Looking for feedback on new AdToll Video Ads

Hi all... I thought I would try and get some feedback from the DP community on the new Video Ads we are about to launch on AdToll.com

For a demo of our new Video Ad format check out http://www.adtoll.com/dp_demo.html

The addition of Video Ads will give our customers the access to the full range of ad media; text, banner ads and video ads.

The Video Ads will slot in directly into the current offering... Sponsored Ads and Run of Network Ads.

I am looking for feedback on pricing... basically would like to get an idea of what you feel a fair price is for a CLICK on a video ad - based on our Run of Network ad offering.

Keep in mind that:

1) Video Ads are protected far more from fraud and accidental clicks due to the user having to click twice on the video. First to play the video, and second to visit the site.

2) Video Ads allow the Advertiser to deliver a complete sales pitch, unique value proposition/offer to the user meaning higher quality clicks resulting in higher conversion rates.

3) Video Ads on our Publisher sites take up space (300x250) and attract the focus of users so they want to be making a good commission for clicks. Our Publishers make 75% commission.


The pricing structure has to be balance so that its cheap enough for Advertisers to book ads and expensive enough so that Publishers are making a good enough commission based on the real estate they invest.

Any feedback on the pricing would go a long way to helping us find this balance.

 

Ruby, the video player looks awesome, well done. It is light wait and loads fast too which will be attractive to publishers.

Regarding an ideal price, I guess it depends on what you're selling, but assuming I have to pay $0.40+ for a text ad on Adwords which uses only a few words to pre-qualify and educate the visitor, you can work out the cost of a video click using the statistics LeadsByVideo release about the effectiveness of their members video ads.

their stats are an average Click through rate of 6.8% and a conversion rates of that traffic in the vicinity of 8.5% where conversion is normally about 2%

thats a 325% increase on conversion rate.

So I guess a fair charge is anything less than
$1.70 per click (40 cents + 325%)

Obviously people need to judge and test for themselves. Video's would need to be informative to encourage education rather than clickthru's. this will help increase the CVR, but will reduce the CTR. A good thing for those who know what they're doing.

 

Thanks for the feedback Tom I appreciate it... your one of those members who always seem to add in some good feedback and I do appreciate it.

$1.70 a click you say.... I am sure Publishers would love that but would Advertisers pay that!!?? That's the question.

Any more feedback would be appreciated.

 

$1.70 per click? That wouldn't work for me as I have only arcade/entertainment sites and only earn from ads and not products.

 

Video ads wont suit everyone of course, that's natural. Just like TV, radio or magazine advertising don't suit everyone.

$1.70 was a figure suggested by zorde, I don't think the prices we set will be that high but probably more between 50c and 99c somewhere.

 

What if you had a channel for the types of sites that generally have a lower income that provided them with a lower CPC then the others?

Just a thought.

 

Yes understand what you are saying but we do need to keep our new Video Ads within our model. That is pricing based on ad format, ad rating, targeting and budget.

We do understand that Video Ads will not be for everyone and to try and accommodate everyone is impossible.

I understand what you are saying though ... basically to alter the pricing depending on the vertical... problem with that is we would need a far broader list of verticals for it to be fair. For example our Internet & Technology vertical covers a lot of different sites that might themselves have very different profit margins etc etc

I really appreciate the feedback. I will be taking it into consideration.

 

We found the same problem at LeadsByVideo where people who have sites that are monetized only through Adsense are finding that video advertising is not really for them.

Their site is designed to move traffic our through ads, so there is no real reason for people to visit the site in the first place.

This PPC arbitrage model works on tiny margins, where quantity traffic is more important than quality traffic.

Video Ads really only suit people looking for quality targeted traffic. People with ecommerce sites that sell goods and services would look for targeted traffic that is pre-educated about their product and is likely to convert to sales without contacting the merchant with time-wasting questions.

There are plenty of merchants willing to pay $1.70 per click if you can prove to them that the traffic is of a superior quality. This is what we have proven at LeadsByVideo and advertisers are hungry for more.

If you can offer video ads at a low cost per click and ensure that publishers are not cheating the system to earn fast cash.. You have yourself a winner for sure!

Video ads are the future of online advertising.

 

I agree with your logic. It would take more time checking each site and how the order form would know what channel you are in without a review first.

Also it would be nice if there was a border or some faint design around the video ads. It would be even better if publishers could choose from a list of colors to match there site. If there was a little bar under them that said the company name or URL that would be helpful. It would also be a much better place to put your logo so it doesn't block some text in the video. Without some sort of border or eye-catching design the ads won't look so special and CTR might suffer.

I understand that all of that would take some time to implement but it would be wise investment.

 

There's always going to be a market for text and banner ads there's no doubt about that however Video Ads are emerging as very popular as well although as we have all said it only suite certain businesses.

Our pricing will be fair so that advertisers and publishers alike can benefit.

We will also be launching with an introductory offer to get advertisers on board.

 

The Video Ad is designed like that for a reason... to begin with 300x250 is a standard size which Publishers can fit into existing spaces. If we added a border it would make it bigger and harder to integrate into existing spots.

Our logo is a must so users are aware it is an ad, just like Google have their video branded; it is important to protect advertisers.

