Direct sold
also called Direct dealDefinition
Inventory sold by the publisher straight to an advertiser, without a network or exchange in between.
Why it matters if you sell your own ads
Direct deals earn substantially more per impression than programmatic, and they build a relationship you own. A publisher with fifty direct advertisers has an asset; a publisher with a network tag has a traffic source.
How a direct deal works
The publisher and the advertiser agree the placement, the dates and the price between themselves. Traditionally that meant emails, an insertion order and an invoice. Now it can be a booking the advertiser makes in the publisher's own portal. Either way, no network sits in the middle taking a share or deciding the price.
Direct and programmatic, side by side
- Price. Direct: you set it. Programmatic: an auction sets it.
- Relationship. Direct: the advertiser knows you and can renew. Programmatic: the buyer may never know whose site it was.
- Effort. Direct: someone has to sell. Programmatic: it fills without you.
- Fill. Direct: only what you have sold. Programmatic: much of what is left.
Most publishers who sell direct keep a network underneath for the impressions they have not sold. Check your network's rules first: Google's AdSense allows non-Google ads on the same page, and some other networks require exclusivity.
Where direct buyers come from
- People who have already asked about advertising. Search your inbox for "advertis" and "sponsor".
- Companies already advertising on sites like yours.
- Businesses your readers already buy from, and the suppliers in your niche.
The first ten are usually closer than they look. Finding your first ten advertisers goes through each source.
How to price it
Start from what the placement earns today and sell above it. Flat weekly or monthly rates are easiest for small buyers; CPM suits advertisers who compare you with other media. The rate card and floor price entries go through the numbers.
How Pyrobid handles it
Pyrobid is built for selling direct. Advertisers book and pay in your branded portal, you keep all of what they pay with no revenue share, and whatever you have not sold goes to your fallback: the ad code you ran before, your own image, or an Advertise Here card that brings in the next buyer.
Common questions
Do I need a lot of traffic to sell direct?
Less than you might think. A direct buyer cares who reads you, and a small audience in a narrow subject is hard for a relevant advertiser to reach any other way.
Is direct-sold better than AdSense?
They do different jobs. You set the price on a direct deal, and AdSense fills what you have not sold. Most publishers use both.
How do I get paid for a direct deal?
However you and the advertiser agree. In a self-serve portal the advertiser pays into a balance first, so there is nothing to chase.
Related terms
Put a floor price on your own inventory
Your advertisers sign up on your own branded portal, fund an account and bid above your floor. You keep one hundred percent, and your existing ads stay on as the fallback.
Start free trial14 days free. Your existing ads keep running. Cancel anytime.