We have already covered the benefits of video advertising and how it can help publishers improve their website monetization strategy. But on the technical side, serving video ads wouldn’t be as seamless if not without VAST Tags.
VAST Tags works like any ad server’s usual third-party ad tags. Except, in this case, it’s for video ads.
Video ads have witnessed substantial growth over the years, which can be directly attributed to publishers openly adopting VAST. Ad spending in video advertising is expected to reach $465 billion by 2028 from its current $26 billion.
Publishers are leveraging programmatic video advertising to earn more revenue.
In this post, we will extensively cover VAST Tags’ definition, implementation, and benefits. This will help publishers in gaining a better understanding of how VAST works.
Video Ad Serving Template (VAST): An Introduction
VAST (Video Ad Serving Template) was developed and introduced by the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) in 2008 to facilitate the growing adoption of video advertising. Since then, the IAB has updated VAST several times, some of which include VAST 2.0, VAST 3.0, and the most recent, VAST 4.0, released in 2016.
The IAB defines VAST as a universal XML schema for serving ads to digital video players. It also specifies how video players should behave when processing VAST-formatted ad responses.
What is a VAST Tag in Simpler Words?
Simply put, VAST helps build communication between the ad server and the video player for seamless display of video ads. In layman’s terms, it is the language that a video player understands and speaks. However, the language in its actual form is XML*.
*XML stands for Extensible Markup Language and encodes documents in a specific format that is readable by humans and machines.
The XML data contains details about the ad type, location of the ad creative in the ad server, etc., which a video player can read. This simplifies things massively, as regardless of a publisher’s ad network or an ad server, they can run third-party video ads because their player understands VAST. This, in turn, saves time for Ad Ops personnel because they don’t have to re-equip their video players every time video ads need to be served from a different provider.
What is a VAST Tag? (VAST Tag Meaning)
Industry experts have noted that VAST Tags’ work exactly like a third-party JavaScript ad tag, except it’s specifically for video.’
We have already learnt that VAST uses XML Schema as its markup language. VAST Tags are the bits of code used in this language. These tags help advertisers understand particular properties such as:
- The destination URL for audience clicks
- Running time of the video ad
- Where is the video ad located?
Since both HTML and XML are markup languages, the VAST Tag looks similar. Here’s how a complete VAST Tag appears:
VAST Examples:
If this vast ads example is too complicated to understand, here’s a small section of a VAST Tag: <MediaFile delivery= ‘‘progressive’’ width= ‘‘320’’ height=’‘240’’ type= ‘‘video/x-flv’’ bitrate= ‘‘17’’ scalable= ‘‘false’’ maintainAspectRatio= ‘‘false’’>..</MediaFile>
This is a sub-element of a VAST tag representing a MediaFile of type flv.
Types of VAST Ad Tags
There are five types of VAST tags:
- Inline ads: Contains all the elements essential to make the video ad more visually appealing.
- Linear video ads: Temporarily pause the screening content to display ads like TV commercials.
- Companion ads: Text, display or rich media ads displayed alongside or around the video player.
- Joint banners: These appear outside of the VAST video player on a webpage. They are typically activated by specific events, such as mouse hover, etc.
Overlays: Placed over the main video in text or image pop-ups without interrupting the video.
How Does VAST Work?
The process of VAST tag involves a three-step insertion process:
1. VAST Request
First, the video player requests the ad server to retrieve ad creative. This request includes information on ad format, ad space, targeting criteria, etc.
2. VAST Inline Response
Once the ad server accepts the request, it sends the media file and tracking URL to the video player.
3. Tracking URLs Triggered
After playing the video, the player activates the tracking URLs to record the ad impressions and other metrics associated with the media file.
Now that we have learnt how a VAST ad tag works, let’s look at its essential elements.
Key Elements in a VAST Tag
The elements present in a VAST Tag vary based on the advertiser’s requirements for a video player. We’ll use the above VAST tag example to understand its essential elements.
1. Media File
Every VAST Tag has a link to the media file containing the ad creative. Generally, the tag includes a link to the URL from which the media file can be pulled. Some attributes are mentioned in other cases, such as creating a link to the ad server to fetch the creative.
