Supply path optimisation entered the market to cut through the chaos of programmatic digital trading. In a nutshell, SPO is an algorithm that works to ensure the most efficient path of connecting media buyers to publishers while benefiting both parties. It allows demand side platforms (DSPs) to buy inventory directly without going via a supply side platform (SSP). SPO enables media buyers to bid on and win inventory at the best price whilst additionally giving publishers the ability to maximise their revenue long-term. This is also achieved by Invibes through direct publisher integration, essentially by-passing the convoluted world of digital trading to deliver the most efficient and effective solution for both brands and publishers.
Beyond the initial sweet spot of balancing optimal pricing for media buyers and revenue protecting for publishers, implementing a successful SPO strategy has a wealth of additional benefits.
The overarching benefit of SPO is that it maximises efficiency throughout the buying process. By reducing the number of sometimes unnecessary middlemen, advertisers can minimise delays, streamline media buying and improve ad performance and yield long-term.
Speaking of intermediaries, according to Forbes, three separate studies conducted over recent years have shown that at least 50% of every dollar spent goes to ad exchange middlemen, with a further average of 15% ‘disappearing into the ether’1. That’s a huge portion of ad spend that goes on fees and some on seemingly nothing at all. Whereas SPO identifies the most efficient path that also translates into cost efficiency, allowing advertisers to lower their CPM and increase ROI. This has already been proven with the percentage of cost falling into the ‘unknown delta’ reducing dramatically over the past few years from 15% to just 3% according to ISBA’s most recent supply chain study.2
Programmatic auctions have become increasingly murky with more and more vendors joining the pool, meaning gaining supply chain visibility has become more challenging. In fact, the ISBA found that even in ‘disclosed’ programmatic models, approximately one third of supply chain costs aren’t fully disclosed.3 SPO provides transparency across the ad supply chain for both media buyers and publishers. This works to prevent ad fraud and the revenue losses associated by allowing both advertisers and publishers to only work with trusted partners. Additionally for publishers, having a better view over which SSPs are providing ad inventory as well as the CPM on impressions, VTR etc. means it's easier to make the right optimisations and better business decisions based on the data.
Brand safety is always a key priority for advertisers. Having ads displayed on less than optimal or inappropriate sites can negatively impact brand image and hard-earned reputation. SPO works to protect brand safety with capabilities to exclude suspicious SSPs and those who don’t meet advertisers’ brand safety criteria meaning ads are less likely to be displayed on suboptimal sites.
By ensuring trusted partnerships between media buyers and publishers, supply path optimisation empowers stronger relationships. In turn, this allows advertisers to gain better insights into campaigns which can be used to optimise them further in the future.
By harnessing SPO algorithms, media buyers can access and bid on premium inventory as well as focus on bidding on the inventory that’s most relevant to them. This means that advertisers can win higher-quality ad placements and can improve publishers’ fill rate and ad revenue too.
The combined benefits of SPO work to drive an overall higher quality marketplace. By improving transparency, partnerships and reducing unnecessary middlemen and ad fraud potential, lower-quality publishers and resellers are encouraged to step up their game in the quality of their offering or face the possibility of demise. This push for positive change can only mean good things for the market.
Beyond the benefits that supply path optimisation brings for bands and publishers, Invibes’ solution turns the dial up to eleven, here’s how:
Invibes’ proprietary technology platform allows for direct integration with over 1,600 premium media publishers from across the globe creating an impressive high-quality global inventory. This allows Invibes to reach 250 million unique readers monthly at a +200M and growing MUV in Europe to date.
Additionally, by harnessing only direct relationships with a curated network of publishers and media groups managed directly, with strict selection criteria that media partners need to meet in order to be on boarded onto the Invibes platform, Invibes delivers 100% in-feed, brand safe advertising opportunities to brands. On top of this, Invibes advanced proprietary solutions including Invibes Page Sentiment Score, an innovative solution that harnesses natural language processing with machine learning to run contextual and semantic analysis of the content to ensure smart optimization against the client’s brand suitability criteria .
Invibes has developed over 80 exclusive advertising experiences, broadcasted on a powerful network of media and targeted sites, through different sources of data. This combined approach of harnessing the power of big data, innovative in-feed formats, wide reach, and extensive intelligence services works to maximise the impact of advertising campaigns for brands and ensures high-quality user experience beneficial to both brands and publishers.
Ready to learn more about how Invibes’ drives effective and impactful advertising? Get in touch today.
References
1. https://www.forbes.com/sites/augustinefou/2021/02/15/how-much-of-your-dollar-goes-to-working-media-in-digital/?sh=1df8acca6a71
2. https://www.isba.org.uk/knowledge/second-programmatic-supply-chain-transparency-study
3. https://www.isba.org.uk/system/files/media/documents/2020-12/executive-summary-programmatic-supply-chain-transparency-study.pdf
