How CWBChicago found assurance and reliability in AdPushup & expanded ad monetization outcomes

We were facing major challenges. We ended up operating in quite a restricted environment as there was no human being available to assist us with our ad monetization queries, and the chances of achieving overall improvements on various other parameters were minimalistic. All of this eventually led to an unsatisfactory monetization experience

Tim Hecke,

Managing Partner, CWBChicago

CWBChicago is a prominent US news website running for over 8 years now. Specializing in crime reporting, the team ensures that it keeps its readers updated on safety and security. The team tells stories in a unique manner from beginning to end. With significant growth over the years, the team has partnered with reputed entities to strengthen its reporting and expand its coverage geography. Unlike certain mainstream media bodies, the CWBChicago team has stayed focused on its goal of providing detailed, relatably contextual, and increasingly original reporting.

With an ever-expanding need for safety and well-being, the intent within people to access CWBChicago’s website has been on the rise. It has led to growing traffic and higher
engagement on the site.

  • Website

    cwbchicago.com

  • Industry

    News & Media

  • Monthly Visits

    603K

Goals & Challenges

Refining experience end-to-end

Improving the monetization experience was something the team at CWBChicago was eagerly looking for. Having implemented solutions like AdSense which come with its own set of limitations, such as lack of sufficient assistance, the team realized the importance of onboarding the right partner, particularly in terms of getting the right support.

Exploring new capabilities

In addition to looking at standard revenue optimization solutions, the team at CWBChicago was keen to try new kinds of technology and diverse ways of monetization. With the continuous evolution of adtech capabilities, the team was willing to explore uncharted areas and see how experimentation could add value to their business and experience

Improving ad revenue

To wind it all up, the team placed a strong focus on maximizing ad revenue. The need to scale up and reach the next level of monetization benefits was something that was possible through collaboration with an effective partner.

Lack of dependable account support

While using AdSense is beneficial for publishers to start with, there are certain limitations that soon start negatively impacting them. The CWBChicago team too gradually started to face such challenges that included:

• A lack of human interface to assist them with their queries and problems.

• Having to refer to AdSense FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions) each time without access to convincing solutions, resulting in further complications and more frustration.

• Limited options to optimize ads and make improvements, affecting the team’s overall experience.

No access to new tech capabilities and avenues

AdSense ended up restricting opportunities for a constantly growing publisher like CWBChicago. Whether in terms of ad stack management capabilities, quality auctions, or eventual revenue, continuing with AdSense was leading to increasing
challenges.

Limited Ad Revenue with previous partners and solutions

CWBChicago has been building rising engagement on the website. However, despite rising traffic and returning visitors, monetization results had not seen sufficient growth as:

• AdSense offered limited advertisers who would pay meager amounts, reinforcing the team’s worry about inefficient website inventory usage.

• The team had no choice but to carry on with this model till the time they found a competent ad monetization partner.

We were facing major challenges. We ended up operating in quite a restricted environment as there was no human being available to assist us with our ad monetization queries, and the chances of achieving overall improvements on various other parameters were minimalistic. All of this eventually led to an unsatisfactory monetization experience

Tim Hecke,

Managing Partner, CWBChicago

Solution Deployment

Joining hands with AdPushup, opened up an array of lucrative opportunities for the team. AdPushup’s robust tech portfolio assured the team of achievable growth and the partnership kicked off.

The capabilities offered are as follows:

*Header Bidding

AdPushup offered a beneficial Header Bidding solution to allow premium advertisers access the team’s website inventory. That led to massive competition and improved bid quality. AdPushup ensured that the right demand partners were bidding on the inventory resulting in eCPMs and Header Bidding revenue showing a considerable rise. This was a significant change as the team could benefit by going beyond the baseline revenue that it had been receiving from solutions such as AdSense.

*Ad Refresh

To capitalize on the high time-on-site by visitors, AdPushup set up ActiveView Refresh Ads across ad units; a refresh solution that increases the number of ad impressions served per session while accounting for ad viewability and user engagement signals on the page (click, scroll, etc).

