If you’re running a website or an app, chances are you’ve thought about monetizing it. The answer is simple, of course — ads! The tricky part, though, is that not every one of the top ad networks will work equally well for every type of business.
Some drive clicks but not conversions, while others can get you great engagement but low payouts. The important thing here is to pick the one that fits your needs.
In this article, we’re going to discuss how to choose an ad network without wasting time or money.
Understand What an Ad Network Does
An ad network like SmartyAds is a middleman between advertisers who want to promote something and publishers who have ad space to sell. That can be any website or mobile app.
There are many types of ad networks to choose from:
- Display ad networks show banners or static images.
- Video ad networks focus on pre-roll or in-app video ads.
- Native ad networks blend ads with your content.
- Programmatic networks use algorithms to buy ad placements.
Each one of them can be great if you know how to use them correctly. On the other hand, a bad match will only waste your money and time.
For instance, a mobile game app would work best with video or rewarded ad networks. At the same time, a financial blog will match better with native ads that relate to the content.
Identify Your Niche and Goals
Before getting to work with any network, determine your niche. Clarify what it is exactly you want to do. It might seem straightforward, but you’d be surprised how often this step gets neglected.
Do you have a travel blog? A fitness app? An online store? Each audience will react differently to advertising.
Here’s a quick way of matching your goals to ad types:
- Brand awareness. Use display or video networks with a focus on impressions.
- Clicks and traffic. CPC networks (Cost Per Click) are the best play here.
- Conversions and sales. CPA (Cost Per Action) networks are your friend.
- App monetization. Test rewarded or interstitial ad networks.
Once you know what your goals are, it will be far easier to decide. Even if you can’t choose one straight away, you can start by eliminating those that won’t work for sure.
Test Audience Match and Targeting Options
Even the best ad network will fail if it cannot reach the right audience. That’s why targeting options matter so much.
A good network like SmartyAds will allow advertisers to focus on:
- specific interests;
- demographics;
- devices;
- locations.
For instance, with that travel blog, ads about vacation destinations will pique the interest of your audience the most. If you are running a gaming app, age range or device targeting can be a game-changer.
The more targeted you get, the more focused your advertisements become. That means more earnings and interaction.
Compare Payment Models and Revenue Potential
One of the most significant differences between top advertisement networks is how they pay. Understanding payment models will help you have more realistic expectations.
Here are the main ones you will find:
- CPC (Cost per Click). You are paid each time a person clicks on an ad.
- CPM (Cost per Mille). You get paid for every 1,000 views of an ad.
- CPA (Cost per Action). You get paid when users act, like registering or buying something.
- CPV (Cost per View). Payment per view.
Check the details like minimum payout thresholds and commission rates. A network may offer great revenue on paper, but if the payout process is a nightmare for you, then it might be best to look for greener fields.
Analyze Ad Formats and User Experience
Ad format determines how users engage with your platform. You want to make money, sure, but not at the expense of an awful user experience.
Different formats suit different audiences. For example:
- Banner ads work well on websites and blogs with a lot of visual content.
- Native ads look like articles and engage users.
- Video ads and rewarded ads perform well on apps and games.
- Interstitial ads (full-screen) have to be handled with care, not to annoy users.
Think about what your audience needs. Lifestyle readers would react best to native ads that blend in. On the other hand, gamers might not mind watching a video if that gets them a reward in-game. Balance is key, though.
Network Reputation and Support
There are literally hundreds of ad networks out there. Not all of them are good to work with. Some will delay payment or serve low-quality ads. Others might give you a headache with their poor reporting systems.
Do your research before you sign up, namely:
- Read reviews from other publishers.
- See how transparent the network is about payments and performance.
- Check that they work with good advertisers (so you don’t get spammy or irrelevant ads).
- Connect with their support team to see how they respond.
There are plenty of popular options, of course. But keep in mind that popularity does not necessarily mean the best opportunity for your case specifically. Smaller niche networks may work better for your visitors.
Test, Analyze, and Optimize
Even after choosing a network, the task is far from done. The true results lie in testing and optimization.
Start by operating a few ad networks at once (if it is allowed on your site) and monitor how they work. Monitor by means of such metrics as:
- CTR (Click-Through Rate);
- eCPM (Effective Cost per Thousand Impressions);
- Conversion rate;
- Bounce rate or time on page.
Experiment with different placements and sizes. As an example, moving a banner up the page or making use of native ads could increase performance without harming the user experience.
The goal is to keep refining until you find the best revenue vs. usability tradeoff.
Conclusion
You probably get an idea about working with an ad network because you want to monetize your online platform. While that’s completely valid and obviously the first thing you need to keep in mind, it’s not the be-all and end-all type.
As we’ve discussed in this article, there’s more that comes into consideration on which network to choose. Some might seem the most lucrative, but if the type of ads they offer doesn’t work well with the kind of content you provide, then it’s a bad fit.
And a bad fit won’t earn you nearly as much as a network that meets your goals, your needs, and your audience where they are.
