What are Programmatic Ads for Email Reach?
Serving programmatic ads in email clients is complicated and technically difficult. The majority of Email Clients (the software that end users use to check and write emails - such as Gmail, Outlook, etc.) do not process JavaScript, therefore normal ad tags (such as Google Ad Manager) won’t work, thus special tags are needed.
What are the advantage of programmatic ads for Email Reach?
Typically, email ad vendors are not available to publishers who have less than a million “opened” emails per month. So, by grouping our media sites together and working with the vendor as a group, we are able to qualify for the program.
This makes programmatic email advertising available to even our smallest media sites.
In addition, this program can offer native ads and paid recommendations along with programmatic banners, creating several new revenue opportunities with very little set up.
Lastly, premium partners such as TownNews have priority with the vendor's support team team and any issues will be addressed and solved more quickly.
Is Email Reach required?
Yes, BLOX Email Reach is required to use this program.
How does it work?
Joining the program will allow usage of a new block, “External: Email Programmatic Ads.” This block allows you to create up to ten different programmatic ad units, plus a paid recommendation unit. No two ad units can be repeated on a single newsletter (though there are a few different units of the same size that can be used on the same newsletter).
During set up, we will interface with the programmatic ad vendor to create ad unit IDs specific for your site. Our project managers or customer support team will add the IDs to the relevant blocks on your site during setup (in the ad unit ID field on the block).
If, for some reason, you lose the blocks or lose the ad IDs for your site, we can retrieve them for you. Just contact our Customer Support team.
Revenue is earned on a cost-per-click basis.
Troubleshooting
When looking at the ads in a webpage, a “default” test ad will be displayed. This is not the ad that will be sent out once it goes through an email server and the tags are “merged.”
If the site has been set up but the ads are still not showing up, ensure that you have an ad unit included in the block, and that the site has the official "permission" to use the program. The block will not display unless the ad unit is filled out and the site is participating in the program.
How many ads and what size ads can I use?
Currently there are ten ad units available that will be set up by default, plus paid recommendations. They are:
Leaderboard: Leaderboard spots are large billboard size ads, but they will resize to fit in any area. We have four leaderboard ad units available: First, Second, Third and Fourth Leaderboard. Leaderboard ad spots are specifically restricted from show any native ads, and will only show traditional banners. This way, if a media site wants to only show banner ads with no native content on a particular newsletter (maybe because it has more sensitive content, like obituaries), they can do that by only using the leaderboard ad type.
Medium Rectangle: These are 300 x 250 ad spots that do not resize. We will have three of these ad units available: First, Second, and Third Medium Rectangle.
Skyscraper: There is one 160 x 600 skyscraper position available. This does not resize.
In-Feed Native Ads: These ads look similar to standard article blocks, and can be used in between article in a feed to add more monetization options without adding more “banner” ads. There are two In-Feed Native Ads available: First and Second In-Feed Native Ad.
Paid Recommendations: We offer a Paid Recommendations widget as well. The Paid Recommendations widget is resizeable and thus works on desktop and mobile devices.
What ad sizes does TownNews recommend?
It depends on the length of your newsletter, but assuming it is a "daily headlines" style newsletter with multiple content sections, we would recommend two leaderboards (one at the top and one in the middle), and then paid recommendations at the bottom.
In general, in terms of revenue, leaderboard ads at the top of the page perform the best. The lower the ad is placed within the content, the less revenue it will generate.
In addition, shorter emails (such as alerts) tend to perform better as well.
How do I create new ad units if I add a newsletter?
Each ad size has a unique ID that corresponds with the programmatic email vendor and must be unique on a specific email (in other words, a specific ad unit ID can only be used once per newsletter). However, the same ad blocks can be used on multiple different email newsletters. So, if you want to add a new newsletter, you can simply re-use the blocks that were placed on other newsletters on your site.
If you want to add additional sizes that are not available in our default set up, please put in a feature request and we will evaluate the request.
Can I block specific ads or types of ads?
Yes, we already block several categories that lead to unwanted ads. They are:
Arts & Entertainment → Offbeat → Edgy & Bizarre
Beauty & Personal Care → Body Art
Black Magic, Astrology & Esoteric
Business & Industrial → Security Equipment & Services → Guns & Firearms
Consumer Loans
Cosmetic Procedures & Body Modification
Dating
Downloadable Utilities
Drugs & Supplements
Family & Community → Romance & Relationships
Get Rich Quick
Hobbies, Games & Leisure → Leisure Gambling
Jobs & Education → Job Listings
News, Books & Publications → Newspapers
Politics
Real Estate → Real Estate Agents & Brokerages
References to Sex & Sexuality
Religion
Sensationalism
Sexual & Reproductive Health
Significant Skin Exposure
Social Casino Games
Video Games (Casual & Online)
Weight Loss
If you have an additional category block request, please submit a ticket to our Customer Support team.
If you have questions about advertiser specific or URL blocks, please let us know - but typically we will only do blocking at the category level.
How does the revenue split work?
After the vendor remits payment to TownNews, TownNews will then share back a portion of the revenue back to the publisher. The remainder will be used to pay for integration, day-to-day support, development and testing of the Programmatic Ads for BLOX Email Reach program.
When do I get paid?
TownNews will pay out 60 days in arrears.
Each month the email vendor reviews the data and pays a revenue share to TownNews minus any deductions for click fraud, charge-backs or other fees. So, TownNews needs to wait a few weeks to ensure that there are no additional deductions before sharing with our media organizations.
How much money will I make?
Each ad unit pays out differently, depending on the available ad fill, size and inventory demand. Typically, leaderboard ads at the top of the page perform the best, followed by medium rectangles. In general, native ads typically perform better than traditional banners.
Also note that ad impressions are only counted when the email is opened and the ads are loaded (i.e. the user's email client is set up to download images, or the user requests that images be downloaded).
Will the ads be "brand safe"?
Our current rating level is “G,” which should limit any inappropriate ads. However, if you see an ad that you think is inappropriate, please screenshot it and send it to us.
Is this program GDPR compliant?
Yes, our vendor has informed us that they don’t track any EU click data, or use data to show targeted ads to EU users.
Do you serve countries outside of the US?
Not at this time. If there is a demand for it, our partner said they are willing to develop for international clients.