2. Video Format
The tag also includes the format of the video creative. In this case, it is flv, which is a flash video. In other cases, it can be mp4 and others.
3. Tracking
Just displaying video ads isn’t enough. Tracking their performance is also essential. The VAST Tag usually has a link to a resource file within the ad server. Once contact is made, a tracking pixel registers the impression or relevant information.
4. Advanced Options
Apart from the above three elements, there are many other important attributes. These can include the kind of ad (pre-roll, mid, etc.), dimensions, and others.
How to Create a VAST Tag?
Now that we have learnt what a VAST Tag is and how it appears, here’s how to create it. There are three ways to do it: manually, using your Ad Server, and third-party tools.
1. Manually
Creating VAST Tags shouldn’t take much effort if you’re a publisher and a developer. Publishers without coding experience can use external web developers.
With knowledge of XML and pre-defined parameters, creating VAST Tags should be easy. Here’s a list of the pre-defined parameters from Google Ad Manager for manually creating a VAST Tag.
Once all the necessary parameters have been listed, they can be used to create an XML-based VAST Tag.
2. Using Google Ad Manager
Since Google Ad Manager is the most popular ad server available, we have covered it using an ad server to create a tag. It’s a simple approach and can be done this way:
- Sign in to Google Ad Manager
- Click on Inventory >> Ad Units.
- Choose an existing ad unit and click on Tags.
- You will need to complete the 4-step process. This includes selecting and setting the Tag type, options, Additional tag parameters, and results. Click on Continue after each step.
- Click on Copy Tag.
3. Using Third-Party Tools
A lot of third-party services offer tools for generating VAST Tags. Usually, this is an additional feature that video players use to display ads. Ad Servers generally partner up with video player providers for this service. Here’s a list of video partners of Google Ad Manager.
VAST vs. VPAID: Which one to Choose?
Both VAST and VPAID are scripts for delivering video ads to the user. While they may indulge in the same job, they have different attributes. The VAST tag offers simple and stable usage to its users. On the other hand, VPAID (Video Player Ad Interface Definition) goes one step further. It creates a more engaging ad experience, and offers advanced analytics.
However, VAST advertising was proving to be ineffective for a few advertisers who wanted a more interactive ad format.
VPAID, or Video Player Ad Interface Definition, entered the picture to handle complex ad spaces and provide more options to the publishers. VPAID advertisement is a tiny fragment of JavaScript within the VAST tag code that interacts with video players and is compatible with the format.
It allows advertisers to serve rich media and interactive ads while helping video players synchronize with ad networks. With the advanced capabilities of VPAID tags, an advertiser can present the same ads with slight changes in context in two different locations.
However, VPAID tags, compared to the VAST tags, are more complex to use and can pose challenges for marketers. These include being more prone to errors, compatibility issues with certain video players, and difficulty in setting up.
Moreover, in 2023, the VPAID tags were depreciated by the IAB and replaced with Secure Interactive Media Interface Definition (SIMID) for interactive features and Open Measurement Interface Definition (OMID) for measurement purposes.
How to Validate VAST Tags?
Since VAST Tags are XML-based, there is a chance that they may have a bug or can be faulty. To check the errors in a tag, publishers can use a validator. Here are the three most common ones:
- IAB’s VAST Tag Validator: Ad ops and developers can use this to validate and test their VAST tags. The supported VAST versions in this are 2.0, 3.0, and 4.0.
- Video Suite Inspector: This has been made by Google developers. Ad Manager recommends this to validate VAST Tags.
VAST Tag Tester: This has been developed by Springserve and is a popular choice.
