Ad Networks in 2020 | Transformation hacks for business expanding
Did you know that global programmatic ad sales are set to hit $100 billion this year and are growing 21% annually? This statistic confirms that programmatic is only gaining momentum and demand is still growing.
As digital advertising continues to evolve, market players seeking more ways to drive a lasting collaboration with their clients and partners. Moreover, digital advertising capabilities becoming more effective, everybody embraces to use more advanced advertising solutions.
In this article, we’re gonna focus on Ad Networks that are critical players in the ever-growing ad industry. What should they expect from 2020? How to stay on top of numerous competitors? How to attract big players and expand the business? Just keep reading.
WHO RUN THE WORLD OF DIGITAL ADVERTISING?
Since the advent of Internet marketing, which includes online advertising in the early 90s, Ad Networks are used as intermediaries between advertisers and publishers. For a long time, they have been a key component of any media plan.
It’s not a big secret for anyone that bad fame has been attached to Ad Networks. We often hear complaints about fraud traffic, lack of transparency and the absence of additional value. The sad fact is that Ad Networks’ credibility decreases every day, so less media buyers want to collaborate with them.
Networks in the form in which they existed disappear. Some of them open under new brands, try to transform their business or substantially decrease it. The rest are left behind. Even LinkedIn which followed the example of other Adtech platforms, like Google and Facebook had shut down its Network despite the initial demand was solid.
Each Network offers its own terms of cooperation. The choice is really huge. On the one hand, media buyers can easily find traffic for even the most unusual offers. But on the other hand, the online advertising industry is too overcrowded. Sometimes media buyers have to spend months and tons of dollars to discover the worth traffic sources.
BREAKING NEWS IN PROGRAMMATIC
Statistics show that Google and Facebook dominate the advertising market (Google - 41.0%, Facebook - 16.6%). More and more companies are willing to work with such big players. What is the reason? Everybody strives to achieve transparency of the media buying process and remove middlemen. This is the general trend of the market.
Specifically for this IAB has designed RTB 3.0. This protocol could change the automated buying and selling of ads. Open RTB 3.0 requires everyone in the supply chain to provide an authenticated signature to the impressions they touch, which will give media buyers more visibility into where the inventory they’re buying originated from.
Lots of AdTech partners position themselves as premium Ad networks and offer 100% transparency. Unfortunately, it doesn’t mean it actually happens. The reality is that transparency in the advertising industry hasn't ever been good. Big players attract customers with their long-term experience and integrity. But what about others?
EVOLVE OR DIE
Due to the fact that the programmatic media buying is improving every day, each participant in this chain needs to follow trends. Otherwise, they will have no place in the ecosystem. First of all, it concerns Ad Networks.
When technology seeks to ensure traffic buying transparency, Ad Networks turn out to be black boxes (because of transparency lack). That’s why there is a risk for Ad Networks of being left out of the ecosystem.
Here are some of the main reasons why media buyers no longer trust Ad Networks:
- low traffic quality (= low CR)
- up to 90% of fraud (= wasted money)
- many participants in the redirects chain (= high bid price for advertisers/low payouts for publishers )
- the opacity of the pricing process
Moreover, a big part of Ad Networks does not support RTB buying /selling traffic and work through the old S2S integrations. It becomes an anchor for their clients’ business.
FIVE STEPS FOR AD NETWORKS SURVIVAL
We made our own checklist with tips and how to implement them. These 5 important things will help Ad Networks to stay on the wave and expand their business.
- Becoming more transparent (using RTB technology)
- Using less fraud traffic (using IVP tools - fraud checkers, viewability checkers)
- Using qualitative traffic sources (give up on grey traffic sources)
- Becoming more client-oriented (reach clients' KPIs, increase ROI, provide added value)
- Think long-term (invest in technologies)
WHAT’S NEXT FOR AD NETWORKS?
So the digital advertising world is changing, programmatic evolves day by day. Though, that equals opportunity for Ad Networks. Despite the fact that Ad Networks lose the trust of advertisers and publishers, they still have a chance.
Ad networks have a place in the advertising ecosystem but they need to be changed. We suppose that Ad Networks should become more technological and provide additional value to media buyers.
But how to make it real? Building your own technology is expensive and takes a lot of time. You can face difficulties at any development stage (miscommunication, unfinished work and as a result - wasted money). But there is a real magic wand for Ad Networks in the market. White label solution is the perfect choice for those who want to tip the scales in their favor.
It requires small investments and saves time, you will just pay for expertise and enjoy the quality. By the way, no one can guess whether the solution has been white-labeled, you can use it just like your own technology. So it can become a real lifebuoy for Ad Networks.
We believe using our advice and evolving strategy is the way to effectively apply the trends which actively integrate into programmatic media advertising. If you want to discover new business opportunities contact our team and learn more about our innovative solutions.
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