*Video Ads

The seamless implementation of video ads contributed strongly to the team’s monetization progress. This was a new experiment and the team was happy with the outcomes. Video Ads are finding rising usage today. That is primarily because they allow access to a greater pool of advertisers and also enable the delivery of contextual ads which bring greater engagement.

Some of the key highlights of this approach offered by AdPushup involved:

• Prebid auction enablement;
Competition between Header Bidding partners and AdX demand

• Priorities such as easier go-live and efficient set-up
• Better optimization and greater engagement

*Ad Layout Optimization

For better yields, the team tested diverse and extensive layouts on the site. These were in coherence with images, posts, and new content on the website. The AdPushup team had set up multiple variants to parallely test against the site’s original ad layouts and demonstrate the best possible outcomes. The platform continuously optimized placements, sizes, and colours, to determine the best combinations to deliver high output on performance metrics such as CTR (Click Through Rates).

*Innovative Ads

While trying new solutions in the form of innovative ads, the team explored the benefits of AdPushup’s advanced tech capabilities. The key advantages of this approach included:

• Smooth implementation and tweaks of these ads.

• Improved financial outcomes and greater brand recall enabled through higher CTRs (Click Through Rates) and CPMs (Cost Per Mille).

Innovative ads have been gaining increasing popularity today. Formats such as docket and sticky ads, to name a few, continue to gain traction as they help to achieve:

• High interaction rates

• Better measurability and scalability

• A satisfying experience for the site visitors

Such benefits make it all the more worthwhile for publishers to try out Innovative Ads.

*AdX Capabilities

AdX is a marketplace that allows several premium buyers and sellers to interact, resulting in successful deals. Given that it is normally tricky for publishers to access the exclusive benefits of AdX, having a partner that offers premium services helps to address publisher challenges more effectively.

As a Google Certified Partner, AdPushup offered:

• Additional AdX demand that brought buyers from several additional ad networks, including Google Display Networks. It resulted in the best possible usage of CWBChicago’s website inventory.

• A useful impression-based revenue model as opposed to clicks (which are harder to achieve), eventually bringing higher yields.

Results

With the implementation of Header Bidding, Ad Refresh, Innovative Ads, Video Ads, Layout Optimization, and AdX Capabilities, the team achieved:

  • A Overall Revenue uplift rise of 101%
  • An Impressions rise of 31%
  • A RPM increase rise of 48%
  • icon

    Goal

    Refining experience end-to-end

    Exploring new capabilities

    Improving ad revenue

  • icon

    Challenge

    Lack of dependable account support

    No access to new tech capabilities and avenues

    Limited Ad Revenue with previous partners and solutions

  • icon

    Solution

    Header Bidding to ensure right demand partners were bidding on the inventory

    Set up ActiveView Refresh Ads across ad units

    Implementation of Video ads

    Innovative ads to achieve a higher interaction rate

    Ensured AdX Capabilities, resulting in better deals

  • icon

    Result

    101% Overall Revenue uplift

    48% increase in RPM

    41% rise in Impressions

Customer Experience

Working with AdPushup has been a refreshing experience for the CWBChicago team. Not only has it enabled them to see tangible results in the form of significantly higher revenue, but it has also confirmed that choosing to partner with AdPushup was the right decision.

The team has been pleased with the overall arrangement and working style of AdPushup. No longer does the team have to worry about having to manage its ad operations and the outcomes. With AdPushup coming into the picture, exploring new areas, taking calculated risks with experimentations, and yet staying assured of positive outcomes, are some of the benefits that the team enjoys.

In particular, the kind of flexibility and accountability that the AdPushup team has displayed, is something that has made a major difference to the CWBChicago team and its business. Proactive updates, quick communications, and fast and seamless tweaks to meet ad
requirements, are some of AdPushup’s key attributes that have put the team’s mind at ease.

All in all, in collaboration with AdPushup, the team at CWBChicago has been able to transform its website monetization journey, and believes that there will be many more success stories to look forward to, in the times to come.

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