Ad placement on any website is the key step towards efficient monetization. The process is not very painstaki…
Ad placement on any website is the key step towards efficient monetization. The process is not very painstaking but it does need certain data and tools to perform. Once we look into that data and use those tools effectively, we can set up an optimum ad placement.
First challenge thereby comes as to where to place the ad units. For that purpose, there are two very commonly used methods. Earlier, publishers used to perform AB testing to determine the more efficient ad spaces on a webpage. More recently, publishers have started using hot mapping tools to ascertain the potential ad placements. Both techniques are helpful. Let’s see how these two processes work.
AB Testing:
This process is also known as split testing. Publisher implements two different sets of ad units on the same webpage and then compares and contrasts the results. It helps publishers to identify a better ad placement for a webpage on a trial and run basis.
Heat Mapping Tools:
These are usually software used to track the user experience on a webpage. These often track user experience to granular level at a webpage. Using these tools one can easily track where on the page the user has been moving the cursor, which ads did he click on and how much time he spent on the page. Using this information one can easily determine the optimum ad placement.
Google Analytics:
It is yet another tool to determine the user traffic details. It gives an excellent insight to where on the web page the user spends most of time and how many impressions are generated by the user. Google analytics also gives you an insight to where most of your user base comes geographically.
These were few techniques to identify the potential ad spaces. There are also some other factors that should be kept in mind before finalizing AD Placements. Few are as under:
Geography:
Geography is a very essential element for ad placement. For specific regions and countries certain ad unit sizes perform really well and for others they don’t generate much revenue. Keeping the geography in mind one can set up an optimum ad inventory. For example, 240×400 or “Vertical Rectangle” is the most popular ad size in Russia whereas traffic from Scandinavia (Sweden, Finland, Norway) prefers 980×120 also known as “Panorama”. So, geography plays an important role in determining ad inventory for a webpage.
Devices:
Before setting up an ad inventory for a website, we have to look into the types of devices the website is accessed from. It might be phones, tablets and laptops etc. Some ads might perform really well on phones but would be least effective on laptops. Others might show impressive results on tabs. We have to manage ad inventory accordingly using device filters.
Viewability:
Also, the viewability of ads matters a lot. Ad units should always be placed around the content of the website so as to ensure maximum viewability. Ad displayed at the top of the webpage known as header has usually the maximum viewability whereas the one displayed at the bottom known as footer has minimum viewability.
Some publishers place ad units in such a manner that when the user opens the website, an ad gets displayed. And as the user scrolls down in search of content he is faced by another ad. This usually makes the user annoyed and he might end the session. It increases your revenues in the short term due to increasing impression count but at the cost of user experience. Anything that adversely affects user experience means decrease in revenue over the long term.
Quality Ad Space:
We have to establish ad units at such places on the web page where the user spends most time and there are bright chances of that ad being clicked by the user. That is known as a quality ad space which attracts the maximum number of users without any red flags. But there are some publishers who intentionally place ad units in close proximity to the content in a manner that it increases the instances of accidental clicks. This is a red flag under Google Ad regulations and can lead to a ban.
Past Results:
Sometimes past results of the ad placements on a website can give a clue to the best possible arrangement of the ad inventory. Figures and data from the past can be highly effective in determining the future placements if those are not manipulated or skewed. Keeping past results and performance in mind one can suggest the best possible ad placements.
Experimenting:
In the field of ad ops experimenting is the key to success. One can experiment with different arrangements of ad units and different sets of ad sizes to reach the best possible options for an available website. More we modify and implement keeping requirements in mind, the better would be the outcome.
Keeping all of the above factors in mind one can develop a very efficient and effective ad placement for a given website.
