Ad serving is the technology used to serve advertisements on websites. Ad servers are provided by ad networks and ad exchanges, and they work with demand-side platforms (DSPs) to help brands bid on and purchase ad space in real time.
Ad serving technology has evolved rapidly in recent years, as programmatic advertising has become the norm for buying and selling digital ads. The most popular ad servers today include Google Ad Manager, Adobe Advertising Cloud, Oath Ad Platforms, AppNexus, Sizmek, and Amazon A9.
Ad serving works by tracking user behavior and delivering targeted ads to users based on their interests. This helps to maximize the effectiveness of an advertising campaign by ensuring that the right people see the right ads.
There are two main types of ad serving: server-side and client-side. Server-side ad serving is when an ad server delivers ads to a website or app from its own servers. Client-side ad serving is when the ad server delivers ads to the user’s browser or device, and the user’s device then requests the ad from the server.
Ad serving can be used for both display advertising and video advertising. Display advertising is the most common type of ad served, and it includes banner ads, rich media ads, and text ads. Video advertising is growing in popularity, and it includes pre-roll, mid-roll, and post-roll ads.