2. AdMonsters Professional Services
Provides strategic services for online publishers, media
companies, brand marketers, and technology providers serving
the digital media community. APS designs and executes a holistic
combination of actionable profit-driven solutions that address the
most critical, performance-impacting industry and market
challenges. APS is focused on bring the depth of AdMonsters
experience to give companies strategic operations.
● Unique – Exclusive Ad Operations focus
● Robust – AdMonsters leverages its broad knowledge of industry challenges
to bring world class solutions to your business challenges. Adding value to
business processes, online ad technology, product strategy, and more..
● Experience – Our consultants typically have many years of experience
leading operations teams at online companies. They are the key players
who developed the online advertising industry.
3. Agenda
● What is Workflow?
● Ad Operations Organizations
● Roles in Ad Operations
● Gate-keeping in Ad Operations
● Workflow Process in Ad Ops
3
4. What is Workflow?
● At it’s most basic, workflow is the
order in which specific work is
performed and the rules associated
with each step along the way
4
5. What is Workflow?
● Can be very technical in nature and
governed by applications that
automate what were previously
manual processes, but Ad Operations
is still a combination of both human
and machine based operations
5
6. Ad Operations Process
● Ad Product Development
● Inventory Management
● Proposal and Reservations
● The Contract Stage
● Campaign Launch
● Billing
6
7. Workflow Connects the Links in a Chain
AD PRODUCT
DEFINE
CONFIGURE
INVENTORY
ESTIMATE
VALIDATE
PROPOSAL
COMPLIANCE
RESERVATION
CONTRACT
REVIEW
COMPLETED
CAMPAIGN
PRE - LAUNCH
POST LAUNCH
OPTIMIZATION
BILLING
REVIEW
INVOICING
REPORTING
7
8. Why Workflow and Process?
● Ad Operations has the responsibility for fulfilling millions of dollars of
advertising revenue
● The risks associated with under or over-delivery are greater today
than ever before
● There is more variety of technologies, experimentation, and media
used is delivering ads
● So Sales can go sell…
8
9. Classic Cases of Dysfunction
● The Surprise
● At the end of the quarter, Sales announces they sold $5 Million
● Ad Operations announces they only delivered $4 Million
● Management demands to know what happened
● There is no central documentation for orders and the resulting
fire drill to uncover the difference takes 3 days
● The reason was a cancelled order, and a CPC campaign with a
budget of $500K that never delivered
9
10. Classic Cases of Dysfunction
The Wild Wild West
● Ad Operations reports directly to Sales
● There is no gate-keeping function to moderate
bonusing of impressions
● Overselling within high value sections is rampant
● Ad Operations can not possibly deliver the over-
booked revenue, but is nevertheless held responsible
for revenue shortfalls
10
11. Classic Cases of Dysfunction
The Disappearing Playbook
● Ad Ops is growing rapidly in response to increased sales
● The two “founders” of the ad operations group leave
suddenly to pursue new opportunities
● There is no documentation of workflow and processes
used to forecast inventory, book complex campaigns and
issue reports
● Orders fail to get booked correctly and under-deliver
● Ad Ops needs to start from “square one” to figure out the
best process to fulfilling orders from scratch
11
12. “House of Horrors” Workflow
Campaign Q1 Revenue
Details submitted shortfall of $500K
via email
No central db of
Details revised contracts or
via phone call changes
Line items and
targeting changed Ops sifts through
day of launch by emails for trails
In-cubical visit
from Salesperson
Audit leads to
“deceased”
Client not happy, traffickers and
bonus 1 MM imp sales people
via note left on
your desk
12
13. ‘Thing’
● Do you have any “classic tales of dysfunction?
● What did you learn?
● How did you change your workflow to remedy?
● What is a re-occurring problem that has yet to
be remedied?
13
14. Why Workflow and Process?
● Gain control over what can be a chaotic
environment
● Give your organization a better chance of
achieving revenue objectives
● Work cross functionally with other divisions
● Create a more rewarding work environment
14
16. Functions that fall within Ad Ops
● Order entry
● Inventory management, forecasting
● Trafficking, QA
● Rich media handling, production, QA
● Video creative handling, production, QA
● Management of ad tags (includes working with developers to ensure that
tag syntax remains intact)
● Ad systems and technology management and vendor relations
● Product development
● Yield, remnant, adnetworks
● Site ad tag management
● What else in your organization?
