website.com, you would write subdomain=subdomain.example.com in your ads.txt.

  • Do I need to update my Ads.txt file if I implement header bidding?

    You may need to change your file if you also use header bidding to attract advertisers. This is because the Ads.txt file must have frequent updates when you need to add new partners to your list.

  • Are Ads.txt files mandatory?

    Google recommends adding an Ads.txt file, but it is not mandatory. However, publishers can benefit from having an ads.txt file by stopping counterfeit inventory purchases and ensuring the ad inventory is valid.

  • How do I fix an Ads.txt file?

    If you have incorrect information in the original file, you can replace it by downloading it and making your changes. It is essential to include all the information, including the domain name, publisher ID, and account relationship. Once you’ve modified the file, save and upload it.

  • How do I verify an Ads.txt file?

    Online ads.txt validators offer the most straightforward method for validating ads.txt files. Insert the ads.txt URL into the validator to verify the publisher ID, the domain, and all fields are complete.

  • In what ways does Google enforce Ads.txt files if I use them?

    Google can decide which publishers can show ads using the Ads.txt files in the domain. Then, the company can run an auction for ads on sites with Ads.txt files and the correct publisher IDs. There’s no auction if the publisher ID in the file is incorrect.

  • Can Ads.txt files be on a subdomain?

    Google can search and implement Ad.txt files in subdomains when there is a line for subdomains in the files.

    You add a subdomain= declaration to the ads.txt file if you want to reference a subdomain. For instance, if your ads.txt file for website.com has to include the subdomain subdomain.website.com, you would write subdomain=subdomain.example.com in your ads.txt.

  • Do I need to update my Ads.txt file if I implement header bidding?

    You may need to change your file if you also use header bidding to attract advertisers. This is because the Ads.txt file must have frequent updates when you need to add new partners to your list.

Get Expert Advice from CodeFuel

All publishers who want to monetize their websites must include Ads.txt files to show their validity to potential advertisers. Having these files can assure advertisers that their ads can be promoted in a safe environment with total transparency and combat ad fraud. 

You can work with CodeFuel to understand how Ads.txt files can work for your site. When you work with CodeFuel, you can learn how to prevent potential ad fraud and reduce losses in your financial revenue.

What is a Supply-Side Platform – Examples and Gains for Publlishers

What is a Supply-Side Platform – Examples and Gains for Publlishers

Supply-Side Platforms (SSPs) are a critical element of today’s advertising technology (adtech) tools and one of the most widely used aspects of programmatic advertising. Learn everything you need to know about SSPs, who is the primary user of this technology, how it works, and its pros and cons.

In this post

What Are Supply-Side Platforms (SSPs)?

Supply-Side Platforms, also called Sell-Side Platforms, are a type of adtech software system employed since the late 2000s by digital advertising publishers to manage and distribute their ad inventories as efficiently as possible. SSPs help publishers offer the ads to advertisers using a Demand-Side Platform (DSP).

SSPs and DSPs are two sides of the same technology: programmatic advertising, which automates numerous aspects of digital advertising, such as purchasing and placing ads through Real-Time Bidding (RTB), according to the criteria and parameters set by publishers and advertisers (e.g., target audience characteristics, channels, etc.)

How Do Supply-Side Platforms Work?

Although SSPs can sell a publisher’s ad inventory directly to advertisers or ad networks, the most common transaction is through RTB auctions. Here’s how this process works:

Infographic

  1. Publishers use an SSP to make their ad inventory available for bidding by sending ad requests on an ad exchange
  2. Advertisers use a DSP to bid on an ad request meeting specific criteria (audience, platform, geographic location)
  3. The DSP with the highest bid (measured in Cost Per Mille or CPM) on a given ad request sends the ad to the corresponding SSP’s publisher
  4. The publisher receives the ad and the user sees it on their device

Main Features of an SSP

SSPs provide an essential service to publishers with ad inventories to sell, helping simplify and expand the ad selling process to a greater number of advertisers. This programmatic approach has replaced traditional in-person meetings between advertisers and publishers to negotiate advertising contracts.

Here’s how SSPs support publishers and the ad selling process.

  • In Supporting the Ad Selling Process

    One of the primary benefits of an SSP is the ability to manage ad inventories of any size and enable publishers to complete advertising arrangements with dozens of potential buyers without having to meet and sign contracts with each one individually.

  • In Supporting Publishers

    SSPs let publishers automatically sell ads to multiple ad exchanges and ad networks, making it a more efficient approach than the traditional demand waterfall (e.g., offering inventory to ad exchanges one by one until a bid is accepted).

    SSPs also possess tracking and analytics features, serving as crucial sources of information for publishers to gauge the effectiveness of their ad campaigns and obtain accurate data regarding audience and impressions.

Main Components of an SSP

Supply-Side Platforms comprise five essential elements: the backend and infrastructure, integrations with other adtech platforms, incorporated ad exchange functionality, data tracking, and a reporting database.

  • Backend and Infrastructure

    No software system functions without a robust backend and supporting infrastructure, and SSPs are no exception. SSP backend components are typically hosted on another party’s hosting infrastructure, such as Amazon Web Services (AWS).

  • Integrations

    SSPs are designed to integrate with other adtech platforms and systems to help sell a publisher’s ad inventory (e.g., integrations with DSPs, ad servers, ad exchanges, etc.).

    They can also feature integrations with data management platforms (DMPs), which collect first-, second-, and third-party data, organize the data into segments for improved targeting and help publishers maximize revenue.

  • Ad Exchange

    One of the critical functions of an SSP is its incorporated ad exchange functionality, helping publishers connect to an advertiser’s DSP directly. This function helps facilitate direct deals between advertisers and publishers, providing an alternative to classic external ad exchanges.

  • Trackers

    SSPs use trackers to collect data regarding the publisher’s website and its audience. They collect demographic and behavioral data, which is then processed to create a user profile for each visitor. Publishers can use these user profiles to determine audience trends and improve the targeting of their ad strategies.

  • Reporting Database

    Part of the data collected by trackers goes to a reporting database, which automatically generates analytics reports measuring the performance and effectiveness of each ad in the inventory: fill rates, impressions, clicks, etc.

How Do SSP Support the Ad Selling Process?

SSPs support the ad selling process in four critical ways:

  • RTB Transactions: SSPs and RTBs can automate selling a publisher’s ad space to an ad exchange, allowing publishers to sell more ads to more platforms.
  • Ad Network Relevancy: An SSP can filter and select only the most relevant ad networks for the publisher’s inventory.
  • Ad Request Optimization: An SSP sells individual ad impressions and shows publishers who buys their ad inventory at the impression level. In turn, publishers control their ad inventory and can optimize their ad requests anytime.
  • Frequency capping: SSPs and DSPs can track the number of times a specific visitor has seen a specific ad. This feature is critical for advertisers who want to implement frequency capping: limiting the number of times a visitor can see the same ad before cycling to a different ad.

Benefits of Using SSPs

Supply-Side Platforms offer many features to publishers, and taking advantage of them grants many benefits. Here are the primary reasons you should consider using an SSP for your ad campaign.

  • Increased Advertising Efficiency

    The most evident benefit of employing an SSP is the immediate beneficial effect on your ad fill rates. The fill rate is calculated using the number of filled ad spaces in a publisher’s inventory and comparing it with the number of vacant spaces. The higher the fill rate, the fewer vacant ad spaces, resulting in increased revenue.

    An SSP can ensure the sale of all available ad spaces to the highest bidders, optimizing advertising efficiency by increasing the fill rate and maximizing the revenue per ad space. Many SSPs also come with integrated brand safety tools, preventing malicious advertisers from serving your ads aggressively or in a manner that harms user experience (UX) and keeping the quality of your ads as high as possible.

  • Expanding Your Ad Campaign’s Reach.

    In the past, publishers often offered ad space at severely reduced prices to fill the ad inventory. Although this method worked to sell ads, it was inefficient as the set price was typically too low to be profitable.

    Supply-Side Platforms prevent publishers from resorting to these methods by establishing a price floor: a minimum value under which no bids will be accepted. However, if your ad campaign features new and exceptional content, SSPs can be adapted and offer a new, appropriate price point. This feature ensures that new campaigns get maximum reach, allowing publishers to prioritize expansion instead of profit optimization when needed.

  • Better Revenue Yield

    The amount of revenue earned from ads is referred to as yield or ad yield. The primary purpose of an SSP is to select the best bid prices for your ads and optimize ad displays to minimize fatigue (e.g., displaying the same ads over a long period). However, it isn’t designed to pick the highest bidder every time, as the highest price isn’t necessarily coming from the most relevant advertiser.

    For example, an SSP will ignore an advertiser in a different geographic area with content that doesn’t match any of your requirements, even if it were to offer the highest CPM bid.

    Instead, SSPs consider your needs and requirements and attempt to match your content with the most relevant advertisers. They will only look for the best prices within these parameters, resulting in a better and more optimized yield.

Challenges of Using SSPs

Although SSPs offer many benefits to publishers, it is critical to remain aware of the challenges involved in their use. Here are some of the most prominent.

  • SSP Market Fragmentation

    The global SSP market is divided into various segments, depending on the region, industry, business size, and applications. For example, region segmentation includes Europe, North America, South America, Asia-Pacific (APAC), and the Middle East and Africa (MEA), whereas industry segments include education, manufacturing, IT, telecoms, and finance.

