One of the most important things I learned in college was when my professor told us not to be afraid of computers…that you won’t break them beyond all repair. You might cause yourself some heartache by messing them up, but you won’t destroy them. I know now that he was a bit wrong in that (having destroyed a couple of computers in my day), but his message was a good one and one that I try to impart on all of the clients that I help train in the basic operational necessities of ad ops. That message is:
If you don’t try it, you are guaranteed to fail.
Yes, you might lose some money if you try something and it doesn’t work or if you think you’ve done something right yet somehow, not so much!
This lesson applies just as much to Ad Operations as computers and the rest of life. Don’t be afraid of ad ops!!! There…the mystery is gone, thanks for tuning in…
Ok, I’m not actually done yet! While a lot of the ad ops you’ll be doing will involve ad networks, you are not going to become a zillionaire by exclusively running ad networks on your site. Ad networks are a great way for big advertisers to buy in bulk at great rates…and a great way for sites with either excess inventory or without an internal sales team to monetize their impressions…but you will always make better revenue from direct sales than from networks. It’s just simple math: 1000 impressions at $10 is better than 1000 impressions at $1 (unless you’re an advertiser of course!).
That said, there are oodles of ad networks out there! Many have requirements that eliminate themselves from consideration which makes the decision making process easier. If you aren’t “big enough,” they just don’t want your inventory. Do I agree with this? Not really, but until I run the world I just have to deal with it…what can I do?
The great thing about ad networks is that they really don’t have feelings. If you sign up for a network and you run it for a week or two and it really isn’t doing much for you…drop it. The network won’t be crushed and stalk you or drunk dial you…it will move on and find another publisher that will run it. Not all networks work for all sites. I’ve seen some sites do amazingly well with a network and another site can’t make a dime from them.
Do be sure to give them a couple of weeks to run though. Some, like AdSense, actually learn your users and your inventory and need the time to do so. Others might just be having a bad week. If you jump the gun and turn them off because you didn’t make a certain amount on the first day, you are only doing yourself a disservice. Sometimes losing a little bit of money for two weeks is worth the research investment. You, like some networks, will start to learn what works for you…and THAT is invaluable!
Networks are like shoes: sometimes they fit, sometimes they don’t…but you won’t know until you try them on!
My initial statements about not being afraid cover a lot more than networks, but networks is a great place to begin to conquer your “fear” of the unknown. There are tons of areas within ad ops that are confusing, illogical, and just downright strange. If you have already gotten past the fear by experimenting with networks, you’ll be much more at ease with some of the crazy peccadillos of ad ops. Now…this is not to say you won’t run into some of those peccadillos before you get there…but again, DON’T BE AFRAID!!!
Next week let’s start from the beginning and talk about choosing your ad server and getting it setup correctly. We may have gotten ahead of ourselves but what can I say, I like my dessert before the main course!