What is a DSP?
A demand side platform (DSP) is advertising technology that lets advertisers run ad campaigns across thousands of publishers and media sources from one interface. DSPs act as automated intermediaries between advertisers or agencies and inventory sellers, negotiating the price and frequency of ad placements based on advertiser-defined parameters.
Programmatic DSP platforms grew out of real-time bidding (RTB), which streamlined and accelerated ad placement. On the other side of that same transaction sits the supply-side platform (SSP), which lets publishers automatically sell their ad inventory. Most marketers use multiple DSPs to maximize reach and run incrementality tests to avoid over-saturating their audience.
A common point of confusion is what it means to be a "DSP ad network." A DSP and an ad network actually sit on opposite sides of the programmatic ecosystem. A DSP is where advertisers buy ad space. An ad network, by contrast, is a supply-side collection of inventory for publishers to sell.
How does a DSP work?
A demand side platform consists of several elements working together:
- User interface: The dashboard where advertisers set campaign parameters like targeting, placement, and frequency capping.
- User profile database: Information about the end users viewing ads, like which ads they've seen or when.
- Reporting database: Stores campaign data for later aggregation into reports.
- Campaign tracker: Records campaign performance, including clickthrough rate, impressions, and win rate.
- Ad server: DSP ad tech that stores the ad creative itself and displays it to the end user, regardless of type.
- Bidder: Stores each advertiser's campaign parameters and facilitates bidding during RTB auctions; DSPs typically run bidders in several server locations to minimize bid latency.
- Integrations: How DSPs, SSPs, ad exchanges, and data management platforms (DMPs) communicate and work together.
Types of DSPs
Three real DSP models exist, each with a different tradeoff:
Beyond these three models, DSPs can also specialize by channel. A mobile DSP, for instance, focuses specifically on buying ad space on mobile devices. If in-app programmatic advertising is part of your strategy, make sure your DSP has a proven track record with mobile inventory specifically, not just desktop or general display.
Choosing the right DSP model
Choosing between self-serve, managed-service, and white label often comes down to how much time and expertise your team can dedicate to running campaigns directly, worth revisiting the comparison above before committing to one model. Whichever you choose, you'll eventually need to connect with the supply side of the transaction.
To see how a real programmatic exchange fits into that ecosystem, explore Unity's own Programmatic Solutions.
Frequently asked questions (FAQ)
How is a DSP different from an ad mediation platform?
A DSP is used by advertisers to buy ad inventory across publishers. A mediation platform sits on the publisher side, helping a single app manage bids from multiple ad networks and DSPs at once. They solve different problems for different sides of the same transaction.
How long does it take to launch a campaign on a new DSP?
It varies by model. Self-serve platforms can go live in days once creative and targeting are set up. Managed-service DSPs often take longer upfront, since onboarding involves account setup and strategy alignment with the DSP's own team, but require less hands-on work once running.
Do I need a DSP if I'm a small advertiser?
Not necessarily. Many DSPs have minimum spend requirements that price out small advertisers. A managed-service DSP or a simpler ad network may be a better fit until spend justifies a dedicated DSP relationship.
Can a company be both a DSP and an SSP?
Some large ad-tech companies do operate on both sides of the ecosystem, but a single product is still either buying inventory (DSP) or selling it (SSP), not both at once for the same transaction.