    One of the biggest challenges of using SSPs is finding the right one for your region, industry, applications, and specific needs.

  • Complexity

    Although finding the right SSP can help you reduce the complexity of managing and selling ads to advertisers, the nature of programmatic advertising means that changing small details may sometimes require interacting with multiple options and interfaces.

    Consequently, many SSP solutions introduce their own degree of complexity, making it more difficult to manage your ad inventory if their workflows aren’t efficient or intuitive. The only way to ensure a particular SSP works for you is to try it and determine whether it can help you work more efficiently.

  • Service Costs

    Although every platform offers its own pricing plans, most charge a percentage based on the total ad spend amount. Average rates vary between 15% and 35%. However, each SSP may charge additional fees for extra services such as fraud detection, improved viewability, and brand safety tools, potentially increasing the total service costs to 30-50% of the ad spend.

Where Do SSPs Sit in the Online Advertising Ecosystem?

The online advertising ecosystem between advertisers and publishers comprises numerous elements: DSPs, media agencies, ad networks and exchanges, ad servers, data suppliers, and other smaller elements.

Supply-side platforms are one of the elements closest to the publishers. They help publishers reach advertisers by directly reaching ad exchanges, ad networks, DSPs, and DMPs.

SSP vs. DSP

SSPs should not be confused with Demand-Side Platforms (DSPs). A DSP is a software platform designed to help advertisers buy ads from publishers across multiple ad exchanges. In other words, a DSP is to an advertiser what an SSP is to a publisher, fulfilling the same essential role; technology that helps advertisers and publishers connect and reach deals on ad spaces.

Examples of Supply-Side Platforms

Here are some of the top SSPs on today’s market and what unique value propositions they offer.

  • Google Ad Manager

    Google Ad Manager is unique for being both a Supply-Side Platform and an ad exchange, combining the features and services of both platform types under the same roof. Google Ad Manager is certified by the Trustworthy Accountability Group as a platform safe from piracy, fraud, malware, and other risks to brand safety.

    Ads offered on Google Ad Manager are subjected to the unified first-price auction system, where the winning bidder must pay the bid with the highest price. The service also offers a complete suite of management tools for video ads, native ads, and other formats. Additionally, using Google Ad Manager is free to publishers with over 5 million monthly page views.

  • OpenX

    OpenX is one of the largest and best-performing SSPs available today, consistently ranking among the top 10 options for publishers. It has access to over 30,000 top-rated advertisers and provides customers with a wide range of analytics tools and custom reports.

    Due to the highly sought-after nature of its advertisers, OpenX is only open to publishers with 10 million monthly page views.

  • Magnite

    Formerly known as Rubicon Project, Magnite is one of the oldest and most well-established Supply-Side Platforms. Magnite has offered its services to publishers since its foundation in 2007, being one of the most consistent top performers and partnering with some of the world’s largest clients, such as Fox, Discovery, Hulu, and Disney.

    Magnite is well-known for offering a wide selection of static and dynamic ad formats, fitting virtually any publisher’s ad space. They also offer a privacy-friendly platform, compliant with the most prominent regional regulations (e.g., GDPR, CCPA), helping improve worldwide reach.

  • PubMatic

    PubMatic is another older and well-established SSP, established in 2006. PubMatic’s services are trusted by high-profile clients such as Verizon, Dictionary.com, and Electronic Arts.

    With access to over 400 DSPs, exchanges, and networks, numerous configuration options and controls for publishers, and an easy-to-use interface, PubMatic is often described as one of the best SSPs to maximize ad yield. The company also uses moderation tools to maintain ad quality standards, ensuring only the best-performing content is served to publishers.

  • Xandr

    Xandr, known as AppNexus until 2018, is a multi-faceted adtech company offering an SSP, an ad exchange, a DSP (Xandr Invest), and an ad curation platform (Xandr Curate). Monetization is open to publishers with a minimum of 10 million monthly page views.

    Xandr’s monetization schemes primarily focus on header bidding and television advertising (e.g., OTT, Connected TV). They offer an exclusive private marketplace exchange to publishers with a unique inventory, allowing them to increase the value of their ad inventory and offer their ad slots to a curated selection of partners.

Alternatives of Supply-Side Platforms

Although SSPs offer many valuable features to publishers, top-performing platforms often have strict requirements that can be challenging to meet. Here are a few solutions if you’re looking for alternatives to the most common SSPs to help you monetize your content.

 

  • CodeFuel

    CodeFuel serves as an alternative to SSPs and DSPs by offering tools to help publishers grow engagement and increase their website’s value through website performance optimization and the creation of new revenue channels.

    For instance, CodeFuel offers ways to implement or optimize the monetization of your website,  mobile apps, or search engine experience, helping you engage with more users and increase your yield.

  • Amazon Publisher Services (APS)

    Amazon Publisher Services (APS) Publishers is Amazon’s unified ad marketplace for publishers looking to display ads on the retail giant’s website. It features server-to-server bidding integrations and a highly responsive, centralized dashboard. Although an Amazon account is required to use APS, no fees are required.

  • Bing for Partners

    Microsoft’s search engine offers a partnership program with advantageous features for publishers, such as ad syndication (Bing ads on your website), Bing search engine ads, and cross-device compatibility (responsive and optimized results on PC, smartphones, and tablets).

FAQs

  • How much does Google AdSense cost?

    Google AdSense is free. No fees are required to apply for a new account or maintain an existing one.

  • How do I know my AdSense account’s approval status?

    Log into your AdSense account and visit your dashboard. If you see earning statistics, your account is currently approved, either temporarily or permanently.

  • How much can I earn with AdSense?

    Although it’s impossible to predict how much you can expect to earn accurately because earnings vary depending on multiple factors. These include the amount of traffic you receive, where your visitors come from, the type and relevance of your content, which niche your website belongs to, and how you have configured your ads.

  • Which site niches are the most profitable?

    As of 2022, some of the most profitable site niches for AdSense are law, cryptocurrency, insurance, automotive, electronics, health & fitness, and marketing.

  • Can I have more than one AdSense account?

    It is against the terms and services for a single person to have more than one Google AdSense account. If you attempt to run multiple accounts from the same billing address, Google may suspend or terminate all of them.

  • How much does Google AdSense cost?

    Google AdSense is free. No fees are required to apply for a new account or maintain an existing one.

  • How do I know my AdSense account’s approval status?

    Log into your AdSense account and visit your dashboard. If you see earning statistics, your account is currently approved, either temporarily or permanently.

  • How much can I earn with AdSense?

    Although it’s impossible to predict how much you can expect to earn accurately because earnings vary depending on multiple factors. These include the amount of traffic you receive, where your visitors come from, the type and relevance of your content, which niche your website belongs to, and how you have configured your ads.

  • Which site niches are the most profitable?

    As of 2022, some of the most profitable site niches for AdSense are law, cryptocurrency, insurance, automotive, electronics, health & fitness, and marketing.

  • Can I have more than one AdSense account?

    It is against the terms and services for a single person to have more than one Google AdSense account. If you attempt to run multiple accounts from the same billing address, Google may suspend or terminate all of them.

  • Are Ads.txt files mandatory?

    Google recommends adding an Ads.txt file, but it is not mandatory. However, publishers can benefit from having an ads.txt file by stopping counterfeit inventory purchases and ensuring the ad inventory is valid.

  • How do I fix an Ads.txt file?

    If you have incorrect information in the original file, you can replace it by downloading it and making your changes. It is essential to include all the information, including the domain name, publisher ID, and account relationship. Once you’ve modified the file, save and upload it.

  • How do I verify an Ads.txt file?

    Online ads.txt validators offer the most straightforward method for validating ads.txt files. Insert the ads.txt URL into the validator to verify the publisher ID, the domain, and all fields are complete.

  • In what ways does Google enforce Ads.txt files if I use them?

    Google can decide which publishers can show ads using the Ads.txt files in the domain. Then, the company can run an auction for ads on sites with Ads.txt files and the correct publisher IDs. There’s no auction if the publisher ID in the file is incorrect.

  • Can Ads.txt files be on a subdomain?

    Google can search and implement Ad.txt files in subdomains when there is a line for subdomains in the files.

    You add a subdomain= declaration to the ads.txt file if you want to reference a subdomain. For instance, if your ads.txt file for website.com has to include the subdomain subdomain.website.com, you would write subdomain=subdomain.example.com in your ads.txt.

  • Do I need to update my Ads.txt file if I implement header bidding?

    You may need to change your file if you also use header bidding to attract advertisers. This is because the Ads.txt file must have frequent updates when you need to add new partners to your list.

  • Are Ads.txt files mandatory?

    Google recommends adding an Ads.txt file, but it is not mandatory. However, publishers can benefit from having an ads.txt file by stopping counterfeit inventory purchases and ensuring the ad inventory is valid.

  • How do I fix an Ads.txt file?

    If you have incorrect information in the original file, you can replace it by downloading it and making your changes. It is essential to include all the information, including the domain name, publisher ID, and account relationship. Once you’ve modified the file, save and upload it.

  • How do I verify an Ads.txt file?

    Online ads.txt validators offer the most straightforward method for validating ads.txt files. Insert the ads.txt URL into the validator to verify the publisher ID, the domain, and all fields are complete.

  • In what ways does Google enforce Ads.txt files if I use them?

