Publisher Ad Server

What is a publisher ad server?

A publisher ad server, more commonly referred to as an ad server, helps website publishers earn money from their website through online advertising. Selling ads on their site allows publishers or developers to generate revenue from the content they produce while keeping that content free for their audiences. The most common keywords for this type of software are ad traffic or server, ad network, multiple publishers, audience demographic, and supply-side platforms. These all encompass the functionality and capabilities of a publisher ad server. The ad network and the supply side platform are used to publish the ad, while the publishers and demographic make up the type of ads being published. 

Types of publisher ad servers

Depending on what a publisher ad server is used for or the company’s industry, the software tends to be similar across the board. There are publisher side elements, the part of the software that manages and publishes the ads, and the advertising side, where the creative and analytics elements are. 

• Publishing partners: Some ad servers are secondary software that is part of a bigger platform, like Google Ads manager. Platforms like this can be easily used across multiple industries with minimal onboarding time. 
• Dedicated ad platforms or servers: Ad servers can decide, in real time, the best ad or series of ads to serve the consumer based on its relevance, the type of targeting, and the allotted budget set. These tend to be more customizable. 

Benefits of using a publisher ad server

Advertising must be readily available to publishers to make money or grow a product. Ad server software has many benefits, whether for a small company with a limited budget or large conglomerates. 

• Simple publishing tools: The goal of this software is to generate revenue from advertisements. That being said, the goal is also to save time and effort to maximize profit. The simplicity of a single dashboard to run all elements of a campaign is preferred. 
• Easily integrated: There often isn’t a large amount of setup required for this software. Once bought, the total onboarding to publishing time is relatively short. 

Impacts of using a publisher ad server

The impact of this software will be twofold, saving time by automating and creating a simple solution without needing to source outside services.

• Automation across campaigns: By knowing demographic and spending, it’s very simple to run various campaigns on an ad server. So simple that the process can be automated for a set amount of time over a number of days. 
• In-house publishing option: Digital advertising can often seem to be a drawn-out process that requires a lot of time. Using publisher ad servers optimizes time and effectiveness with even a small team. 

Basic elements of a publisher ad server

Simply put, an ad server is a type of advertising software hosted on a server used specifically for publishers and ad networks to facilitate, manage, and publish various ads. The ad server will automate what ad to display, when, and on which mobile app or site. 

• Act as a central hub for publishing: If running multiple ads at once or looking for one dedicated advertising platform, the ad server software can look out for metrics while also managing the campaign, all from one dashboard. 
• Offer data reporting and analytics: In order to manage the effectiveness of ads, the analytics behind them will be crucial for future campaigns. This helps a publisher better understand the effectiveness of an ad to better prepare for upcoming campaigns. 

Publisher ad server best practices

To make publisher ad server work well with business goals, follow these best practices:

• Identify a target audience: Knowing the type of audience for the ads being published is key to optimizing a successful advertising practice. Once the audience is identified, use that segmentation to better hone the best-performing ads. 
• Identify which platform is best: There are many options to choose from when selecting a  platform, but the key to successful integration is to find one that meets either a specific industry (like local publications or nationwide websites).