As a publisher, your bottom line is to get the highest yield in return for your ad impressions. Small publishers have the luxury of testing and scaling.

However, as you grow to become a premium publisher, yield management, yield optimization, and ad operations can become cumbersome.

We know a segment of big publishers who are more likely to outsource their ad optimization and testing. On the other hand, there are other publishers who are more comfortable having an in-house team of ad ops experts managing their inventory.

Whatever your preference, MonetizeMore is committed to empowering your strategy. Here we bring you the ultimate list of yield optimization for publishers.

We base our tips on real, time-tested, ad operations experience, and lay out the best techniques for optimizing and managing your remnant ad inventory.

Basic yield optimization for Newbies

1) Build a site layout that’s in season

Consider redesigning some sites depending on the celebration or season if it’s St. Patrick’s Day, why not change the theme to green or something related? When the site is fun and in season, user engagement is likely to improve.

Also, check out metrics that relate to your user-experience (i.e., bounce rates, top exit pages, average time on site). Keeping users engaged is key to monetization.

2) Master acronyms & numbers

CPM, RPM, CPC, CTR – do your assignment and master your key performance indicators. Check out our AsOps Q&A: Understanding CPC and CPM Pricing.

3) Text ads – complement, blend, contrast

Experiment with text ads by doing some tweaks with different colors. Some color combinations perform better than others. It depends on the site and the only way to see which one works perfectly for you is to test!

4) Use the best-performing ad sizes

For desktop, the ad sizes proven to be most effective are 728×90, 300×250, 336×280, and 160×600. Placement and targeting are key.

When you find the perfect blend of sizes and their placements, you’re on the right track!

Read: Best Ad Placement Strategies

5) Stay compliant with AdSense policies

If you want to stay in business, comply with AdSense policies and rules.

Check out our fun meme: 10 Most Common Adsense Violations.

Advanced publisher yield management and optimization

6) Use an ad server

An ad server is extremely necessary, especially for high-level ad optimization. It allows you to set bidding priorities, day & time for the ads to serve, geographical locations and devices to target, etc.

It’s also the main tool for Ad Exchange to compete with other 3rd party ad networks. Also, remember that more competition means higher CPMs.

Read: Top Ad Servers for Publishers

7) Ad targeting

Plan out how you will target your ad inventory. You can have tiers (e.g., geographical locations, devices). In most cases, Tier 1 geographic locations tend to perform better than the rest of the world.

This means optimization is more granular, enabling you to rank the bids accordingly.

8) Implement geo-targeting & frequency capping

It pays to ask your ad representative what their top-performing geographical locations are and target those accordingly. If their reporting interface cannot generate a report accordingly with just a single tag, be sure to request a separate tag based on your targeting.

You might want to try Tier 1 vs Rest of the World.

Frequency capping is used particularly for ad networks that cannot fill at 100%. This limits the number of times they can bid on the site and minimize passbacks. This is optional, though.

9) Choose the bigger counterpart over the small ones

Do you want to run multiple ad sizes on your ATF (above the fold) placement? If you have a 728×90/468×60 ad unit, just stick to 728×90 and ditch 468×60, unless you have a good-paying advertiser willing to buy it.

Advertisers usually pay higher CPMs for bigger ad sizes. The same is true with mobile wherein 300×250 is far better than 320×50.

10) Leverage CPM floors

Play with CPM floors. It allows you to set the minimum amount acceptable to you and filter out low paying ads.

Read: 5 Ad Optimization Experiments that you SHOULD definitely try!

11) Private Marketplaces & Programmatic Direct Deals

Private marketplace (PMP) deals and direct deals have become increasingly important for publishers looking to optimize their ad yield. These programmatic strategies allow publishers to command higher CPMs and maintain greater control over their inventory.

Here are some key yield optimization tactics for publishers using Private Marketplace (PMP) deals and direct deals on desktop and mobile:

Leverage first-party data for audience targeting: Utilize your own user data to create custom audience segments that are attractive to advertisers. This allows you to command higher CPMs in PMP deals and direct deals.

Optimize ad placements and layouts: Continuously test and refine ad placements to maximize viewability and engagement. Prioritize above-the-fold placements and ensure ads are not interfering with the user experience.

Implement header bidding for PMPs: Use header bidding to enable real-time competition between your PMP deals and other demand sources. This ensures you get the highest bid for each impression.

Offer exclusive inventory in direct deals: Provide advertisers with exclusive access to high-value inventory like homepage takeovers or video ads. Exclusivity allows you to charge premium rates.

Optimize for mobile viewability: Ensure your mobile ad placements meet viewability standards. Use larger, high-impact ad formats like interstitials and rewarded video to boost mobile CPMs.

Provide transparency into audience data: Share audience data and insights with advertisers in PMP and direct deals. This builds trust and allows them to better target their campaigns.

Offer flexible buying options: Give advertisers the ability to buy on a CPM, CPC or CPA basis. Flexible buying options make your inventory more attractive to a wider range of advertisers.

Get access to PMPs and Direct Deals here!

12) Mobile-first Approach to Ad layout and Optimization

Mobile traffic now dominates the internet, making a mobile-first approach essential for publishers and apps to maximize their ad revenue. Mobile users have unique expectations and behaviors, often using smaller screens and having shorter attention spans.

