Say your site began to reach high volume traffic and you have a large audience following you. Sooner or later you realize you can generate a lot more advertising revenue through the ad networks. You did your research and concluded that Google DFP is the best tool for you.
Now what?
If you are reaching over 200,000 monthly impressions but have not yet crossed the 90 million monthly impression threshold, Google will automatically refer you to DFP Small Business.
DFP Small Business advantages and demystifications
DFP Small Business is a free ad server that offers your inventory to multiple ad networks. In the process it gives you more control over your ad delivery than AdSense and exposes your inventory to a lot more competition. If you are left with unsold inventory, Google encourages you to integrate AdSense with DFP to grant your unsold spaces a second chance. DFP SB will optimize your revenue by automatically selecting the highest paying ads.
The overall benefit of advancing to Google DFP is that more competition exposes you to more revenue earning opportunities. On the other hand, there will be no low hanging fruits dangling in front of you if you do not roll up your sleeves and work on serving the highest yielding ads.
Unfortunately basic ad serving is not always effective. The path to a simple low-cost solution to maximize yield from ad networks is becoming increasingly difficult.
Most publishers eventually hit that Eureka moment and realize a need to work on better ad monetization.
They discover that ad networks alone as a strategy for selling inventory, can heavily compromise earning potential. There is also the threat of diluting the ad-to-content relevance. The outcome can even drive down performance.
Ad units monetization through DFP is tricky business
Even a small increase or decline in your page’s revenue can significantly impact your profit.
For instance; in a small site generating merely 250,000 monthly page views, each $5.00 surge in display RPM (Revenue per 1,000 impressions) will increase profits by $1000.00.
The complexities of the DFP SB set up process
To demonstrate to you how complex it can be, see the sample set up diagram. Here’s the unnerving issue; if you don’t know the particular network’s CPM you may have trouble following these steps, as most ad networks are based on a CPC system (revenues earned by clicks). At best you are left with a trial and error experimentation process until you find the ideal CPM.
For every hurdle flung in your direction, there are tips, tricks and trial versions worth experimenting with. One of the advantages of working with Google is that it’s products are a work in process and there is always an influx of many great upgrades. You just got to make sure you have your finger on the pulse, or can at least consult with someone that does to know which feature or tool to work with to boost your revenues.
Today, to reap the full benefits of multiple ad networks demands, there is a need to invest in research and perhaps reach out to monetization experts.
For more information, tips or tricks, we’ll be glad to help. You can reach us at:
Debbie Meltzer, Total Media Group