Debugging VAST Tags
VAST Tags can have a variety of errors, some of which can interrupt video streaming. Here’s an extensive guide on resolving these common VAST error codes. The following is a list of all the errors that can occur in VAST tags.
| VAST Error Code | Code Description | Possibility of Fatability |
| 100 | XML Parsing Error | Yes |
| 101 | VAST Schema Validation Error | Yes |
| 1o2 | VAST version of response not supported | Yes |
| 200 | Trafficking Error | Maybe |
| 201 | Video player expecting different linearity | Maybe |
| 202 | Video player expecting different duration | Maybe |
| 203 | Video player expecting different size | Maybe |
| 300 | General Wrapper error | Yes |
| 301 | Timeout of VAST URI | Yes |
| 302 | Wrapper limit reached | Yes |
| 303 | Empty VAST response | Yes |
| 400 | General linear error. Video player is unable to display the linear ad. | Yes |
| 401 | Unable to find Linear/MediaFile from URI | Yes |
| 402 | Timeout of MediaFile URI | Yes |
| 405 | Problem displaying MediaFile | Yes |
| 500 | General NonLinearAds error | Yes |
| 501 | Unable to display NonLinear Ad because creative dimensions do not align with creative display area (i.e., creative dimension too large) | Yes |
| 502 | Unable to fetch NonLinearAds/NonLinear resource | Yes |
| 503 | Could not find NonLinearresource with supported type | Yes |
| 600 | General CompanionAds error | Maybe |
| 601 | Unable to display companion because creative dimensions do not fit within Companion display area | Maybe |
| 602 | Unable to display Required Companion | Maybe |
| 603 | Unable to fetch CompanionAds/Companion resource | Maybe |
| 604 | Could not find Companion resource with supported type | Maybe |
| 900 | Undefined Error | Yes |
| 901 | General VPAID Error | Yes |
What is the Difference Between VAST XML and VAST URL?
A VAST URL is just a web address that directs users to the location of the VAST XML file. In simple terms, the VAST URL is a link to access the comprehensive ad data in the VAST XML file.
On the other hand, VAST XML is the actual data structure that is written in Extensible Markup Language (XML). It contains all the information about a video ad, like ad duration, file location, pixels, etc. It is considered to be the raw data of the ad file.
Benefits of VAST Tags
Ever since its development, the video ad-serving template has helped umpteen publishers increase the scope of their monetization strategy. This couldn’t have been achieved without VAST Tags. Here are some of the benefits they offer:
- Unifying the method of communication between the ad server and the video players.
- A standardized framework for video ad serving common to both advertisers and publishers. This helps them in displaying and tracking ad performance seamlessly.
- Tags unify instructions given to video players or ad servers. Thus, there’s a reduced possibility of playback errors.
- More power is in advertisers’ hands when executing video ads.
- Adherence to the VAST standard saves publishers a lot of time and money.
4 Quick Tips for Boosting VAST Ads
- Carefully check the VAST code for errors after copying and pasting it before implementing it on your website.
- The video ads you plan to run on your website should have relevant context to maintain effectiveness.
- Conduct A/B testing on various ad formats to see which ad formats complement VAST ads running on a webpage. This will reduce the loading time and will not oversaturate your website with ads.
- Generate a unique ad code for every website where the VAST ad tag code will be implemented.
Closing Thoughts
The video streaming market is anticipated to have 1.4 billion users as of 2024. It is only expected to increase with more publishers actively grabbing the opportunity to advertise programmatic videos. Adopting video ads using VAST Tags will maximize video ad performance across all web pages.
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A VAST tag, which stands for Video Ad Serving Template tag, is a script that facilitates efficient communication between ad servers and video players.
The VAST tags, a code, facilitate the communication between ad servers and video players. They give marketers a uniform framework to distribute their ads across various video ad players and ad inventories.
Visit the Video Suite Inspector page > Copy the URL of a tag for a placement that has your creative > Paste the URL into the input field > Select the VAST tag radio button > Click Test Ad.
If the ad creative renders properly, you can add the tag to your website.
VAST is a more straightforward format that enables video advertisements to play within the players. On the other hand, VPAID is an enhanced format that also plays within video players, similar to VAST, but offers interactive advertisements with clickable buttons and other interactive features.
– VAST 2: Supports quartile monitoring and simple ad formats. Provides companion ad support but with limited functionality.
– VAST 3: Includes enhanced error reporting tools and skippable ad functionality. Supports improved adherence to behavioral advertising guidelines.
– VAST 4: Offers interactive ad element functionality along with server-side ad stitching for smooth ad integration. Features include high-resolution video formats, viewability tracking, and sophisticated verification.
