What is Bid Request?

A Bid Request is an integral function in programmatic advertising, where online publishers offer available ad space in real time to prospective advertisers. This process is facilitated through an ad exchange via Real Time Bidding (RTB). A Bid Request essentially contains key information about the user (like location, device type, cookies etc.), the publisher’s website (like page URL, category etc.) and the ad impression on offer (such as dimension, format, and attributes of the ad space).

Formula

Bid Request doesn’t have a specific formula as it’s a process and not a numerical metric. However, it most commonly comes into play in metrics such as ‘Bid Rate’ – the number of bid requests that result in a bid. Bid Rate = (Number of Successful bids / Total Bid Requests) * 100

Example

For instance, if Amazon has an ad space available on its page and wants to sell it to the highest bidder, it sends out a bid request to advertisers. The request might detail that the ad should be mobile-compatible, geo-specific for users in New York, and suitable for a page selling electronic gadgets.

Why is Bid Request important?

Bid Requests serve several crucial purposes in driving effective ecommerce advertising:

• It helps advertisers to target specific audiences based on the user data available.
• It optimizes ad spend by allowing advertisers to bid on ad spaces that best match their target demographics.
• It increases revenue for publishers by instigating an auction for each ad impression.

Which factors impact Bid Request?

Improving the quality of Bid Requests majorly banks on providing detailed and accurate information. The more detailed your bid request, the higher the chances of attracting suitable and competitive bids. Incorporating accurate information about user’s browsing history, interests, demographic data, and behavior can help in increasing the bid request’s quality.

How can Bid Request be improved?

Various factors can impact the Bid Request process, including:

• Quality of the user data: More accurate and detailed data can drive higher bids.
• The nature of the website and its traffic: Popular websites with high engagements are more likely to attract competitive bids.
• Ad Inventory: Size, location, and format of the ad space can also affect the demand and hence the bid value.

What is Bid Request’s relationship with other metrics?

Bid Requests are intrinsically connected with several other ecommerce metrics. They directly impact the Click-Through Rates (CTR) and Conversion Rates, as a better-targeted ad would generally lead to higher clicks and conversions. They also influence the overall Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) by striking a balance between ad cost and expected returns.