Programatic Bidding or Just Cookie Bombing and Crap Inventory for Lower CPM’s/CPA’s

O5w6YjAdNY-12Recently, I have been tracking a host of programatic and RTB vendors to see what the actual differences are in their systems. One thing is I can tell you for sure there are several different approaches by vendors, however the ones that concern me the most are those that are doing nothing other than cookie bombing and buying crap inventory to drive down your CPM’s.

What is Real time bidding

When looking at programatic buying, think automated stock trading. Realtime systems, rules, and algorithms that automates the delivery of data driven placements. targeting offers and messages to users for an individualized online experience.

At it’s most sophisticated RTB’s use complex logic structures across a bunch of systems; website content management systems, email, chat, mobile apps, and CRM systems. I have even spoken to vendors that use weather as a determining factor in the bidding formula and optimization decisions.

IAB raises the following concerns around RTB and programmatic terminology

  • “Buyers and sellers are concerned with the limited transparency and proliferation of vendors involved in the programmatic transaction.”

For more details on how IAB is trying to set standards, check out OpenRTB & Exchange Infrastructure Working Group

collusion-update

RTB test

For this test I used a super Firefox plugin called Collusion. For those that have not had a chance to try out Collusion the plugin allows you to view 3rd parties that are tracking your movements across the Web. In real time, data is visualized as connections are established creating a network of interaction and relationships between companies and other third party trackers.

I also used a great display tracking site called Moat analytics. You can do advanced searches, so tracking a particular ad is made easier by limiting queries to only a particular ad size (728×90), Ad type (flash), and advertiser (company abc).

lastly, the Chrome plugin Advanced REST and Edit this Cookie client helped me track and sort all the movement from the sites I visited,

The criteria for this test involved ad position (above or below the fold), types of sites the ads were showing on (NY Times quality or Blogspot.com) and when the ads were showing (dayparts).

Tracking several brands and the cookie trails over a 45 day period (some vendors choose to treat visitors differently after different time periods from last site visit) The overwhelming trend for a few vendors turned out to be nothing more than extreme cookie bombing.

How cookie bombing works

When an ad tag loads, the tag generates a call to the marketer’s third party ad server. At that time the ad server will read the user’s cookie if it exists, or assign a cookie if not previously set.

The ad server keeps records of impressions based on cookie ID, when served and by what publisher or network. If a user converts before another ad is served on another publisher, the RTB is assigned credit for the conversion.

Taking undue credit for conversions 

Serving vast volumes of the same ad to every user RTBs can find in poor ad slots at the bottom of the page, through low quality sites just serving lots of ads on long pages despite an adverse impact on the validity of campaign numbers when combined with last touch attribution models.  Long ‘cookie windows’ also boost the effectiveness  reduce the apparent CPAs.

How to stop the madness

By preventing ads from serving on high frequency sites, limiting the cookie windows, and stop allowing RTB’s to manipulate their ad serving strategy, taking advantage of last touch attribution models.

 

 

 

 

 

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