--- title: 3 Ways Header Bidding Levels the Playing Field For Online Publishers description: ":: Darline Jean, PulsePoint :: Ask many of today's digital publishers what their biggest chal..." image: https://www.websitemagazine.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/money-coming-out-of-laptop-image-Jan-22-2023-11-53-20-7659-PM-2-1-1.png --- [Log In](https://www.websitemagazine.com/_hcms/mem/login) [Subscribe](https://websitemagazine.tradepub.com/free/w_webk05/prgm.cgi) [![Website Magazine Logo](https://www.websitemagazine.com/hs-fs/hubfs/gradient-regular@3x-1.png?width=586&height=145&name=gradient-regular@3x-1.png "Website Magazine Logo")](http://Website%20Services,%20Inc.) - [About](https://www.websitemagazine.com/about) - [FAQs](https://www.websitemagazine.com/about/faq) - [Advertise](https://www.websitemagazine.com/about/advertise) - [Editorial Staff](https://www.websitemagazine.com/about/editorial-publishing-staff) - [Resources](https://websitemagazine.tradepub.com) - [Newsletter](https://www.websitemagazine.com/newsletter-sign-up) - More - [Contact Us](https://www.websitemagazine.com/contact) [Log In](https://www.websitemagazine.com/_hcms/mem/login) [Subscribe](https://websitemagazine.tradepub.com/free/w_webk05/prgm.cgi) Search - [Latest](https://www.websitemagazine.com) - [Design](https://www.websitemagazine.com/web-design) - [Development](https://www.websitemagazine.com/web-development) - [SEO](https://www.websitemagazine.com/seo) - [Ecommerce](https://www.websitemagazine.com/ecommerce) - [Content](https://www.websitemagazine.com/content) - [Marketing](https://www.websitemagazine.com/marketing) - [Advertising](https://www.websitemagazine.com/advertising) - [Email](https://www.websitemagazine.com/email) - [Infographics](https://www.websitemagazine.com/infographics) - [View All Topics](https://www.websitemagazine.com/channels) # 3 Ways Header Bidding Levels the Playing Field For Online Publishers ![Peter Devereaux](https://www.websitemagazine.com/hubfs/Peter_Devereaux.png) [by Peter Devereaux](https://www.websitemagazine.com/advertising/author/peter-devereaux) 13 Jun, 2016 - - - [mailto:?Body=https://www.websitemagazine.com/advertising/3-ways-header-bidding-levels-the-playing-field-for-online-publishers](mailto:?Body=https://www.websitemagazine.com/advertising/3-ways-header-bidding-levels-the-playing-field-for-online-publishers) - Link Copied! ![3 Ways Header Bidding Levels the Playing Field For Online Publishers](https://www.websitemagazine.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/money-coming-out-of-laptop-image-Jan-22-2023-11-53-20-7659-PM-2-1-1.png) :: Darline Jean, [PulsePoint](https://www.pulsepoint.com/index.html) :: **Ask many of today's digital publishers what their biggest challenges are and you'll likely hear a common refrain - growing their audience while producing high-quality editorial content in a very competitive environment.** While the editorial side is focusing on creating content to engage and grow their user base, heads of sales are tasked with increasing display ad revenues by an aggressive percent, and they're wondering how they're going to hit that goal in today's marketplace. As brands continue to allocate a chunk of their ad buying programmatically, both through RTB and guaranteed deals, it is becoming increasingly important for publishers to balance a mixture of direct-sold and programmatic premium inventory, ensuring maximum fill and high CPMs. For publishers to improve their inventory performance - and help advertisers achieve the best performance through programmatic - they need a level playing field. Fortunately, programmatic has evolved to the point where publishers finally have a choice with header bidding, a technique that helps publishers hit those lofty revenue goals in three key ways. ### 1. Eliminating potential for error The waterfall was the earliest and still remains the most common programmatic implementation method used, even though waterfalling has shown that publishers don't always get the highest amount offered for impressions. Furthermore, discrepancies are commonplace and dedicated teams are required to manage complicated ad trafficking processes. And despite the fact that the waterfall was designed to help the publisher access more sources of revenue, the demand-side platforms (DSPs) actually hold much of the power. By its nature, the waterfall simply can never offer the best programmatic performance. Header bidding reduces these complexities, so discrepancies are minimized. ### 2. Promoting competition Header bidding allows publishers to offer an ad impression to all of their demand partners at the same time before the server makes an ad call. This eliminates the waterfall, thereby generating greater competition among demand partners, which results in higher CPMs and fewer unsold impressions for publishers who are attracting desirable audiences. ### 3. Maximizing impression value In addition to creating engaging content and driving a user base, the important thing to a publisher is getting the greatest value for their impressions. The biggest benefit of header bidding is that it gives the publisher