In traditional programmatic advertising, publishers typically use a single ad server to manage their ad inventory. When an ad request is made, the ad server looks at the available inventory and serves an ad from the highest bidder. In contrast, video header bidding is an advanced programmatic advertising technique that allows publishers to offer their video inventory to multiple demand sources simultaneously, enabling them to improve the chances of their video ads being seen by the right audience. With this technique, advertisers can bid on video ad impressions before the video content starts playing, giving them an edge in the competition for the highest bidder.
The traditional approach may work well for display advertising, but it is less effective for video advertising due to its more complex targeting and optimization requirements, as well as its higher production costs. Video header bidding offers a solution, allowing publishers to offer their video inventory to multiple demand sources simultaneously. This allows advertisers to bid on video ad impressions in real time, ensuring that the most relevant and highest-paying ads are served to the right audience. Video header bidding can be conducted either client-side or server-side, though the process differs from header bidding in display advertising.
How does the video header bidding process work?
The video header bidding process works by inserting a small piece of code into the header of a publisher’s video player. This code sends an ad request to multiple demand sources, including ad exchanges, demand-side platforms (DSPs), and ad networks in one go. These demand sources then compete in a real-time auction to bid on the ad impression. The highest bidder wins and their ad is served to the viewer before the video content starts playing.
Header bidding can be divided into two main categories: client-side and server-side. With client-side header bidding, the publisher’s web browser is responsible for communicating with multiple exchanges before sending the ad request to the ad server. On the other hand, server-side header bidding involves the publisher’s server making requests to multiple exchanges before the ad request is sent to the ad server. Let’s understand the client-side and server-side video header bidding in a bit more detail.
Client-side video header bidding: In this traditional form of video header bidding, the auction takes place on the user’s browser, rather than on the server, allowing multiple demand partners to bid on the ad inventory at the same time. This creates a more competitive bidding environment, potentially resulting in higher bids and increased revenue for the publisher. In video header bidding, the bidding process is specifically for video ad inventory, such as pre-roll or mid-roll video ads, and is typically used in conjunction with a programmatic advertising platform. Once a winning bid is selected, the wrapper sends a signal to the ad server. Next, the ad server sends the video ad to the video player which is then displayed on the user’s screen. During this entire process, the video player stays in the loading period.
Server-side video header bidding: In this technique, the bidding process takes place on a server rather than in the user’s web browser. This process involves offering video ad inventory to multiple demand sources simultaneously, allowing publishers to receive higher bids and maximize their revenue. Server-side bidding has several advantages compared to client-side bidding, including reduced latency, increased scalability, and improved transparency. By moving the bidding process to the server side, publishers can handle more bid requests, reducing the likelihood of bid timeouts and ad latency. Ultimately, this approach gives publishers the ability to maximize their ad revenue while providing a better user experience.
Advantages of using video header bidding
- Increased Revenue: One of the biggest benefits of video header bidding is that it can significantly increase ad revenue for publishers. By allowing multiple demand sources to compete for ad inventory, publishers can ensure that they are getting the best possible price for each ad impression. This can result in higher CPMs (cost per thousand impressions) and overall revenue.
- Better User Experience: Video header bidding can improve the user experience for viewers by allowing publishers to prioritize demand partners who deliver higher-quality ads. This can ensure that ads do not interfere with the user experience, leading to higher engagement and better brand recall for advertisers.
- Increased Transparency: Video header bidding can also provide valuable insights for both publishers and advertisers. By tracking bid data and performance metrics, publishers can gain a better understanding of the value of their video inventory and make informed decisions about which demand sources to work with in the future. Advertisers, on the other hand, can use this data to optimize their bidding strategies and improve the performance of their video ads.
- Greater Control: Another advantage of video header bidding is that publishers can have more control over their ad inventory, as they can manage demand partners and optimize bids in real-time.
However, there are some potential downsides to video header bidding as well.
Disadvantages of the video header bidding process
- Slow Load Times: One of the main concerns about video header bidding is that it can increase latency and slow down the loading speed of the video player. This can lead to a poor user experience and higher bounce rates. Additionally, because video header bidding relies on multiple demand sources, it can be more difficult to manage and optimize than traditional programmatic advertising.
- Increased Complexity: Video header bidding can be complex to implement and manage, as it requires technical expertise and resources.
- Limited Demand Partners: Because video header bidding is still fairly new, not all demand partners are willing and able to support it. This means that not all potential demand partners are available for bidding, which can limit the number of partners available to bid on a publisher’s inventory. This method of advertising requires the publisher to ensure they have the right technical infrastructure in place, which can add extra time and cost to the setup process. Furthermore, some demand partners may require additional fees to access their video header bidding technology, which can add additional costs to the publisher’s programmatic video ad campaigns.
- Potential for Fraud: Like any other programmatic advertising technique, video header bidding is vulnerable to fraud, which can result in publishers losing revenue and advertisers losing money.
Despite the challenges associated with video header bidding, it is becoming an increasingly popular advertising technique for publishers and advertisers. It is a promising technology transforming the way advertisers and publishers approach programmatic video advertising, and can be an invaluable tool for publishers looking to increase revenue and gain more control over their ad inventory. However, it is important to carefully consider the pros and cons and properly manage the implementation of the technology. With the right approach and a clear understanding of the challenges associated with video header bidding, publishers can more easily overcome these challenges.
What to consider when enlisting help with video header bidding
Considering that video header bidding can be complex to implement and manage, it is wise for publishers to enlist the help of a company that specializes in this category to best address and prevent the potential challenges mentioned. Companies like Vuukle, Index Exchange, SpotX, AppNexus, and PubMatic are some of the leading providers in regards to connecting publishers with demand sources, managing their advertising inventory and analyzing the performance of their ads. However, in today’s user-first focused landscape, publishers are finding more value in ad partners that can also help facilitate and leverage a better user experience at the forefront of their ad optimization strategies. With this, it is important to ensure that the company you choose to enlist not only provides technical expertise and resources, but also prioritizes a positive user experience for website visitors to maximize the value of your traffic.
How do you choose the best provider? Well, we recommend you try some of the tier 1 candidates as mentioned above before signing up for a long term contract. You will identify opportunities with each SSP as they all have strengths and weaknesses. One critical component of choosing the right partner is understanding their demand mix as well as how they will enrich work with first party data signals. Unfortunately, most SSPs don’t provide much in terms of proprietary ad solutions where they can help collect first party data on your behalf, with the exception of Vuukle.
Vuukle differentiates from the crowd by providing a solution that both amplifies ad monetization and enhances the user experience.They achieve this via their pretty nifty commenting, sharing and reaction widgets which keep users engaged on your site for a longer period of time, allowing you to show more ads to users. Additionally, their super lean programmatic stack with directly sold PMP deals creates bid pressure for greater CPM and fill, with fewer third-party ad calls for even faster page load speeds. Utilizing a company with this all-in-one solution, like Vuukle, enables publishers to take advantage of the full range of benefits video header bidding has to offer, and so much more.
By leveraging the expertise of a company that specializes in video header bidding and the UX, publishers can not only optimize and maximize their revenue potential, they can also create an engaging experience for their users that will help them to retain and acquire new readers. Request a demo to learn more about how Vuukle can benefit your website for video header bidding and more.