Bidding Vs Traffic Share: When should I bid or buy a Traffic Share deal?

When it comes to buying ad space, Advertisers have two options: Bidding for ad zones or buying a Traffic Share Deal on a specific ad zone. In this article, we will answer the question ‘When should I bid or buy a Traffic Share deal?’. Continue reading to learn more about the benefits of bidding campaigns and Traffic Share deals for Advertisers!

What is Bidding in online advertising?

Bidding is a common practice among Advertisers who are exploring new traffic sources and testing their campaigns. It’s conducted like an auction where Advertisers place bids on specific ad placements, targeting criteria, or keywords. The highest bidder secures the ad zone, and their ad is displayed to the target audience. When bidding, Advertisers decide their maximum spend based on factors like the ad placement’s value, their budget, and the potential return on investment. Advertisers can bid on all available ad zones on the ExoClick Network. 

What are the benefits of bidding campaigns for the Advertiser?

Now that we have explored what is bidding in online advertising, let’s look at some of the benefits of bidding campaigns for the Advertiser!

Optimization opportunities: Although a Traffic Share deal is available at a set price for volumes of a specific zone, bidding on zones allows you to target many different placements at the same time. Bidding brings many opportunities for bidding optimization including using The Bidder which allows you to fine tune the bidding algorithm by the rules you set and Smart Bid which bids on your behalf and works together with our conversion tracking tool to reach a positive ROAS. 

Your budget is flexible: You have full control over your spending on ad zones! By using the Bidder or Smart bid you can automate bidding for the zone to ensure that you can pause the campaign if it is underperforming, or you can compete for the ad zone to ensure you win it.

More testing capabilities: Bidding allows you the freedom to test many different ad zones to see which ones convert best for your offer.

Pre-test to find the right formula: Once you have tested several ad zones, then you can launch full campaigns targeting the best performing ad zones. You could continue using bidding or you could purchase a Traffic Share deal for the best performing ones as you know that source is working for your offer. My advice is to use Bidding before securing a Traffic Share campaign to test the performance and find the right price, and landing page for this type of traffic. 

There are more benefits of bidding campaigns for the Advertiser but these are some of the best advantages. Now that we have explored this let’s look at what a Traffic Share deal is in online advertising and how you can make the most out of your campaigns with ExoClick!

What is a Traffic Share deal in online advertising?

Traffic Share deals involve an Advertiser purchasing a specific ad zone for a set period of time at a fixed cost. You can arrange a Traffic Share deal with your Account Manager or a Customer Success Manager. These deals offer various targeting options for Advertisers to narrow down their audience, such as device type and specified GEOs. 

For instance, if you aim to target end users on Mobile, you could find a site that meets your conversion needs through Bidding and create a Traffic Share deal for the specific ad zone on Mobile only. It’s worth noting that just like bidding, you can buy a Traffic Share deal on all ad formats available on the ExoClick Network.

Benefits of Traffic Share deals for Advertisers 

Here are some of the benefits of Traffic Share deals for Advertisers:

Set traffic expectations: When you create a Traffic Share deal you have ownership of the zone based on the specifications of your deal. If you have previously tested the zone you will be able to estimate the quality and forecast the amount of interaction you can expect from this traffic.

Your budget is fixed: Once the deal price is agreed upon with your Account Manager or Customer Success Manager, you will not exceed your budget or engage in bidding wars with other Advertisers to secure the ad zone.

Exclusivity of the ad zone: The GEOs purchased in the deal, ensure a fixed volume of traffic. In contrast, a bidding campaign may not always guarantee a stable volume and price.

Test your traffic: The Traffic Share deal provides consistently high volumes of traffic throughout the deal duration therefore you can test the quality of your campaign.

Less optimization required: When you negotiate a Traffic Share deal less optimization is required because the deal includes traffic percentage, volume, device, and GEO.

Conclusion: When should I bid or buy a Traffic Share deal

In summary, bidding offers multiple benefits as it allows you to test different traffic sources and boost your impression volumes. Traffic Share deals are the best way to buy traffic once you have run a test campaign and have found a zone on a site that you would like to test. To achieve the best results, consider your needs specifically. For instance, if you require a fixed budget, Traffic Share deals are the best choice. Alternatively, if you want to test multiple zones at once, bidding would be more suitable. We recommend using a combination of both for the best results. You can start by testing different placements and ad zones with bidding, identify your top performing ad zones, and then scale up with a Traffic Share deal.

So, if you are interested in discussing your options, contact our Customer Success team or your Account Manager! If you are not yet using ExoClick for your ad campaigns sign up now and take advantage of our Network of Publishers and a large range of ad formats!