    Google can decide which publishers can show ads using the Ads.txt files in the domain. Then, the company can run an auction for ads on sites with Ads.txt files and the correct publisher IDs. There’s no auction if the publisher ID in the file is incorrect.

  • Can Ads.txt files be on a subdomain?

    Google can search and implement Ad.txt files in subdomains when there is a line for subdomains in the files.

    You add a subdomain= declaration to the ads.txt file if you want to reference a subdomain. For instance, if your ads.txt file for website.com has to include the subdomain subdomain.website.com, you would write subdomain=subdomain.example.com in your ads.txt.

  • Do I need to update my Ads.txt file if I implement header bidding?

    You may need to change your file if you also use header bidding to attract advertisers. This is because the Ads.txt file must have frequent updates when you need to add new partners to your list.

  • What is a Data Management Platform?

    A Data Management Platform (DMP) is another aspect of programmatic advertising. DMPs collect various types of data from advertising campaigns, websites, and users, storing and categorizing it to provide relevant insights to advertisers and publishers. DMPs achieve these insights by building personalized user profiles, which can be used to determine trends and help improve the efficiency of an ad campaign.

  • How does header bidding work?

    Header bidding is a function incorporated into most SSPs. They allow publishers to receive bids from multiple advertiser DSPs simultaneously. Header bidding can significantly help a publisher optimize their yield as it helps them visualize how much each ad is worth to a wide range of advertisers in a short period.

  • How can price floors help with yield optimization?

    Most SSPs let publishers set price floors as a way to maintain control over the pricing of their inventory. The primary purpose of a price floor is to let publishers not allow the sale of an ad under a specific price. This type of price floor is referred to as a hard price floor (HPF).

    For example, if you set an ad’s HPF at $4.50, bidders offering less than $4.50 CPM (e.g., $4.00 and $4.19) will be automatically rejected.

  • What is a Data Management Platform?

    A Data Management Platform (DMP) is another aspect of programmatic advertising. DMPs collect various types of data from advertising campaigns, websites, and users, storing and categorizing it to provide relevant insights to advertisers and publishers. DMPs achieve these insights by building personalized user profiles, which can be used to determine trends and help improve the efficiency of an ad campaign.

  • How does header bidding work?

    Header bidding is a function incorporated into most SSPs. They allow publishers to receive bids from multiple advertiser DSPs simultaneously. Header bidding can significantly help a publisher optimize their yield as it helps them visualize how much each ad is worth to a wide range of advertisers in a short period.

  • How can price floors help with yield optimization?

    Most SSPs let publishers set price floors as a way to maintain control over the pricing of their inventory. The primary purpose of a price floor is to let publishers not allow the sale of an ad under a specific price. This type of price floor is referred to as a hard price floor (HPF).

    For example, if you set an ad’s HPF at $4.50, bidders offering less than $4.50 CPM (e.g., $4.00 and $4.19) will be automatically rejected.

Need Help Implementing an SSP? CodeFuel Can Help You

If you’re looking for help choosing, implementing, or configuring a Supply-Side Platform for your website, CodeFuel can help. Our dedicated team of experts can provide the guidance you need to optimize your website’s monetization and maximize your ad revenue yield. Visit our website today for more information.

Best Ad Networks For Publishers to Maximize Your Earnings in 2023. Learn Which are the Top Advertising Platforms

Best Ad Networks For Publishers to Maximize Your Earnings in 2023. Learn Which are the Top Advertising Platforms

The ad tech industry doesn’t start and finish with Google AdSense. In fact, there are many alternatives for ad for publishers who want to generate ad revenue outside Google. You can combine several networks to generate the highest revenue. Here we explore and bring you our top 15 picks for 2022​.

In this post

What Would Partnering with the Best Ad Networks Bring You?

Every owner of a digital property, such as a website, extension or application, wants to monetize their content. The right ad network can simplify the task for publishers and advertisers. Here are some benefits of choosing carefully and partnering with the best ad network for your business. 

  1. It ensures you get the highest paying bids. 
  2. It helps you sell unsold inventory. 
  3. It allows publishers to match with the right advertisers for their audience.
  4. It saves publishers from having to offer and contact advertisers directly.
  1. CodeFuel – A complete holistic solution for publishers, leveraging search, ads, and news monetization options while enhancing the UX. Start Now! (read more)
    1. Amazon for PublishersUnified ad marketplace for Amazon clients to leverage ads on and off Amazon. (read more)
      1. Bing for Partners – Powered by Microsoft, Bing offers premium inventory and more than a billion monthly visitors. (read more)
        1. Google Adsense and Google Marketing Network – The most popular Ad network, allows publishers to monetize their websites by presenting ads on their digital properties. (read more)
          1. Taboola – An ad network that matches campaigns to specific publishers. Presents content in a newsfeed format. (read more)
          2. Definition of an Ad Network

            An ad network is a software platform that acquires available ad inventory for publishers and sells them to advertisers.

            The ad network acts as a middleman that finds the right inventory for the right buyer. Networks partner with publishers and advertisers to connect and help them meet their marketing goals.

            In practice, the role of an ad network can vary, collecting ad inventory directly from publishers, SSPs, or ad exchanges. Publishers, in turn, choose networks that align with the type of ad format they work with, be video ads or interstitial ads. For example, a publisher that works under the CPM pricing model will look for the ad network with the best CPM rate. Or, an application offering interstitial ads will look for an ad network specializing in those.

            What Is an Ad Monetization Platform?

            Ad monetization platforms are software solutions that enable publishers to make money from their digital properties’ content by displaying ads. Ad networks are an example of a monetization platform. 

            While some platforms focus on a single capability, for example, an ad network focuses on mobile ads. You can choose a holistic solution such as CodeFuel, which allows publishers to monetize through search, shopping, and display ads. 

            Why Do You Need An Ad Network?

            An ad network is an intermediary that introduces the right publisher option to the right buyer. It connects publishers (suppliers) and advertisers (buyers) to match their campaign goals.

            You can work with several ad networks according to the different types of ad formats you work with. Different ad networks offer different formats, such as pop-under, push notifications, banners, and native or interstitial ads. Video ad networks offer different video ad formats.

            Publishers that use ad networks can expect a higher yield via different pricing models, such as CPM, CPC, or CPA.

            Ad networks are also a good choice if you need to sell remnant ad inventory. You can sell the remnant ad impressions through an ad network.

            Types of Ad Networks

            Below you can find some of the main types of ad networks:

            • Premium Ad Network:  A premium ad network offers inventory from popular and high quality publishers.
            • Inventory-specific Ad Network: These networks focus on a specific type of inventory, for example, video or mobile.
            • Affiliate Marketing Network: Affiliate advertising or affiliate marketing networks connect publishers (like affiliate marketers) with brands. Brands can find affiliates to promote their products, and affiliates can find the right program with ease.
            • Vertical-specific Ad Network: These ad networks focus on a certain type of product or topic. For example, automotive, business, health, fashion, or technology.

            Which Types of Ad Formats Should You Use?

            There are several types of ad formats. The IAB (Interactive Bureau) standards developed a New Ad Portfolio’s guidelines as a recommendation of ad types across mobile apps, websites, social media, and other digital experiences.

            Ad Unit Name

            Billboard

            Smartphone Banner
            Leaderboard
            Super Leaderboard/Pushdown
            Portrait
            Skyscraper
            Medium Rectangle
            20×60
            Mobile Phone Interstitial
            Feature Phone Small Banner
            Feature Phone Medium Banner
            Feature Phone Large Banner
            Fixed Size (px)*

            970×250

            300×50 or 320×50
            728×90
            970×90
            300x1050
            160×600
            300×250
            120×60
            640×1136 or 750×1334 or 1080×1920
            120×20
            168×28
            216×36
            Max. K-Weight (kB)
            Initial Load
            250
            50
            150
            200
            250
            150
            150
            50
            300
            5
            5
            5
            Max. K-Weight (kB)
            Subload
            500
            100
            300
            400
            500
            300
            300
            100
            600
            NIA
            NIA
            NIA

            There are two main characteristics in the IAB portfolio.

            • A transition towards flexible ad units: The goal of a flexible is to integrate with website and mobile-friendly designs, keeping their aspect ratio.
            • Focus on LEAN ads: LEAN stands for Light, Encrypted, AdChoices supported, and Non-invasive-ads.

            The three most common ad sizes: 

            • 728×90 (Leaderboard)
            • 300×250 (medium rectangle)
            • 160×600 (skyscraper)

            Common Ad Format Types

            Other well performing ad types include:

            • Video ads:  Video is one of the most effective ad formats, not only on social media but in static websites too.
            • Rich media ads: The same happens with interactive ads because they require user engagement to display.
            • Push notifications: Push notification advertising is a way to deliver an ad by using a web notification, directly to the user’s device. A push notification then doesn’t take space on the publisher’s website.

            How do you choose the best ad network for your company?

            There are a good deal of different advertising networks to choose, from premium ad networks, to vertical ad networks, offering all types of ad inventory and formats, video ads, in-feed ads, and display advertising to choose from. But before choosing the next advertising network, you should start first by considering a few factors and evaluating your marketing needs.