the opportunity to derive maximum revenue for each ad impression. A core value behind programmatic is that the end user who sees the ad carries as much value as the site displaying the ad itself. When these users arrive at a publisher's site, the publisher should profit. Header bidding allows them to get the highest possible CPM for the most in-demand audiences. Because some campaigns are only running on some DSPs/monetization platforms, without connecting to all of these sources, publishers are simply missing out. Programmatic should be used as a strategic approach to monetization, and can supplement a direct sales team or be the sole monetization strategy, depending on the size and uniqueness of content. For those who are aiming to receive higher yield, it's time to build a strategic monetization approach that includes programmatic. Header bidding levels the playing field so that publishers are able to finally experience the benefits that programmatic technology had previously only been able to promise. About the Author Darline Jean is the chief operating officer for [PulsePoint](https://www.pulsepoint.com/index.html), where she is responsible for shaping product strategy focused on enhancing the company's premium programmatic and content marketing solutions. Before joining PulsePoint, Darline was president and CEO of The About Group where she was responsible for the strategic direction of the business unit of The New York Times Company that includes About.com, CalorieCount.com and ConsumerSearch.com. ![Peter Devereaux](https://www.websitemagazine.com/hubfs/Peter_Devereaux.png) [Peter Devereaux](https://www.websitemagazine.com/advertising/author/peter-devereaux) As the Editor-in-Chief of Website Magazine and President of Website Services, Peter has established himself as a prominent figure in the digital marketing industry. With a wealth of experience and knowledge, Peter has been a driving force in shaping the landscape of digital marketing. His leadership in creating innovative and targeted marketing campaigns has helped numerous businesses achieve their revenue growth goals. Under his direction, Website Magazine has become a trusted source of information and insights for digital marketers worldwide. As President of Website Services, Peter oversees a team of talented professionals who specialize in SEO/SEM, email marketing, social media, and digital advertising. Through his hands-on approach, he ensures that his team delivers exceptional results to their clients. With a passion for digital marketing, Peter is committed to staying up-to-date with the latest industry trends and technologies, making him a sought-after thought leader in the field. - - - - - [mailto:peter.devereaux@websitemagazine.com](mailto:peter.devereaux@websitemagazine.com) #### Popular Post ### [Google's PLAs Get a Boost ![Google's PLAs Get a Boost](https://www.websitemagazine.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/gradient-regular-logo-mark-Jan-22-2023-11-41-39-6589-PM-Apr-10-2023-01-09-06-9914-PM-Apr-25-2023-03-04-19-8793-AM-May-01-2023-08-19-35-7865-PM.png)](https://www.websitemagazine.com/advertising/googles-plas-get-a-boost) ### [Tips to Improve PPC Campaigns and Reduce Cost Per Click ![Tips to Improve PPC Campaigns and Reduce Cost Per Click](https://www.websitemagazine.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/pexels-photo-4482896-1.jpg)](https://www.websitemagazine.com/advertising/tips-to-improve-ppc-campaigns-and-reduce-cost-per-click) ### [Top 50 Ad Networks To Explore ![Top 50 Ad Networks To Explore](https://www.websitemagazine.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/gradient-regular-logo-mark-Jan-22-2023-11-51-23-2143-PM-Apr-10-2023-12-58-31-6108-PM-4-2.png)](https://www.websitemagazine.com/advertising/top-50-ad-networks-to-explore) #### Subscribe to Our Newsletter! 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All Rights Reserved - [Privacy Policy](https://www.websitemagazine.com/about/privacy) ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Peter Devereaux", "url" : "https://www.websitemagazine.com/advertising/author/peter-devereaux" }, "dateModified" : "2023-05-01T20:15:54.090Z", "datePublished" : "2016-06-13T05:00:00.000Z", "headline" : "3 Ways Header Bidding Levels the Playing Field For Online Publishers", "image" : [ "https://www.websitemagazine.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/money-coming-out-of-laptop-image-Jan-22-2023-11-53-20-7659-PM-2-1-1.png" ], "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://www.websitemagazine.com/advertising/3-ways-header-bidding-levels-the-playing-field-for-online-publishers", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "url" : "https://www.websitemagazine.com/hubfs/gradient-regular@3x-1.png" }, "name" : "Website Services, Inc." } } ``` ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "NewsArticle", "author" : [ { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Peter Devereaux" } ], "headline" : "3 Ways Header Bidding Levels the Playing Field For Online Publishers", "publisher" : { "name" : "Website Magazine", "url" : "https://www.websitemagazine.com/" } } ```