Ads.txt (short for Authorized Digital Sellers) is a txt file, which was initially introduced by the IAB to tackle the issue of fraudulent activities in the world of programmatic advertising. In a nutshell, ads.txt allows online publishers to publicly list authorized partners who have the right to sell publishers’ inventory. Being available to advertisers, third-party sellers, and ad exchanges, ads.txt brings more transparency and credibility to the inventory supply chain and gives publishers control over their inventory.
There is absolutely no doubt that with the advent of this method, it became much harder for shifty actors to benefit from selling counterfeit inventory across the Internet. By adopting ads.txt, publishers let potential buyers single out the Authorized Digital Sellers in the text file, which brings clarity to the process of buying authentic publisher’s inventory. Definitely, it is a win-win situation for both buyers and sellers.
What Problem Ads.txt Solves
When an advertiser buys inventory programmatically, they anticipate that the URLs they acquire were rightfully sold by the publishers. The issue is that at the present moment there is no way for an advertiser to check who is responsible for selling inventory across ad exchanges. Despite the information available in the OpenRTB protocol (such as the URL and Publisher.ID), it is impossible to see who owns each Publisher.ID. This opens the door to phonies ready to sell counterfeit inventory, willing to trade inadmissible, non-human traffic by mixing it up with the authentic one.
Is It Necessary to Have Ads.txt on Your Website?
The answer is no. However, it is strongly recommended as ads.txt helps you avoid losing buyers who work only with sellers having the ads.txt on their sites. Ads.txt presence on your site adds up to your credibility making advertisers and ad agencies want to work with you.
How Not to Lose Profit After Adding Ads.txt to Your Site
Make sure that your ads.txt file doesn’t contain any orthographic and/or factual mistakes. It is important to double check all commas and references; even a little mistake can lead to big consequences. After putting together your ads.txt file don’t forget to verify it on adstxtvalidator.
If you are one of our publishers you don’t have to worry. Impactify offers publishers help with the creation of an ads.txt file directly on the platform. Upon the registration, we will provide you with a piece of code that will automatically update your ads.txt file without the need to bother with formatting or updating it.
How to Set Up Ads.txt on Your Site?
Do you want to put together ads.txt yourself or maybe you wish to get more information first? Then check out our dedicated category to find out more useful information about ads.txt. There you will find detailed guidelines on how to set and put the file up at the root of your domain.
If you still have questions regarding setting up ads.txt on your site do not hesitate to contact us via email. We will gladly help you troubleshoot all issues with ads.txt.