            Key factors to consider

            • Your target audience–Is your audience B2B or B2C? How large is your audience? Note your audience demographics, interests, location, and age group.
            • Your budget–for starting companies, sometimes the budget can play an important part in choosing some networks.
            • Your niche–this is perhaps the most important factor in determining which network works best for you. Often, the more general the niche, the more general the network.
            • The customer’s device— The device your users use more often can also determine the ad network you choose. You may choose a mobile ad network for mobile-first audiences.
            • Targeting Ad Options and Criteria – It is important to match the ad options the advertising network provides with your needs. Check the formats they offer, their verticals, and their ad types.

            How does an Ad Network in Display Advertising Work?

            Ad networks connect publishers with advertisers. Display ad networks serve as a point of connection between publishers that want to monetize via display ads and buyers. They collect unsold ad inventory from publishers. The platform simplifies the interaction between both in a seamless operation.

            The most popular display ad networks include Google ADX and Brid.TV Marketplace, Clickadu. Platforms like these are collections of websites and applications serving display ads, which publishers use to offer their display ad inventory.

            How do publishers make money on display ads?

            Publishers can be websites or applications that want to monetize their digital properties. They earn ad revenue when visitors interact with the ads displayed on them. Some examples of interactions are impressions, clicks, or engagements.

            Advertisers bid how much they want to pay for the interaction, for example, 0.15 USD per click. If the ad displayed generates 1000 clicks a day, the publisher earns $15 a day.

            How to select the best ad inventory for Advertisers and Publishers?

            How advertisers can choose the right ad inventory

            Buyers may want to choose an ad network that can bring the maximum return for their marketing campaigns. Here are some tips:

            1. Look into your audience. Choose a network that caters to your target users.
            2. Check the ad format and types the networks offer. Look for the one that specializes in the ads you need for your campaign.
            3. Don’t forget the location. Geolocation is key to finding an advertising network that will reach your users.
            4. Keep your goals in mind. Look into the content that can resonate with your potential customers.
            5.  Finally, pricing matters. The pricing model used by the ad network can influence the success of your campaign, as it affects your budget. It is a big difference if the ad network uses CPM or CPC.

            How can publishers optimize the value of their ad inventory? 

            Publishers should consider several factors to maximize the value of their ad inventory.

            1. Ad placement.  There are two main ad placements: Above the Fold and Below the Fold. ATF is preferred by advertisers because viewers often spot them easily. While BTF ads are not as popular, they can be a good option to get extra revenue if your site has an infinite scroll.
            2. Ad sizes and formats you use. Certain ad sizes perform better than others. These ads, when correctly placed, improve viewability and CTR. Some types, such as interactive and rich media ads, may gain more attention from users.
            3. Look at the user’s location. Publishers should also consider where the traffic comes from. Although US traffic is widely preferred by advertisers, there are buyers that would prefer to have traffic in a specific geolocation.

            The Best Ad Networks for Publishers for 2022 & 2023

            1. CodeFuel

            CodeFuel is a complete monetization solution for digital properties. Leveraging intent-based search ads, shopping, and news, the platform allows you to monetize any type of digital property, including websites, extensions, and applications. The platform offers app and website monetization, and search mediation.

            CodeFuel

            Features

            • App monetization – use an intent-based search to monetize your app or extension. Intent-based monetization with in-app ads.
            • Search mediationoptimized landing pages for your media campaigns regardless of where you buy media (Facebook, Google, Taboola, or Outbrain) You can deploy monetization pages on your own website.
            • Website monetization present relevant shopping ads to encourage high intent users and increase conversions. Leverage search text ads with a customized search results page (SERP) with sponsored text ads.
            • NewsFuel Feed – premium news feed.

            Requirements

            • There are no minimum traffic requirements for publishers, although it is not suitable for very small websites.
            • The content needs to be engaging, relevant, and high quality.

            Payment methods

            • The payout is one of the highest in the market.
            • Publishers get a monthly payment with combined earnings.
            Pros
            Flexible – offers monetization options across various platforms and verticals
            All-in-one – you can leverage search, ads, shopping, and news to monetize your digital property.
            Tracking and analytics
            Centralized dashboard
            Multiple integrations – integrates with MSN, Bing, Yahoo, AOL, and 1200 quality publishers. Also provides access to premium Google AdSense programs.
            Cons
            Not suitable for very small publishers. Requires a mid-size audience to find the high intent users.

            What reviewers say

            There were few reviews in G2, but users see great value in CodeFuel offerings. Reviewers give CodeFuel an average rate of 5 stars in G2. 

            What do users like most?  They like that CodeFuel delivers fast monetization extensions for Chrome and Firefox. They also find it valuable that it brings value and improves customer’s journeys.

            An administrator in the health industry says

            “Great search solution!”

            What do you like best?

            The team expertise allowed me to quickly monetise our chrome and Firefox extensions.

            Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

            What do you dislike?

            I’m trying hard to find anything I dislike but it’s all great!

            Contact Us and Start Today!

            2. Amazon

            The retail giant provides an ad network service for publishers. It features server-to-server header bidding integration for Amazon and Supply Side Platforms. Improves the publisher’s revenue without creating latency, and zero fees. The cloud header bidding integration gives publishers access to advertisers from Amazon’s network.

            Amazon Ad Marketplace

            Features

            • Unified Ad Marketplace – header bidding from Amazon and third-party partners via SSP.
            • Server-to-Server bidding integrations
            • Responsive
            • Automated line item configurations
            • Single header tag integration
            • Centralized dashboard

            Requirements

            • An Amazon account.
            • There is no fee for publishers
            • When you apply, the site gets reviewed before getting approval.

            Payment methods

            • The platform combines earnings from Amazon and buyers and sends a monthly payment to the publisher. 
              Pros
              Faster page loads
              Unified demand
              Easy integration
              Cons
              Managed service: you don’t have a lot of control
              Restricted to Amazon clients

              What reviewers say

              Most reviewers are at the enterprise-level and give Amazon publisher services a 4.5 stars rate in G2. What do users like?

              • It is a consolidated marketplace
              • Offer a broad pool of services

              An engineering manager for an enterprise-level organization says

              “Great tool for monetize digital business”

              Describe the project or task the provider helped with:

              Amazon Publisher Services is a suite of cloud services that brings you solutions built by Amazon. I have used APS to grow and monetize my digital media business

              Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

              What do you like best?

              • Easy to set ad campaigns
              • Unified Ad marketplace
              • Connection Ad MarketPlace

              3. Bing for Partners

              The Microsoft alternative to Google, Bing for partners features premium inventory and allows publishers to monetize their digital properties from more than one billion unique monthly visitors.
              Bing For Partners

              Features

              • Syndication–you get paid to show Bing Ads on your website. Bing serves the ads tailored to your audience and content.
              • Search ads–customers search on Bing and partner’s sites and get served custom ads according to search keywords.
              • Cross-device search results–responsive search results and ads for PC, mobile, and tablet.

              Requirements

              • The partner should bring two unique active domains to Bing Ads in the last year.
              • Demonstrated spend of $3000 per quarter in Bing Ads
              • Pass fraud detection evaluation

              Payment methods

              • Advertisers can pay via credit/debit card, for post pay, and prepay, but only via bank transfer for a monthly invoice.
              • Publishers get paid via bank transfer and monthly invoice. 
              Pros
              Has three search engines – Bing, Yahoo, and AOL
              Bing network is growing, reaching searchers that aren’t reached with Google AdWords.
              You can import your Google Ads campaign
              Cons
              Cannot target specific countries with the partner network
              Network ad placement sometimes is inferior quality
              Not available on Mac

              What reviewers say

              Bing Ads is very popular among small and medium businesses, with most reviewers in G2 falling into the mid-market category. It has an average of 4 stars in G2.

              What do users like?

              • Cost-effective
              • It helps to catch premium traffic that you cannot catch on Google.

              1. A medium-sized advertising agency says

              “Useful, Not Quite As User Friendly”

              What do you like best?

              Bing Ads is a great way to catch overflow traffic that you’re not able to catch on Google. The direct import feature from Google to Bing is incredibly helpful and I’m glad that they provide it despite it being essentially an admission of its secondary status. Overall setup can replicate Google pretty well. A few additional integrations with LinkedIn recently have actually proven to be pretty interesting testing features, too.

              Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

              What do you dislike?

              Bing is definitely a much slower platform with a lot of non-user-friendly features. The navigation is a bit of a mess, the offline Bing Ads Editor is incredibly slow and clunky (wish they’d just copy Google’s completely here), the inflexibility of downloading reports is a huge pain, and the lack of integration with Google Sheets/Data Studio is also a pain point as far as gathering data to share with clients.

              4. Google Adsense and Google Doubleclick Ad Exchange

              Google is still the most popular ad network. It offers access to a vast pool of advertisers although it may be too generic for niche publishers. Google AdSense is easy to use, and enables publishers to serve automatic text, image, video or interactive ads, tailored to the content and audience.

              16 Best Ad Networks for Publishers in 2022 16 Best Ad Networks for Publishers in 2022

              Google Adsense

              Features

              • Automated Ads – analyzes your pages and places ads based on layout, content, and existing Google ads.
              • Ad size optimization – automatically adapts the size of the ad to your user screen. So more ads can fill the ad units.

              Requirements

              A Google Account and a website that receives more than 300,000 monthly page views.

              Payment methods

              • Western Union, Wire Transfer, EFT.
              Pros
              Simple – you just need a Google Account and website
              Easy to use – add the same line of code to each page you want to show ads.
              Responsive – automatically adapts to mobile.
              Cons
              Google restricts working with other ad networks. You can use CodeFuel to get access to the premium Google ad network: Google Marketing Network.