Ads that don’t cater to these nuances risk frustrating users and reducing engagement. A mobile-first approach ensures ads seamlessly integrate into the mobile experience, leading to higher viewability and better user satisfaction.

Mobile-optimized ad formats, like native ads and rewarded video ads, outperform traditional banners on mobile devices. They’re less intrusive, more engaging, and drive better click-through and conversion rates. Moreover, search engines like Google favor mobile-friendly websites, meaning a non-optimized site could lose out on valuable organic traffic and potential ad impressions.

With the growing competition for mobile ad inventory, a mobile-first strategy helps publishers stay competitive and attract higher-paying advertisers. Many ad platforms also have specific requirements for mobile, making optimization crucial to meet these standards and avoid lower fill rates.

13) Video Advertising

What’s Working in Video Advertising:

• High-Impact Ad Formats: Interstitial or Vignette ads, which appear between content transitions, are gaining traction due to their high visibility and engagement potential.
• Targeted Ad Placements: Strategically placing video ads above the fold (ATF) ensures maximum visibility and increases the chances of viewer interaction.
• Ad Frequency Capping: Limiting the frequency of ad displays prevents ad fatigue and maintains a positive user experience.
• Ad Rotation and Testing: Regularly rotating ads and experimenting with different creatives keeps the ad inventory fresh and helps identify top-performing ads.
• Header Bidding for Video Ads: Implementing header bidding opens up video inventory to a wider range of demand sources, increasing competition and driving up CPMs.
• Mobile-First Approach: Optimizing video ads for mobile devices is crucial as mobile video consumption continues to rise.
• Transparency and Advertiser Insights: Providing advertisers with detailed audience insights helps them tailor their campaigns and achieve better results, ultimately leading to increased ad spend.

14) Ad Fraud and Brand Safety Concerns

Implementing robust measures to detect and prevent ad fraud is a top priority. Technologies like ads.txt and sellers.json are essential tools in this fight. Ads.txt allows publishers to publicly declare authorized sellers of their inventory, reducing the risk of counterfeit inventory being sold. Sellers.json complements ads.txt by providing transparency into the entities involved in the programmatic supply chain, making it harder for fraudulent actors to operate.

Brand safety is equally important. Publishers must ensure their ads are not appearing alongside content that is inappropriate, harmful, or misaligned with advertisers’ values. This includes content that is sexually explicit, promotes violence, hate speech, or fake news. By proactively monitoring their ad placements and partnering with reputable ad networks and exchanges, publishers can protect their brand reputation and maintain the trust of advertisers.

MonetizeMore’s Traffic Cop offers a comprehensive solution to these challenges. It combines advanced ad fraud detection technology with brand safety tools to provide publishers with a holistic approach to protecting their ad revenue and reputation.

Traffic Cop’s sophisticated algorithms identify and block fraudulent traffic, ensuring that ads are only served to real human users. Additionally, it scans web pages for potentially unsafe content, allowing publishers to blacklist problematic sites and maintain a safe environment for advertisers.

15) Sign up with mobile ad networks for mobile inventory

These networks have access to bigger mobile advertisers, their campaigns are targeted specifically for mobile, and the rates are usually better.

Some examples: Google Ad Exchange, Smaato, Applovin, etc.

Read: Best Ad Networks that Offer Mobile Monetization

16) Try 300×250 BTF on mobile

The tendency for mobile users is to scroll down to read your site’s content. This is why in most cases (not all), below the fold ad placements tend to attract engagement.

17) Try mobile in-banner video

Video ads tend to pay more than display. But in order not to compromise page load times, decide on the maximum number of video ads you want to run and target them accordingly via an ad server.

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

One of the most impactful applications of AI and ML in ad yield optimization is predictive analytics. By analyzing vast amounts of data, including user behavior, historical performance, and market trends, these technologies can accurately forecast future ad performance. This enables publishers to make data-driven decisions about ad placements, formats, and pricing, maximizing their potential earnings.

AI and ML are also revolutionizing audience segmentation. By analyzing user demographics, interests, and behaviors, these tools can segment audiences into highly targeted groups. This allows publishers to deliver more relevant ads to each segment, increasing engagement, click-through rates, and, ultimately, ad revenue.

Dynamic ad serving is another area where AI and ML are making a significant impact. By analyzing real-time data on user behavior and ad performance, these technologies can dynamically adjust which ads are served to each user, ensuring that the most relevant and engaging ads are displayed at the optimal time.

MonetizeMore’s cutting-edge technology harnesses the power of AI and ML to elevate publishers’ ad performance and yield. Their platform leverages predictive analytics to optimize ad placements, formats, and pricing strategies. By employing advanced audience segmentation techniques, MonetizeMore enables publishers to deliver highly targeted ads that resonate with their audience, leading to increased engagement and revenue. Furthermore, their dynamic ad-serving capabilities ensure that the most relevant ads are displayed to each user in real-time, maximizing the effectiveness of every impression.

Take your ad revenue to the next level with a wide range of advanced ad optimization techniques, header bidding, and proprietary AdTech by getting started here!