4 Key Benefits to Look out for in a Self Service DSP

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This article provides a detailed account of what to look out for in self-serve DSPs for agencies and digital advertising campaigns.

Picture this. Your business wants to run an in-house advertising campaign and is hoping to employ the help of a Demand-Side Platform (DSP) to do so. The budget has been set, and you find yourself sitting in your first idea generation meeting, unsure of which route to take.

There are a number of factors to consider with both types of DSP out there: managed service and self service DSP. This article looks into the benefits of Self-serve DSPs for agencies, businesses, and brands considering digital advertising campaigns.

What are Self Service DSPs?

Self service DSPs enable parties to manage their advertising campaigns whilst connecting with their own list of supply sources. They are often mistaken for self service advertising platforms due to their close similarities in operating features. 

Both are owned by third-party vendors, and neither requires manual human input. However, unlike self-serve DSPs, self service advertising platforms only allow the use of supply sources provided by the DSP and aren’t in full control of the advertiser.

What makes them the right choice for digital advertising campaigns?

In order to ascertain the right DSP for your campaign, it’s important to understand the benefits of self service DSPs and how they differ from that of managed service DSPs. The following provides a detailed account of the 4 key benefits to look out for in a Self-serve DSP for digital advertising campaigns.

Cost-effective

Probably the biggest reason why agencies and advertisers opt for Self-serve DSPs is their significantly reduced costs due to the lack of manual, human work involved. Companies can advertise with some providers with the most affordable, consistent, and transparent pricing models based on cost-per-thousand impressions, which allows advertisers to pay only for viewable impressions.

Accessible training

Companies that opt for self service DSPs already know they have the in-house expertise and resources to accommodate the undertaking. They often already have programmatic professionals who are aware of how to configure the settings of the platform, so they can take full advantage of targeting, budgets, and other built-in functions of DSPs. 

However, there are those out there that offer extremely accessible platforms with easy, user-friendly interfaces that don’t require a great amount of prior experience to use. It can greatly benefit the more inexperienced DSP users by educating them on the ways of the platform, building their skill set, and ultimately becoming more efficient at buying media.

Complete control

Unlike managed service DSPs, self-serve DSPs utilize a fully automated workflow that allows advertisers to independently run in-house digital advertising campaigns. They can utilize machine learning technology to achieve targeted results, participate in real-time media bidding, and, most importantly, be granted 24/7 autonomy over campaigns.

Put simply, adopters of Self-serve DSPs are in complete control of the media that they buy. With platforms like BidMind, every element of the campaign can be configured to suit individual requirements from a single dashboard, without the need to request it from other third-party members first. This can make the process all the more seamless and time-efficient.

Trustworthy technology

It’s important for your DSP provider to bolster technology that is evolving at the same pace as the landscape of programmatic advertising. Self service DSPs have inbuilt machine learning faculties to streamline workflow, better optimize digital advertising campaigns, and drive tangible business results. 

Furthermore, such DSPs encourage brand safety with technology that ensures the prevention of unwanted traffic after bids have been made and secured. This means, unlike traditional Managed service DSPs, there is very little chance of human error and privacy issues.