Publishers, who rely on the advertising industry to make money, frequently ignore the direct ad sales opportunity. That said, direct deals have a lot of potential to reshape how publishers generate revenue. Publishers can gain more control over their ad space inventory with direct ad sales, make more revenue by increasing CPMs (without additional ads) and concentrate on what they do best—creating high-quality content for their audience.
What are direct ad sales?
Before the development of programmatic ad technology, direct deals were the only way publishers could sell their ad space.. However, once programmatic media buying was available, buyers were able to access a worldwide audience and began optimizing their bid CPMs to capture more audiences at scale – typically this is done by reducing CPMs to spread budgets across more sites. .
In direct ad sales, publishers work directly with advertisers for a certain number of impressions, and provide them with access to specific ad placements without going through any intermediaries or agencies. Direct ad sales can be done through a variety of deal methods such as Private Marketplaces, Programmatic Guaranteed, or Preferred Deals.
Directly selling inventory to advertisers has numerous other benefits for publishers. Let’s take a look at 7 major benefits of direct ad sales for publishers.
Benefits of direct sales for publishers
1. Control over their inventory
Direct advertising sales allows publishers to have more control of their own ad space inventory, which they can sell on their own terms. This means that they can choose which ads to show and when to show them. Publishers can use direct sales to target audiences based on interests and demographics, which enables them to target the right audience with the right message at the right time.
Offering ad packages with multiple slots allows publishers to optimize ad exposure by offering advertisers equal opportunities to reach targeted audiences, while ensuring that they are not exposed to competing messages. This model is seen as the future of digital advertising, with most large and well-established publishers adopting direct deals.
They can also make changes to their inventory any time they want. They can change their ads more quickly than publishers that use third-party ad sales networks and are not allowed to control their ads.
2. Build direct relationship with advertisers
Publishers can be sure that they have a direct relationship with advertisers by selling them ad space directly. Buyers are able to target specific audiences with the help of publishers, which enables them to connect with the right people. This enables advertisers to choose effective targeting and spending strategies, which ultimately increases publisher revenue.
3. Expand their audience base
Direct ad sales provide publishers with the opportunity to sell their ads to a larger audience and increase the amount of money they make from those ads. They can also increase the size of their audience through direct advertising sales by establishing connections with new groups of people, such as advertisers who are interested in targeting more specialized markets. They are able to increase their revenue stream because this allows them to connect with audiences that were previously inaccessible.
Using direct ad sales for co-promotion with other publishers allows publishers to grow their audiences while simultaneously increasing their revenue. They are able to communicate with a larger audience by focusing on particular demographics or geographical areas. Not only are they able to connect with new audiences and extend their reach, but they can do so in a manner that is efficient and inexpensive.
4. Improve their revenue
Direct campaigns with buyers generate above average CPMs and increase publisher revenue. Publishers that incorporate direct ad sales earn a higher eCPM than other publishers who rely solely on bids from the open-market. Platforms have seen an improvement in the effectiveness of their ad sales, which has resulted in an increase in revenue. Since they switched to direct ad sales, they have also noticed a significant increase in the number of people purchasing their advertisements.
When publishers engage in direct ad sales, they are able to make significantly more money. Publishers have the ability to determine their own inventory pricing and terms, which makes this form of advertising potentially more lucrative than other available options. By setting up their own advertising channels and selling advertisements directly to customers, publishers are able to keep all their cards in their hands and negotiate prices, terms, and the length of their contracts.
5. Take advantage of high impact placements
When publishers sell advertising space directly to advertisers, as opposed to selling it through advertising networks, the publishers retain a greater degree of control over their ad space. This provides publishers with the flexibility to provide various high impact ad placements (i.e. interstitials, background skins, etc.) that will be:
- The most relevant for their audience.
- Improve overall website layout and user experience.
- Most desired by advertisers.
Additionally, publishers have more leeway when it comes to changing their pricing models and selling advertisements, which enables them to keep up with the rapid pace of the digital advertising market in today’s world. This is another point on how they can make more revenue by charging advertisers what they want.
By working directly with the advertisers to create deal segments, publishers have the ability to select which audience sees a particular type of adas well as the frequency with which it appears. They are also able to choose the targeting metrics that are used.. In contrast to other ad selling models, which restrict the options available to you and your company if something isn’t working, direct deals give publishers the ability to switch formats, reduce their ad rates, and increase their revenue by lowering the cost of their advertising inventory.
Wrapping up
The model of direct ad sales provides publishers with a variety of advantages. First and foremost, direct campaigns usually have an above average CPM which increases revenue without reducing user experience. With direct deals, Publishers can sell advertisements in a manner that is more targeted and relevant to their audience, which, in comparison to the traditional methods of advertising sales, provides publishers and advertisers with a better return on investment. It enables them to control campaign targeting and makes it easier for them to communicate with their audience using relevant ads. Incorporating direct ad sales is also a great way to grow ad revenue quickly. Publishers are able to exert full control over their advertisements, avoid squandering time on the creation of content, and more effectively communicate with the audience they seek to reach.
