Real-Time Bidding (RTB)
An auction-based system where ad impressions are bought and sold in milliseconds.
Why It Matters
RTB allows advertisers to bid on individual impressions, ensuring spend goes to the most valuable users.
How It Works
When a user loads a webpage, the publisher sends an ad request to an exchange. Multiple advertisers bid in real time, and the highest bidder wins the impression. The entire process takes under 100 milliseconds.
Real-World Example
As a user loads a news article, RTB determines in 50ms that a travel brand wins the sidebar ad spot at $3.20 CPM.
Common Mistakes
Bidding on all available inventory without filtering
Not analyzing win rates to optimize bids
Real-Time Bidding (RTB) FAQs
Is RTB the same as programmatic?
RTB is one method within programmatic; programmatic also includes private deals and guaranteed buys.
Do Google and Meta use RTB?
Google uses RTB for display network; Meta uses its own auction system which is similar in concept.
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