16
17. Orgs: Ad Ops to Sales
CEO / COO Ad Operations isolated from Exec Management
Managed by Sales Division
Gate-keeping functions determined by Sales
SALES Reporting structure keeps Ad Ops focused
on tactical support
Leads to two scenarios:
Close teamwork with Sales, and cooperative
goal setting
OR
AD OPERATIONS Little alternative but to say “yes” to
requests for pricing, packaging and
inventory overrides
17
18. Orgs: Ad Ops to IT
CEO / COO
IT SALES
• IT may offer high degree of support
• Sales isolated from ad operations
AD OPERATIONS • IT not media savvy
• Ad Operations functions as “sys ops” to IT
18
19. Orgs: Ad Ops to Executive Mgmt
CEO / COO
SALES AD OPERATIONS
• Ad Operations as peer group to sales
• Cooperative management
• Ad Ops has gatekeeping and oversight functions on pricing, packaging
• Ultimately held responsible for accurate fulfillment of all contracts
• Opportunity to educate executives on yield management
19
20. Roles in Ad Operations
● Ad Trafficker
● Reviews completed contracts
● Enters campaign details into Ad Server
● Creative Q&A
● Campaign launch
● Monitor delivery and optimize
20
21. Roles in Ad Operations
● Contract Administrator
● Manages contract workflow
● Transfers sold orders into a contract
management system (if applicable)
● Client facing
21
22. Roles in Ad Operations
● Inventory Analyst
● Monitors and analyzes ad inventory
● Prevents inventory conflicts, or manages them when
they arise
● How much inventory sold, for how much?
● At what price, and is it optimal?
● What is the value of the inventory to the publisher?
● Reports on, and forecasts media revenue for the
publisher
22
23. Roles in Ad Operations
● Ad Product/Systems/Project Manager
● Evaluates, develops and tests ad products
● New media types
● Manages systems and vendors
● Project work
23
24. ‘Thing’
● What organizational world do you live in?
● Benefits / drawbacks?
● Alternative models?
● How many re-orgs have YOU lived through?
24
25. Gate-keeping Functions
● Proper use of inventory
● Budget forecasting
● Pricing and approvals
● Accurate billing
● Ad product management
● Efficiency
● Production environment
25
26. Gate-keeping Functions
● Inventory: Bonusing and deviations from agreed upon
packaging, Ripple effects – how the actions of one
campaign will effect many
● Pricing: CPM floors, bonus unaccounted for, production
costs, CPA deals being accounted for as booked revenue
● Contract: T&C, Credit approval, changes to contract after
sign off, inventory or ad products which can’t be delivered
as sold
26
27. Optimized Workflow
Inventory Management
1 2 Availability Check 3 Booking
Intuitive interface
Easy overview Sales favourite Campaign booking
Flexible reporting Fast access templates
Multiple alert settings Hourly updates Easy targeting
Data import/export Reliable overview Date and event manager
Seasonal forecasting API exchange
4 Delivery 5 Reporting
Automated and manual Customised reporting
optimization Email report settings
High server uptime Graphical overview
Multiple alert settings API exchange
Multiple ad formats Billing & Reconciliation
28. AD PRODUCT
DEFINE
CONFIGURE
Best Practices: Ad Products
● New Ad products need to be realistic, deliverable,
accountable
● Ad Ops manage ad products once they are released. Ad
Ops influence is essential for new product success
● Agree guidelines prior to launch for sales with a product
one pager or spec sheet
● Configure Ad Server side elements if required – whose
role is it? Standard processes – documented.
● Train Ad Ops team to manage new product when live
● Track revenue post launch to ensure ad product is
successful.
● Question value of maintaining low value ad products
28
29. INVENTORY
ESTIMATE
VALIDATE
Best Practices: Inventory
Management
● Minimum 24 hour turnaround for all inventory requests.
● Inventory analyst role to evaluate inventory trends and
respond to complex targeting requests
● Gate-keeping, to make sure the use of inventory
makes sense for the Company
● Understanding of cyclical nature of your inventory
because of seasonality, reoccurring events, etc.
● A “buffer” for conservative inventory projections
● Understand client goals and suggest options
29
30. PROPOSAL
COMPLIANCE
RESERVATION
Best Practices:
Proposal and Reservations
● Proposals must represent what can reasonably
be expected to be delivered
● Standard business rules can help insure that
inventory will yield expected revenue for the
publisher
● Ad Operations and Sales should work as a team
to monitor and approve proposals
● Inventory reforecasting helps set expectations
for all parties, including the Advertiser
30
31. CONTRACT
REVIEW
COMPLETED
Best Practices:
Contract Management
● Review the contract confirmation from the Agency or
Advertiser when received
● Read and check Terms and Conditions (T&C’s) if not
publishers own
● Ensure inventory on contract is as expected
● Understand client goals
● Establish check list – do goals makes sense? check the
math
● Build campaign management timeline
31
32. CAMPAIGN
PRE - LAUNCH
POST LAUNCH
OPTIMIZATION
Best Practices:
Campaign Management
● Set expectations on lead times for receipt of
creative – proactive
● Focus on time start of campaign
● Testing of creative, especially rich media & Click
thru
● Checking that all line items have been launched
and are delivering daily impressions on
schedule
● 2 or 3 day after launch pull third parties
● Develop and use a checklist!!
32
33. BILLING
REVIEW
INVOICING
REPORTING
Best Practices: Billing
● Monitor third party served campaigns throughout
campaign to flag significant discrepancies
● Manage your discrepancies instead of having the
manage your inventory (overbook?)
● Have clear roles & responsibilities
● Make sure all involved have an understanding of
billing process – including Sales!
33