              What reviewers say

              Even when it is the most popular ad network over there, Google AdSense has a 4.2 stars rate in G2. Most reviewers belong to small and medium organizations.

              What do users like about Google AdSense?

              • It is easy to use
              • Good reporting features
              • Large pool of advertisers

              Here is what reviewers are saying:

              An administrator in a large medical organization says

              “Great platform to monetize websites”

              What do you like best?

              • High payouts (68% share for publishers)
              • Do not slow the performance of the website
              • good performance
              • no minimum traffic requirement
              • very high fill rate

              Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

              What do you dislike?

              Poor customer service; easy to have account banned with no chance of a successful appeal. Once banned, you can not apply again

              5. Taboola

              Taboola is one of the most popular native advertising platforms. It integrates a news feed scroll to website pages. It adds contextual sponsored content and ads that blend with your experience. Consumers are served ads when they are in discovery mode, thus increasing awareness to driving online purchases. Taboola platform leverages Deep Learning technology, to predict relevant matches for the ads across Taboola’s publisher network.

              Taboola

              Features

              • Feed–presents content in a scrolling news feed type.
              • A/B testing
              • Online content discovery
              • Native advertising – advertiser-side. Matches and targets campaigns to specific publishers according to content.

              Requirements

              • There is no minimum traffic requirement
              • Some types of content are restricted. 

              Payment methods

              • The platform works under CTR and CPC models.
              • Monthly invoice billing via wire, credit card or check.
              • Automatic billing via credit card
              Pros
              It’s easy to set up campaigns
              Provides many options for targeting
              Supports several audiences
              Cons
              Not friendly interface
              Not performance whitelisting

              What reviewers say

              Despite its popularity, most reviewers give Taboola  3 stars in G2. Most of the reviewers are small businesses in the marketing and advertising industry.

              What do users like about Taboola?

              • High quality placements
              • Accurate KPI tracking.

              Here is what reviewers are saying:

              A marketing and data expert in a small business organization says

              “The best display ads platform for Advertisers”

              What do you like best?

              The way the platform shows the relevant data through its UI. It’s very precise in terms of KPI’s such as impressions, clicks, conversions. And its tracking pixels are really helpful at the moment of taking a decision in order to increase or decrease budgets of showing ads.

              Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

              What do you dislike?

              The campaign building process and the optimization of the images for different placements don’t allow me to look at correct previews. Sometimes the images appeared cut when they were actually exactly to the dimensions they were asking

              A growth product manager for an enterprise-level organization says

              “Great platform for getting additional reach”

              What do you like best?

              Taboola is an excellent platform for building a top funnel and increasing Brand awareness. Campaign setup is the easiest here as there are not any major audience buckets or other targeting options to choose from. It just shows the right ads to the right audience through its Machine Learning Model which has acquired data of millions of users over time.

              Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

              What do you dislike?

              There are not many targeting options available and that is the main reason we can not expect a better quality of users to flow in through Taboola ads.

              6. Outbrain

              Outbrain is a native advertising platform that offers monetization services for publishers and advertisers. It works as a recommendation platform that curates and delivers recommendation feeds on websites. It offers retargeting, audience segmentation, geo targeting, behavioral targeting, advanced reporting and analytics, and cross-channel retargeting.

              Outbrain

              Features

              • End-to-end platform
              • Flexible Placements
              • Sells remnant inventory
              • A/B testing

              Requirements

              • It doesn’t have a minimum traffic requirements.
              • Engaging content, that adds value to visitors can apply to Outbrain.

              Payment methods

              • Outbrain runs on a CPC (Cost per Click) model
              • The content will be distributed until it caps the budget.
              • There is a monthly billing cycle. 
              • It accepts multiple payment methods but there is a processing charge for credit card payment processing.
              Pros
              Easy to use
              Simple set up
              Large distribution network
              Cons
              Weak support
              Terms and conditions change rapidly.
              Most of the traffic comes from the top of the funnel.

              What users say about Outbrain?

              Reviewers give Outbrain 4 and a half stars in G2.  Most users are mid-market industries between 51 and 1000 employees, in the marketing and advertising industry. Most G2 reviewers of Outbrain are in North America.

              What do users like about Outbrain?

              • They have a large publisher’s pool.
              • Their analytics features are very user-friendly.

              Here is what G2 reviewers are saying:

              An executive in advertising and marketing says

              “Nice alternative for Google Ads and Adroll”

              What do you like best?

              I was able to run CBD campaigns which I would never be able to do in Google ads or in Adroll. They just have limitations with the creatives but it was doable and easy.

              Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

              What do you dislike?

              I dislike the fact that I couldn’t extract the reports by creative which gives me the exact dimensions of the creatives I have uploaded which the clients sometimes asks from us.

              A brand manager in a small business says

              “Good But Lacks Analytics”

              What do you like best?

              This was a very easy platform to start up with. It was a good way to get massive amounts of page impressions to our site, but it lacked any conversion benefits.

              Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

              What do you dislike?

              Lacked true conversion benefits. This is a platform that would be great for anyone trying to drive traffic but not needing any conversions.

              7. Triple Lift

              Triple Lift is a native advertising platform. It offers demand-side and supply-side advertising, The platform supports campaigns for any ad format. TripleLift technology uses computer vision to transform images with content into ads. By focusing on images, it delivers visual content with seamless integration to publishers.
              Triplelift

              Features

              • Ad server
              • Publisher integration
              • Native direct deals on their existing workflow

              Requirements

              • TripleLift offers a free trial and a freemium version

              Payment methods

              •  Payment 90 days after the end of the month.
              • Payment 60 days after the end of the month, with a 1% financing charge.
              • Payment 30 days after the end of the month, with a 2% financing charge.
              Pros
              Run media directly or you can access their inventory for programmatic advertising
              Creative capabilities.
              Cons
              Basic dashboard
              Needs more metrics
              UI is not easy to use

              What reviewers say

              Users give 4 stars to TripleLift in G2.  Most reviewers are in the mid-market category for the company’s size, in the marketing and advertising industry, and living in North America.

              What do users like about TripleLift?

              • It is easy to navigate
              • They offer products across channels, publishers, and partners.

              Here is what reviewers are saying:

              An executive in a mid-market marketing and advertising organization says

              “Best Platform to Traffic Native Tags!”

              What do you like best?

              I love how user-friendly the UI is when setting up campaigns inclusive of Native ads.

              Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

              What do you dislike?

              There is a lot of back and forth that’s required between us and the middle man (rep).

              A media director in a mid-market organization says

              “Great Previews – Easy to Use”

              What do you like best?

              I love the previews that we get surrounded by actual content. Many of our clients want to see what their ads look like in a real environment, and TripleLift makes that a piece of cake.

              Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

              What do you dislike?

              It can take a while to get approved and connected to our DSP, and sometimes there are unclear issues. CSR usually does help get us live quickly, but we have to ping them to get it turned around in 24 hrs

              8. Xandr Monetize

              It is a monetization platform that offers services for advertisers and publishers. For publishers, they offer an SSP, an ad server, and analytics. This ad network is built o top of the AppNexus platform. It brings programmatic monetization to AppNexus users.

              Xander

              Features

              • Replaces the AppNexus SSP and Publisher.
              • Supply-side platform
              • Inventory management
              • Ad server
              • Many options to segment and search different metrics
              • Reporting
              • Geo-targeting

              Requirements

              •  The media is owned and operated by the seller or the seller has an exclusive relationship with the publisher
              • Other factors considered include inventory quality, size, geographic location, and inventory formats.

              Payment methods

              • The platform supports CPC and CPA payment types, but ultimately, the publishers are the ones that set the allowed payment terms. The system selects CPM by default.
              Pros
              Flexible
              User-friendly UI
              Cons
              Weak support
              Issues with tracking metrics
              Slow platform
              Complex and not suitable for beginners

              What reviewers say

              Users rate Xandr (Formerly AppNexus Marketplace) with 4 stars in G2. Most reviewers are at the mid-market and enterprise levels, mostly in the marketing advertising industry, followed by health and wellness. Most reviewers are from the North American region.

              What do users like about Xandr?

              • Pixel craton is versatile and easy to use.
              • You can buy campaigns at multiple levels.

              Here is what reviewers are saying:

              A CEO of a mid-market organization says

              “Xandr”

              What do you like best?

              strong console, robust, connected to many DSPs

              Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

              What do you dislike?

              too big, more minor customizations, no CPL

              A marketing and advertising executive in an enterprise-level organization says

              “A Useful SSP that does just enough”

              What do you like best?

              Pixel creation in AppNexus is extremely useful and versatile. We would mainly use the Appnexus platform to utilize the pixel suite, which managed over 1000 pixels for our company. It was incredibly easy to search for the pixel in the suite and the pixels could then be applied for a number of different uses.

              Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

              What do you dislike?

              As an SSP, the lack of transparency in the buying process was rather frustrating. I found that compared to other SSPs the pricing and bidding process was a bit confusing in AppNexus. It’s also a complicated platform for utilizing PMPs in other DSPs. I’ve had a number of campaigns run into issues do to the setup process in AppNexus.

              9. Adcash

              Adcash is an advertising platform with a global reach. On the publisher side, they partner with publishers, premium websites, and SSPs. The company is headquartered in Tallin, Estonia, with branches in Europe. The ad network supports a wide range of verticals, including finance, health, online dating, eCommerce, gaming, and gambling. The platform gives publishers the option of controlling their ad placement or they can automate the process.

