Programmatic Advertising Guide: Definition, Types, & More

What Is Programmatic Advertising?

Programmatic advertising is a type of advertising that automates buying and selling ad space. It uses technology and tools to serve the right ads to the right people automatically.

This way, advertisers can efficiently target their desired audience without the need for manual decision-making or action.

Programmatic Advertising vs. Display Ads

At this point, you might be wondering how programmatic ads differ from display ads.

To put it simply:

Programmatic advertising refers to the way ads are bought and sold, while display ads are a type of ad format.

Here’s an example of a display ad:

Source: Instapage

While display ads can be used in programmatic advertising campaigns, they’re most commonly bought through display ad networks, such as the Google Display Network.

That’s another difference between programmatic and display ads: While programmatic ad buying usually involves using multiple platforms to run a campaign, display ad campaigns rely on a single ad network for the whole process.

Further reading:Online Advertising: All You Need to Know

Pros and Cons of Programmatic Advertising

In our programmatic advertising overview below, we cover the pros and cons so you can decide whether this marketing tactic is right for you.

Pros

Thinking about trying programmatic ads? Here are the biggest benefits:

• Advanced targeting options: Programmatic digital advertising supports advanced targeting options, including contextual targeting and interest...