Optimization

4 Q4 revenue tips that make the best of your existing ad strategy

Sovrn Publisher Advocate // October 31, 2019

4 Q4 revenue tips Sovrn make the most of your existing ad strategy

While Q4 is the perfect time of year to add some serious money-making power to your website, let’s say you already have Signal and Commerce up and running. Or maybe you’re trying to avoid adding new products, and just want to maximize your ad revenue during the holiday shopping season. If you’re looking to dial in your existing display strategy, look no further: here are 4 Q4 revenue tips that anyone can use to boost ad earnings, without making any code-on-page changes.

  1. Review unified pricing floors
    • Google has moved to a first price auction model within GAM, which may affect how some of your line items are being prioritized. To make sure you’re getting the most out of your programmatic line items after this update, make the following adjustments:
      • Set target CPMs or floors that are in line with what you’re currently seeing deliver on page. If you set them too high, you could miss out on bids. If you set them too low, you could undervalue your inventory.
      • Start low and raise the target CPMs/floors incrementally to make sure you don’t set them too high. That way, you hit the sweet spot revenue.
  2. Review your current blacklists
    • Look over the categories of advertisers that are permitted on your site and review any blocks you have in place. During this time of year especially, make sure retail is an allowed category. If it’s not, you’re missing out on easy money.
  3. Make sure your domains are categorized correctly
    • Programmatic demand partners use this data to make sure relevant ads are served to your readers. This is an easy fix.
    • The more easily demand partners can identify the value of your site and readers, the higher CPMs you will see.
  4. Opt into relevant ad technologies in DFP/AdX
    • Similar to reviewing categories on your advertiser blacklists, you should also take a look at the categories of ad technology allowed to run through programmatic. Audience management tech, ad fraud, and brand safety protections are some areas to look into allowing on your page to increase CPMs. 
  5. Bonus tip: Test!
    • We say it all the time, but it’s always important to test. Make changes, see how they play out, and then adjust from there. It’s the only way to guarantee progress.

Of course, if you’re looking for more help with your ad operations, you can always reach out to Sovrn Services. We’re available for on-demand agnostic ad ops help, consulting, and training. Get in touch, and we’ll help you make all your revenue dreams come true.

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