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Glossary · Campaign types

What is Programmatic advertising?

Definition

Programmatic advertising is the automated buying and selling of ad inventory through real-time auctions, rather than by negotiating directly with a publisher. When a page loads, an auction runs in milliseconds and the winning advertiser's ad is served.

What to know

The stack is a demand-side platform for buyers, a supply-side platform for publishers, and an ad exchange running the auction between them. Meta and Google Ads are effectively closed programmatic systems: the same auction logic, but only inside their own inventory.

The main risks are placement quality and fraud. Open exchanges can serve your ad next to content you would never choose, which is why exclusion lists and inventory filters matter more here than on walled platforms.

Related terms

CPMCPM (cost per mille) is the cost of one thousand impressions, calculated as ad spend divided by impressions, m...Rich media adsRich media ads are display ads that go beyond a static image, using video, audio, animation or interactive ele...RetargetingRetargeting is advertising to people who have already interacted with your business, such as site visitors, vi...

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