              Adcash Ad Network

              Features

              • Multiple ad formats
              • High fill rates–monetize all impressions
              • Anti AdBlock technology

              Requirements

              • Does not have a minimum traffic requirement for publishers
              • The minimum deposit is $1000 and the minimum payout is $25.
              • Advertisers can buy traffic from multiple partners

              Payment methods

              • Supports Payoneer, PayPal, Skrill, Bitcoin, and wire transfers.
              Pros
              Option to control offers manually
              Variety of ad types
              Good customer support
              Multiple language site support
              Cons
              Difficult to find the pay rate on a website
              High minimum payment

              What reviewers say about AdCash

              Reviewers give AdCash 4 stars in G2.  Most reviewers are small and mid-market businesses. Organizations from industries so diverse such as education management, information services, Internet and marketing, and advertising.

              What do users like about AdCash?

              • All-in-one platform
              • You can reach the customers directly through the platform data.

              Here is what reviewers are saying:

              A business intelligence engineer in a small business says

              “Adcash Advertiser Platform”

              What do you like best?

              Adcash Advertiser is a online advertising platform with help of this we promote our product and service to customers. We Globally introduce our product for sale.

              Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

              What do you dislike?

              Once you upload our product for sale in Adcash Advertiser it is very difficult to keep track on your product for payment rates on website. Monitoring is so hard .

              A software engineer in a mid-market enterprise says

              “Adcash Advertiser platform review (pros and cons)”

              What do you like best?

              Best platform for advertisement of various content and provides a good platform

              Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

              What do you dislike?

              The subscription cost is a bit on the higher side

              10. IndexExchange

              Index Exchange is a global ad exchange for transacting ad impressions in real-time. It offers premium inventory and accountability. Its technology is transparent and customizable, simplifying monetization for publishers. This global ad marketplace enables advertisers and publishers to leverage real-time bidding to transact ad impressions. 

              Index Exchange

              Features

              • Predictive optimization–price settings to achieve specific yield goals.
              • Data services–custom optimization models and simulations
              • Analytics–real-time feed that lets you know who is buying your inventory.

              Requirements

              • For publishers, you can integrate using Open RTB or choose your integration option

              Payment Methods

              •  Index negotiates a publisher rate that may differ for open and private marketplace transactions.
              Pros
              Selective about what advertisers they allow into their system.
              Integration with multiple platforms
              Cons
              Not for small companies.

              What reviewers say

              There are no reviews in G2 or TrustRadius for Index Exchange. Cuspera reviewers give an average of 3.9 stars out of 5  for the Personalization, Advertisement and a 4.8/5 for Media Buying capabilities.

              11. Verizon

              Verizon media offers a Demand-Side platform and a Supply-Side platform that offers a large demand and premium services for publishers. The platform leverages machine learning capabilities with advanced productivity features. Verizon Media aims to provide support to omnichannel strategies. It supports different transaction models, including header biddings and guaranteed campaigns.

              Verizon Media

              Features

              • SSP
              • Multiple ad formats, including native ads, video ads, and mobile ads
              • Video Syndication
              • Open real-time bidding

              Requirements

              •  Appropriate content according to community guidelines
              • It requires agencies to comply with principles of IAB Europe.

              Payment Methods

              • Fee-based services
              • Billing is done at the end of a calendar month.
              Pros
              Easy setup and management
              Inventory management
              Consistent demand
              Helps monetize display inventory.
              Cons
              Pixels and Rules – the rules are less intuitive to follow
              Poor UI
              Slow system
              Low viewability
              Cannot hold against premium partners

              What reviewers said

              While there are no reviews in G2, TrustRadius users give Verizon Media Ad Platform a 7.2 stars rating out of 10.  Reviewers consider the best feature is the ad dashboard. Verizon Media users are companies of every size, mostly in the marketing and advertising industry, but the platform also has users across other verticals, such as manufacturing, and accounting.

              What do users like about Verizon Media?

              • Flexibility in customizing and creating ad campaigns
              • Good return on investment because of the wide reach

              Here is what reviewers are saying:

              A digital marketing manager of a mid-market company says

              “Does the job”

              What do you like best?

              Easy to set up and use. UI is straightforward to navigate with multiple shortcuts and previews. Customer support is friendly and they have some good ideas on how to optimize campaigns.

              Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

              What do you dislike?

              Having to log in every day, with the 2-factor auth. Random crashes, reports sometimes take a while. Not having the option to create overlapping segments

              2. An administrator in marketing and advertising for a large enterprise says

              What do you like best?

              The platform is really smooth to work on because of it easy go UI and also the options you get to target audience on it and navigation is super easy.

              Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

              What do you dislike?

              We have to target the audience at all the line item levels which is time-consuming. It would be really great if we can target the campaign leave where it gets applied to all the line items, which could really save time.

              12. AdUp Technology

              AdUp is a platform for native advertising solutions for publishers and advertisers. It includes multiple advertising formats and premium publisher environments on desktop tablets or mobile.

              AD Up Technology

              Features

              • Native retargeting
              • Keyword targeting
              • Geo-targeting
              • Native advertising
              • API
              • Total visibility with a central dashboard
              • Easy to use

              Requirements

              • Supports mobile, tablet, or desktop traffic 
              • No minimum traffic requirements
              • Requires genuine content
              • No ad cluttering

              Payment Methods

              • AdUp works based on maximum CPC bids for publishers, combining it with the click probability to give the highest possible CPM
              Pros
              Ad creation tools
              Publishers can design ad units and layouts customized to any device.
              Focused on publishers
              Most features are automated
              User-friendly interface
              Cons
              Pixels and Rules – the rules are less intuitive to follow
              Poor UI
              Slow system
              Low viewability
              Cannot hold against premium partners

              What reviewers said

              At the time of publication, this tool has no reviews on G2, Capterra, or TrustRadius. The only review on TrustPilot said AdUp had very poor customer support.

              13.  AdsTerra

              It is an ad network that works for publishers and advertisers. It has a large base of direct publishers and deals with mainstream and non-mainstream verticals. For advertisers, there is the option of a fully managed or an intuitive self-serve platform with automated onboarding and live-chat support.

              Adsterra Ad Platform

              Features

              • Central dashboard on one page
              • Fast set up of detailed targeting and tracking
              • Capability to launch unlimited campaigns
              • A/B test for up to 15 creatives
              • Traffic volume estimation.
              • Easy API and tracks integration.
              • Multiple ad formats including Push Ads, Banner Ads, and Direct Link.

              Requirements

              • No traffic minimum or limit
              • No ad-cluttering
              • For advertisers, the minimum deposit is $100.
              • Publishers can start their accounts with personal managers and live chat support.

              Payment Methods

              • Paypal, Visa/Mastercard, Paxum, Capitalist, WebMoney, Wire transfer.
              • Multiple cost models, CPA, CPM, CPI, CPL, RTB, CPC.
              Pros
              Flexible referral program for publisher
              100% fill rate
              Managed and self-serve services
              Support 24/7
              Anti-fraud protection
              API and integrations
              Cons
              CPM rates vary by country
              Minimum payout is high for publishers.
              There is no web support

              What reviewers said

              G2 users give Adsterra Network a 4 and a half stars out of 5. Most reviewers are small businesses with up to 50 employees, in a variety of industries ranging from entertainment to marketing, and even airlines/aviation.

              What do users like about Adsterra?

              • The high monetization rate
              • They recommend the type of ads most suitable for the website.

              Here is what G2 reviewers are saying:

              A senior business analyst in a small business organization says:

              “Very Strong Service”

              What do you like best?

              Very easy to start and set up with different cost models that I can choose from regarding ads.

              Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

              What do you dislike?

              If I don’t have any traffic, I don’t think Adsterra really has any effect so I have to really have a good website first before I can take advantage of the benefits.

              A small business owner says 

              “Adsterra Network- review 2021”

              What do you like best?

              Adsterra is one of my favorite ways of monetizing my blog. They offer one of the highest monetization rates as compared to a few others. One thing that totally impressed me with their network is their system of organization. They actually provide guides on the type of ads I can display to my network.

              This is very important for my audience as it helps prevent content and ads that can be a nuisance to my network. I joined Adsterra when I merely, received 100 visitors per week on my blog site, however, was impressed with the earnings( though, they weren’t millions of dollars), that my blog was making by far gone.

              They’ve made integration with CMS very easy and straightforward thanks to guides and blog posts on their how-tos post page. There actually, was no need to watch a video before integrating this tool into my WordPress account. I kinda like how easy the whole thing is mapped, especially with the continuous updates and new features being added.

              Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

              What do you dislike?

              One thing that I find a little bit weird with the network is, that ads placed at the header tend to affect all pages and posts on my website. I tried a few times clicking random links and was redirected twice or more per link to external resources. Well, this is not very good for my visitors because If, clicking a link will redirect them one-three times to external resources, they can obviously get bored, discouraged and hence, will bounce off.

              14. AdRoll 

              It is an e-commerce marketing platform that simplifies launching campaigns for advertisers. It integrates with e-commerce platforms such as Spotify, Magento, and WooCommerce. It uses machine learning to serve and re-target ads in front of high intent audiences.

