Why run an ad server?
I think the above pretty much covers it, but if you insist, here are a few more benefits you get from using ad servers.
- direct advertisers
- Planning
- Orientation
- Reports
- technical support
Those are just some of the benefits and features provided.
As always, it’s trial and error. Try and see what works best for you.
List of top 5 ad servers
#1. DoubleClick for Publishers (DFP)
Surprise. There is a solution owned by Google and it is among the best recommendations everywhere. It also has huge advantages. If we can safely estimate that you have less than 90 million ad impressions per month, it’s free.
#two. openX
X marks the spot. OpenX has a significant market share for publishers running their own ad servers. They claim to serve over 100 billion ad impressions every month, and 96% of “top national advertisers” use it. Even Don Draper would be impressed if he were reading this on his whiskey-stained laptop.
#3. AdColt
Maybe AdColt will break the streak. It’s not free. But at $0.02 CPM (cost per thousand ad impressions) it’s almost free. But one of its main advantages is that it is a white label solution. You have a few customization options to align it with your brand, including the basics like logo and your own ad server domain name.
#4. AdZerk
If you’re a small publisher, you might go crazy when you hear AdZerk’s price. Their plans start at $1,000. So you’ll need to have solid traffic that can generate breakeven clicks and ad revenue to go down this route. Of course, they have the standard 30-day trial, so it’s not a complete leap of faith.
#5. advertising technology
AdTech is owned by AOL. There are many trends here, one of them being that some of the biggest or most recognizable brands on the web are buying this space. Fortunately for all of us, AdTech doesn’t arrive in your mailbox once a week on an unsolicited CD. If you’re too young to know what it means, you’ll probably look great in skinny jeans, but you’ll never know the joys of Atari. But I digress.
Will you serve?
If you’ve been paying attention to someone who has purchased many of our ad serving options, you know that ad servers are more than just a tool for serving ads from direct advertisers. You can add all your ad networks in one hub and manage them.
Ad servers really lend themselves more to publishers that generate significant volumes of traffic. At first glance, you might estimate that you could increase profits by about 30%. This is compared to AdSense. If the strategy works, it could be much better. But you will only determine it through testing and experimentation.