Remember the Publisher could embed the Video Ad within a border or frame of their own design, we do allow that.

A couple of features of the new Video Ads ...

1) The URL of the Advertiser site will be displayed as a tooltip when you rollover the ad - so users can see the ad is clickable and where they are going.

2) The AdToll logo int he bottom right actually has the Publishers referral link on it and when clicked takes the user to AdToll and if they sign up the Publisher gets the referral.

3) We will actually be recording 'plays' on the Video Ads so that Publishers and Advertisers can see VIEWS, PLAYS and CLICKS. A view is when the Video Ad is shown, a play is when the user actually plays the ad and you all know what a click is.

We do hope our Video Ads are a success and like anything it will evolve with time to suit market demands.

 

You should keep timestamps for these. Then you'll be able to show the duration between the play and the click?

This is really useful because (as an advertiser) i would be able to see how much of the video people watch before clicking through.

I'd know what part of my video hits the hardest from a call to action point of view.

It will also help you combat fraudulent clicks as a simple pattern match would show a bot clicking at equal intervals.

 

Although not related to thread entirely, however still related to the company.

I had an account/still do with AdToll, used it for a few weeks, signed up with a blog about Paid to Click sites BEFORE the terms were changed & was told that my account will not be affected as AdToll had already approved it.

Few weeks later get an email saying my site has been removed from the directory due to not being compliant with the terms. After sending 3-4 emails, I got no reply.

Just a friendly warning to those considering joining.

 

Our requirements never changed, they were always the same.... no "paid to" sites, no "under construction" sites etc... we reserve the right to remove sites in our network based on our requirements.

We did approve it but after someone spotted my error I was told and I sorted it out.... we are only human and we can make mistakes.

At the end of the day your site does not fall under our requirements, hence why it was removed.

We got your e-mails, and would have replied to the first one then you kept asking... we are not going to repeat ourself over and over again.


And yes this topic is about our new Video Ad service so I would appreciate it if you stayed on topic.

 

"Our requirements never changed, they were always the same.... no "paid to" sites, no "under construction" sites etc... we reserve the right to remove sites in our network based on our requirements."

That is a blatent lie because your requirements DID change, and the 'Paid to' term was added into it later on.

"We did approve it but after someone spotted my error I was told and I sorted it out.... we are only human and we can make mistakes."

In my email I specifically notified you of this change in term and asked what my situation was and you told me it was fine. So your above comment is once again a lie.

"We got your e-mails, and would have replied to the first one then you kept asking... we are not going to repeat ourself over and over again."

I never got any reply, which is why I emailed again since I usually got very quick responses from you before and even praised you for your customer support.

You have just admitted that you never replied to the initial email, so how would you be repeating yourself when you hadnt even given me an answer to the first email never mind the rest?

"And yes this topic is about our new Video Ad service so I would appreciate it if you stayed on topic."

People deserve to know how you treat your customers

 

We always reply to our emails, you said that yourself our customer support was great, it always has been.

We have no reason to lie... the exact details of what happened in your case is obviously a scenario we had to deal with on a case by case basis and I do apologise if you feel you have been treated badly, that wasn't our aim.

The fact is our requirements changed and we reserve the right to change them when we feel the need to protect our network and more importantly our advertisers.

I think its obvious to everyone why we do not allow "paid to" type sites or sites that directly support them. This is not unusual for an ad network.

With regards to how we treat our customers... we treat them very well and we have had nothing but praise over the last few months and we will continue to provide the best service to our customers.

Again I do apologise if you feel you were treated unfairly that wasnt our aim.

 

Here's a demo of our video player using a Microsoft ad - http://www.adtoll.com/dp_demo.html

 

Panjabi

ToS states, and has always stated.

"The Publisher agrees that their site may be modified, removed or disapproved at any time and for any reason by the Account Manager."

Section 2 might also be of interest. "Changes to the Terms of Service".

Emails also have a tendency to end up in the junk box, so that is probably what has happened, it has happened to me.

I think it clear why "Get Paid" to sites are not allowed in the network.

Anyways, back on topic, Video Ads are great.

 

Hey Ruby,

congrats on launching video ad capability to your network. Will you be running your new ModYourCar video ad on there that you won from LeadsByVideo.com?

I tried to sign up for Google Video Ads recently, and found it non existent. I inquired with Google and they told me video ads (like Google Checkout) is not available to Australia. I was furious, because my site has a global audience, why should they restrict me?

So it seems Adtoll is (from what I know) the only video advertising option available to Australian merchants and webmasters.

You should be proud mate!

 

Zorde we are very proud of our Video Ads, definitely. We already have a handful of publishers using them but we do expect more to come on board within the next two weeks as our promotion rolls out.

It does seem like we are the only network providing Video Ads, to a lot of countries. It means anyone has the opportunity to build brand awareness and sales, not just those in the US.

RE the ModYoruCar ad.... I have already booked the new ad on a couple of sites publishing Video Ads.... works a treat! The ad is getting some great exposure and clicks, quite nice.

We have also reduced our base price for Video Ad network ads to 24c a click which is a fantastic price! The higher your budget the better price you receive as well.

If anyone has any questions please just ask!