              Adroll

              Features

              • Multiple ad formats including display, email and native
              • Re-targeting algorithms
              • Extra features such as abandoned cart recovery, and automated emails.
              • Leverages artificial intelligence to have visibility across multiple channels
              • Detailed reporting
              • Cross-channel optimization

              Requirements

              • For managed accounts you need to meet spend minimums.
              • For prepaid billing, it requires enough credit balance to cover the total weekly budget.

              Payment Methods

              • Automatic Postpaid: They charge for impressions served over a 7-day cycle.
              • Postpaid: For managed accounts only, they invoice at the end of each month with Net 30 payment terms.
              • Prepaid billing charges the payment method upfront for the total weekly budget.
              Pros
              Intuitive UI
              Easy retargeting ads
              Cons
              Customer support is slow
              More expensive than other platforms
              Requires extra payment for cross-platform visibility
              The CRM list takes a long time to be ready.

              What reviewers said

              G2 reviewers give AdRoll 3.9 stars out of 5.  While AdRoll is popular among marketers, G2 reviewers have mixed opinions. Most users are in the small business category, followed by medium size companies. The majority of AdRoll users belong to the marketing and advertising and computer software industries.

              What do reviewers like about AdRoll?

              • * It doesn’t take much company resources and it is easy to use.
              • The reporting is in depth and easy to understand and analyze.

              1‌. A user in mid-market marketing and advertising says: 

              “Best ad network tool to be used for CRM retargeting”

              What do you like best?

              I like that I am able to upload the email addresses of the people that I only want to target which gives me a higher conversion in my campaigns. I also like how easy it is to use.

              Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

              What do you dislike?

              I just don’t like the fact that once you have launched the campaign and you believe that it’s already running and then you will receive an email saying that there is no privacy policy on the site.

              2. A small business project manager says: 

              “Uploading Graphics is a Bit Tedious”

              What do you like best?

              I like that it is easy enough to upload graphics for banner ads, but I think that the naming convention system for graphic uploads could be more intuitive.

              Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

              What do you dislike?

              It would be beneficial for Adroll to have an easy search feature to find exactly which graphic you are looking for. It also could be helpful to have a feature that allows the pictures to pop out if you hover over them so that they are more visible (or maybe even just making the graphics bigger overall on the user interface.

              15. Dianomi

              Dianomi offers premium native advertising for specific industries. As a vertical ad network, it focuses on financial services, technology, lifestyle, and corporate. This ad network connects advertisers and publishers

              Dianomi

              Features

              • Supports B2B and B2C audiences
              • Reporting and tracking ROI.
              • Campaign optimization
              • Option of fully managed or self-serve campaign
              • Multiple ad formats according to IAB standards
              • Reduced latency

              Requirements

              • Dianomi offers their services for publishers exclusively for the verticals of business, financial, lifestyle and corporate. It works with premium publishers.
              • The platform works with large enterprise-level advertisers, in the financial, technology and business industries.

              Payment Methods

              • It works on a Cost per Click basis, or cost per view for video ads.
              Pros
              High-quality publishers.
              Competitive CPA
              High-paying advertisers
              Cons
              It doesn’t have an API
              Only works in the financial niche

              What reviewers said

              G2 reviewers give Dianomi 4 stars out of 5. Because of their niche, most users are medium and enterprise sized in the marketing and advertising, financial and corporate industries.

              What do users like about Dianomi?

              • Targeted advertising
              • Great performance

              This is what G2 reviewers say about Dianomi:

              1. An executive in a small-business company says: 

              “One of the Best Content Advertising Tools that Delivers”

              What do you like best?

              Dianomi’s technology integrates our advertising message seamlessly alongside relevant editorial on premium publications’ websites. We can reach our audiences with targeted content that’s highly relevant. With Dianomi’s Native Advertising Platform, Audience, and Insights products, they deliver contextual relevance to engage readers through a suite of ad units.

              Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

              What do you dislike?

              There’s not much to not like with Dianomi. So far, we’ve reached the right target audience with our campaigns. It’s too simple to use. Maybe they just need to improve the navigation within the platform since there’s much scrolling needed to be done but that’s it.

              2. A manager in a mid-market investment organization says: 

              “Great business native format”

              What do you like best?

              The fact that it’s brand safe and exclusive to business client. There is great performance and can be bought on a CPC level which helps guaranteeing results to clients.

              Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

              What do you dislike?

              It can be costly at first compared to other native formats but qualified visits are higher due to the premium content across the ad. Also, sometime they do not accept third party impression trackers

              Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

              16. GroundTruth

              A self-serve omnichannel ad platform, GroundTruth focuses on location-based ads. It provides a great opportunity to segment and direct the marketing efforts according to the geo-location of the audience. This tool can be useful for publishers which audiences concentrate in a specific region, state or city. Its goal is to increase brand awareness, and increase in-store visits and sales.

              Ground Truth

              Features

              • The ads are served on multiple devices, mobile, desktop or smart TV.
              • Provides real-time reporting.
              • Support through an ads manager community.

              Requirements

              • It doesn’t require an IO contract
              • Doesn’t require a minimum spend

              Payment Methods

              • The price model is based on CPMs, and the minimum CPM varies by product.
              Pros
              The system is easy to use.
              Good tutorials
              Cons
              Some bugs when uploading images
              The AB split testing function is complex to use.

              What reviewers said

              G2 reviewers give GroundTruth 4 stars out of 5. Most users are mid-market companies in the marketing and advertising industry.

              What do users like about GroundTruth?

              • No minimum spend
              • Real-time reporting

              Here is what G2 reviewers are saying.

              1. A user for a mid-sized services company said: 

              “Self-Serve Geo-Fencing That Really Works”

              What do you like best?

              The step-by-step, ease of use online interface allows for seamless campaign creation.

              Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

              What do you dislike?

              The bulk upload of geo-intended locations didn’t always work as I had expected, but a quick chat with support resolved everything.

              2. A user in marketing and advertising in a mid-market company says:

              “Fairly easy to use for small advertisers”

              What do you like best?

              Easy to use, can be utilized to target local campaigns for local businesses.

              Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

              What do you dislike?

              The lack of support. There is a contact feature but takes days to get a response.

              3. A small business user says: 

              “Great Geo-Fencing Platform”

              What do you like best?

              We love their customer service. They’re quick to respond with questions and they always give walkthroughs when we need them. They’re also very proactive when it comes to looking for optimization opportunities and keeping our client’s budget in mind.

              Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

              What do you dislike?

              I don’t have much that I dislike, besides not loving the lack of conversion. However, being a geo-fencing platform, we don’t go into Groundtruth looking for conversions. We mostly focus on brand awareness with this platform.

              Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

              What KPIs Should You Use to Assess Ad Network Performance?

              Regardless of your bidding strategy and the platform you use, it is important to track the ads performance. Here is a short list to know if your ad network is doing the job:

              Ad Impressions

              This is a basic step for digital advertising. If your audience doesn’t see your ad they cannot interact with it. The more impressions your ad gets, the more chances to get your user’s attention. Platforms like Google Ads allow you to segment impressions based on your campaigns and ad groups. Then you can track the ad impressions to determine which version of the ad works best.

              Website traffic

              It is a vital metric for publishers. The more visitors your site has, the more quality advertisers you can get. Check traffic according to demographics, location, and origin. Analyzing your traffic can give you insights to improve your SEO and therefore, attract more relevant visitors.

              Total page views

              This metric tracks any time a user visits one of your pages. This metric also counts refreshes and multiple-page views. Here you can look at how individual pages are performing, and optimize them accordingly.

              Bounce rate

              This type of website data refers to the number of users that traveled to your site but left without any interaction. Tracking bounce rate shows you the quality of your traffic. If you have a high bounce rate, it may mean your website has quality issues, or latency. This means you are not likely to attract high-quality advertisers or networks.

              Cost per Lead (CPL)

              This metric tracks how successful you lead-generation efforts are. Publishers get paid for each new referral or customer they can lead to advertisers. Users are expected to show interest via interaction like filling a survey, giving their email details, and similar.

              Cost per Click (CPC)

              This metric indicates how much it costs when a user clicks on your ad. Cost-per click differs by industry, and there are industries more competitive than others.  For instance, in Google Adwords, the highest-rated keywords are in the legal industry and consumer services. 

              Average Cost Per Click statistics

              Image source

              CTR

              The click-through rate calculates how many of the users that see the ads end up clicking on it. It provides a good measure of ad performance because it measures each ad individually.

              Conversions

              It measures whether the ads are prompting the users to interact with them. Conversion rates tell you if the ad is creating new customers or not. You can track by ads, ad group, keyword, or campaign.

              Cost per Acquisition (CPA)

              This metric indicates how much it costs advertisers to acquire a customer. CPA varies according to the industry. While publishers don’t usually have access to this information, it is worthwhile to try at least to understand how much it costs to your target advertiser.

              Return on Ad Spend  (ROAS)

              This metric measures the revenue that every dollar you spend on advertising.  ROAS can tell you which ad is delivering the best revenue, and which ones are underperforming and need to reallocate your budget.

              Types of Ad Networks

              Specialized Ad Networks

              These are also called “niche” networks. These ad networks typically target specific industries or niches. For instance, there are display advertising networks that target software advertisers, publishers, and developers. These networks usually handle specific and high-converting, inventories.

              General Ad Networks

              Unlike specialized networks, these handle a broad spectrum of advertisers. In this category, we can find Google and Facebook ad networks. These bring huge audiences of consumers to the table, along with extensive and detailed customer data.

