A Brief Look into Programmatic Advertising

Programmatic marketing has been changing and developing for over 15 years. Since then there have been many advantageous uses that facilitate the digital display sector for many marketers, especially during a time when most people were in lockdown and continued to make purchase decisions at home.

What is programmatic advertising?

According to SmartInsights, programmatic marketing is the use of data and machine learning software for media buying, the process of buying media. This means there is little to no human interaction with the process. However, it is an excellent opportunity for marketers to learn about novel opportunities that will maintain their key customers engaged while helping them stay up to date on current trends and innovations.??

Additionally, programmatic advertising facilitates ad display across all platforms, publishers of pages put up ad impressions for auctions where advertisers are able to put in bids. It helps to advertise and display ads, while also optimizing ad placement.

What is Ad-tech?

Hubspot defines adTech (short for advertising technology) as the broad term used to describe the software and tools that help agencies and brands target, deliver, and analyze their digital advertising efforts by minimizing advertiser’s costs. There are several types of adTech, such as DSPs and SSPs, and Ad exchanges to name a few.?

Different methods of utilizing ad tech further maximize ad placement to effectively position ads to where they are most likely to be viewed, establishing a critical touchpoint with users and helping both brands and consumers.?

SSPs (supply-side platforms) are used by publishers to sell ads programmatically. SSPs connect to ad exchanges (a digital marketplace where advertisers and publishers buy and sell advertising space, often through real-time auctions)? and make the publisher's inventory available for DSPs to place bids on.?

The demand-side platform (DPS) is an automated platform that connects advertisers with ad networks, assesses available inventory, and ensures that ads are aimed at the right audience. The main purpose is to make ad purchasing faster, cheaper, and more efficient by managing multiple platforms on a single DSP.

What are some of the advantages of programmatic advertising for website publishers?

Programmatic advertising is on the rise. With over $97 billion spent on digital display ad investments, programmatic advertising will only continue growing. There was a significant rise after 2020 when most people were in lockdown paved the way for digital advertising to take over customers' screens and people would shop online.? In fact, there seems to be an upward trend that is not stopping any time soon. An estimated $65.74 billion was predicted to be spent on digital advertising in 2020 but surpassed that by over $10 billion.?

What are the biggest challenges for advertisers that use programmatic advertising?

Programmatic advertising faces many challenges here are some to name a few:

1. Views and impression Fraud: Digital ad success is measured on impressions and views the ad gets, however, it can be complicated knowing who is making the clicks on the ad with bots and ad stacking coming into the picture.?
2. Ad Inventory Quality: There is no shortage in the number of ad spaces up for grabs however, brands are interested in the best place to display their ads.
3. Brand Safety: An influx of negative, controversial, and violent behavior online can damage a brand’s content, therefore, brands try to avoid certain content as best they can.