Rich media and high impact formats

At times, Microsoft Advertising clients want to transact larger ad formats in addition to standard IAB ad formats. These are usually sold at higher CPM rates and have higher CTRs. This article gives an overview of some basic Rich Media formats that you can transact on Microsoft Advertising and also offers further information on app providers that specialize in Rich Media and High Impact formats, some of which are also known as "rising stars".

Different formats

Billboard / Masthead / Bellyband

If you plan to sell billboard placements (typical size combinations include 800x250, 970x250 or 900x250), it is important to consider buyer demand on these sizes, which can be limited in some geographical areas. To optimize your fill-rate, we recommend offering multiple sizes on the same placement. This can be done by using promo_sizes, an additional parameter in the URL of a placement call which can be associated with size combinations as values, for example promo_sizes=900x250.

One challenge arises when the content on the website needs to be adjusted, for example when no billboard placement is resold by buyers. The easiest solution is to have managed campaigns serve on these placements in order to fill the space or serve a house ad. However, if you want to monetize the placement by offering a smaller size, such as a 728x90 placement, the space above the page needs to be reduced from 800x250 to avoid a visual gap. To do this, you can serve a default that contains a few lines of JavaScript in order to reduce the size of the placement or a default placement that only contains the smaller size.

Screenshot of Billboard.

Halfpage Ad / Large Skyscraper

The Halfpage ad, typically 300x600 pixels, can be implemented in a similar fashion as described above. Depending on the setup of the website, the size of the placement may not need to be adjusted in order to improve visual appearance of the website.

Screenshot of halfpage Ad.

Who can buy rich media available on promo_sizes?

All buyers can buy promo_sizes, but the highest price determines which size wins the auction and is being served. Please confirm whether external DSPs can listen to promo_sizes before expecting their demand.

Using Promo Sizes