subject: Advanced Ad Server Technology [print this page] Advanced Ad Server Technology Advanced Ad Server Technology
At first, internet ads were simple: a picture (or text) was hardcoded into the website, and when someone clicked on it they would be taken to the advertiser's website. It was simple. Tracking was virtually non-existent.
When advertisers realized that the internet was a very viable medium for advertisement, this technology rapidly evolved into the state where it is today.
Today's ads allow a small piece of code to be placed into the web page's code, and from that code the advertiser can control a wide variety of details.
For example, multiple ads can be rotated. Ads can also be automatically selected based on the content of the website, so that a website about airplanes doesn't show ads about blenders, for example. The idea behind this is that people visiting a website about airplanes will probably be more receptive to targeted ads about airplanes.
Click-through-rates can also be monitored automatically by ad software. This keeps track of how many times a specific ad was shown and how many of those times it was clicked. For example, if an ad was shown 100 times and clicked 10 times, then it has a 10% click-through-rate.
The locations of people who click on the ads can be tracked. For example, where in the country (or in the world) are people who are clicking on specific ads? This data can be collected and analyzed to help develop even more relevant and profitable ads.
To learn more about what is possible with today's ad server technology, please visit this link.