              Promotion Platforms

              These tools give you access to multiple ad networks, exchanges, and marketing resources. Promotion platforms help you manage multiple campaigns via multiple ad networks, access marketing resources, calculate marketing costs and optimize your marketing.

              How to Combine Ad-Networks to Get The Most From The Publishers Companies?

              As a publisher, you can integrate more than one ad network. However, keep in mind not all networks are allowed to combine with Google AdSense. Google has a list of ad networks you can run along with their own. Once you know you can run multiple networks, how do you do it? There are two methods you can use to choose the right network for your waterfall or header bidding. 

              Waterfall

              This process involves ranking ad networks based on their performance. If the first ad network cannot take all the impressions, then the inventory passes to the second network, which will try to complete the unfilled impressions. If it cannot, then the rest of the inventory passes to the next one.

              Header bidding

              This system sells your ad impressions based on real-time market value, encouraging advertisers to win the impressions. This ensures you will get the highest possible revenue for space.

              How to Optimize Your Advertising by Choosing the Right Website Category and Ad Network

              To choose the right network, take all the information and follow these simple steps:

              1. Weed out irrelevant networks and find the relevant ones

              Classify according to the three factors we mentioned above: budget, niche, and audience.

              If you have a specific niche, then look for networks that cater to that niche. For instance, if your niche thrives on video content, then search for ad networks that serve video ads. If you

              Knowing your audience will help you find ad networks that serve this audience. For example, if your company caters to fitness fans, then you may require a broader ad network than if your company caters to kombucha followers. If you promote software to an audience of Linux users, then you can use more targeted solutions too.

              2. Select the right size of the network.

              A larger network, not necessarily means it is better for you. Large ad networks will have a lot of options to choose from, but they don’t usually carry specially targeted ads. If you want to advertise a specialty product, a large network may not be well suited to your needs.

              3. Quality vs Quantity

              Sometimes you get what you pay for. For ad networks, you may get better pricing and more traffic from a large network, but the traffic you get will not be high intent traffic. To find high-quality, high-converting visitors, you need to get your traffic from the right sources.

              4. So many options

              Large advertising networks offer extensive options, including re-engagement ads and remarketing. While this can give you an advantage when it comes to targeting, you should ask whether you need all these extra features. Sometimes simplest is best when it comes to advertising. Focusing your advertising on the right websites and ad networks often gives better results.

              What’s the difference between an Ad Server and an Ad Exchange?

              An ad exchange is a technology platform that serves as an intermediary, connecting ad inventory to advertisers. This process is usually conducted via real-time bidding. Ad exchanges often leverage inventory from SSPs, DSPs and several ad networks.

              Ad Exchange

              Image source

              An ad server is a technology tool, a web server or a system that stores and uploads the ads on specific digital properties.  Ad servers also monitor and track visitors activity, measuring metrics and providing reporting about the ads performance.

              How do we rate the Ad Networks?

              To create that list, we evaluated certain parameters and use them to rank the solutions.

              Features

              When you are selecting the right ad network for your company, it is important to assess what features and underlying technology it offers. Some of the features you may look for in an efficient ad network include:

              • Machine learning and AI capabilities
              • Advanced reporting
              • Ease of management
              • Multiple ad formats
              • Contextual targeting

              Performance

              Every ad network is different so we looked into the ones that provided a more versatile and complete solution. While large ad networks offer a large pool of advertisers, their actual performance can vary. Sometimes it is better to choose a niche or premium network that will cater to your specific audience.

              Requirements

              We selected the networks with the clearer requirements. Large networks often have large traffic requirements since they work based on volume. There re common content requirements to almost all the selected ad networks:

              • Your content should be unique
              • No inappropriate content
              • No ad-cluttering
              • Content should be relevant to the ads

              Payment Methods

              How and how much the network will pay you is another criteria you should look for, and we considered in our ranking. We selected the networks that offered the best paying models.

              What reviewers said

              Regardless datasheets and company information, there is no value like an honest user review. We based our search on industry-leading reviewers, to know what actual users are saying about the solutions.

              Tips From CodeFuel for Publisher Success

              Usually, when ads become more popular, their prices get lower. So, if you think about making enough income through ads, you probably come out with ways to increase viewability and add monetization options to existing ads.

              However, monetizing your online assets with ads needs to be done right if you don’t want to risk weighing your site down with ads. Cramming too many monetization options without balance can risk driving your users away. As a publisher, you should try to maximize revenue while maintaining a great user experience. This is the key, happy and engaged users organically monetize your site.

              Here are 5 tips for publisher success:

              • Be consistent: It is important your monetization efforts be consistent in terms of relevance and message. Focus on delivering value to users to increase their engagement and the CTR.
              • Have great content: On the same line, a key to a great user experience and high CTRs is delivering useful and engaging content that provides the context to the ads.
              • Diversify your monetization options: Use multiple ad networks and monetization platforms to increase your reach and revenue.
              • Manage your SEO: The best ads won’t work if people cannot reach your site. Ensuring your SEO strategy is in top shape will attract advertisers.
              • Monitor, track, and review: A monetization strategy should be dynamic, so be sure to monitor and track KPIs (engagement, clicks, bounce rate, viewability). Use them to review and adjust your strategy.

              FAQ

              1. What is ad mediation?

              Is the use of monetization technology, resources, and tools to maximize display ad fill rates and eCPM (effective cost per mille) for publishers.

              2. What is an ad network for display advertising?

              Is a network that connects companies that want to run advertisements with publishers (websites) that want to host them. The ad network collects ad space and pairs it with advertisers’ needs.

              3. Is Google an ad network?

              Google Ads is an online advertising platform that allows advertisers to bid to display ads in multiple formats to web users.

              4. What is a publisher in online advertising?

              The term publisher refers to a company or individual that displays ads in their digital space.

              5. Which ads pay the most?

              There is not a single answer to this question, as the payout will depend on the ad performance. There are types that perform better than others, such as contextual or intent-based ads. Push notifications, for example, are one of the most effective methods for mobile marketing. The success rate for push notifications is 90%.

              6. Which ad network pays more and has the best CPM?

              We researched and came to the conclusion that the 3 ad networks that have the best CPM are:

              • CodeFuel: It offers a holistic solution for publishers, leveraging search, ads, and news by improving the user experience. Start Now!
              • Bing for Partners: part of the Microsoft search engine, offers premium publishers and access to all Windows users.
              • Google Adsense: the most popular ad network offers the largest reach.

              7. What are the three types of ad networks? 

              There are three main types of ad networks:

              • Vertical networks: These are focused on a specific topic, such as fashion or business.
              • Inventory-specific networks: These networks offer specific types of ads, for example, they may work with video ads only.
              • Premium networks: These networks offer high-quality inventory from premium publishers.

              8. What should I consider when choosing an ad network? 

              There are several factors you should look at when evaluating different ad networks: 

              • Consider the size of the network:  A larger network means you can reach more advertisers, and there are more campaigns running on the network. A larger advertiser’s pool also means bigger chances of contextual targeting.
              • The quality of the ads in the network: Some publishers don’t care too much about the relevance of the ads that appear on their sites. That’s why you should beware of low-quality ads. Check the sites served by the ad network and look if there are any relevance, context, or quality problems.
              • The network offers multiple ad formats: The ad format can impact if the user will click on it or bounce from it. Thus, it is important to choose a network that offers multiple standard IAB ad formats.
              • The payment terms are favorable:  Ad networks use a variety of compensation terms. They can offer you CPC (cost per click), CPM (cost per mile), CPV (cost per view), CPA (cost per action), or a fixed cost. You should choose which payment model works better for your organization. Learn more about what those payment models mean here.
              • The UX: Does the ad network provides a good user experience with an easy-to-use ad management system and reporting tools?. Is the reporting accurate and gives updates in real-time? Publishers should choose an ad network that is easy to manage and provides useful insights so they can adjust their monetization strategy.

              9. What’s the difference between SSP and DSP? 

              Ad networks use both Demand-Side Platforms and Supply-Side Platforms. DSPs enable advertisers to buy from multiple publishers at the same time. SSPs work with publishers, enabling them to make their inventory available to advertisers.  Most ad networks incorporate at least a DSP, so they can enable real-time bidding.

              10. Is an ad network a DSP? 

              An ad network is a company that intermediates between publishers and advertisers, while a DSP is a technology solution that enables advertisers to buy ad space using real-time bidding.  Ad networks often use DSPs to facilitate programmatic bidding.

              11. Why are ad networks important? 

              Ad networks work as intermediaries between advertisers and publishers. These solutions have both technical and commercial components. The ad network integrates with SSPs and DSPs to manage inventory, and activate and monitor campaigns.

              12. Is Google the largest ad network?

              Google is still the most widely used ad network. Some reasons for that could be its connection with the search engine, and that is free and relatively simple to sign up. Their wide reach can be counterproductive for publishers looking for premium advertisers, or with niche or specific audiences.

              The Bottom Line – How CodeFuel Can Help

              There are many challenges for publishers, should you focus on mobile ads? Should you turn to programmatic advertising? Why don’t use it all in a way that is right for your website?

              That’s the CodeFuel approach, balancing monetization across multiple options while focusing on engagement. CodeFuel provides intent-directed monetization solutions leveraging search, ads, and news. Our holistic all-in-one solutions tackle all publisher pains at once. Learn more about how CodeFuel can help today by contacting us.