vol.1 What is AdMob?: Features and benefits of AdMob

Basic edition

Vol.1 Features and benefits of AdMob

Practice edition

Vol.2 How can we implement and deliver AdMob
Vol.3 How can we create a report of AdMob
Vol.4 What is a mediation group and why should we use it?
Vol.5 How can we create mediation groups
Vol.6 What is AdMob OpenBidding and how can we use it?

Development edition

Vol.7 How can we implement and optimize Adaptive banners?
Vol.8 How can we implement and optimize Rewarded interstitials?

Advanced Edition

Vol.9 Where should ad units be displayed?
Vol.10 AdMob optimization through firebase integration

We have also made an ebook, explaining how to register for AdMob. You can download it from the link below.
Before beginning, let me explain about monetization through in-app advertising, because it is necessary to understand AdMob. (If you already know, you can skip this section!)

2.AdMob is a control tower of advertisement

You know that ads ensure that your app is monetized, but do you know how it works? Advertisers pay for impressions, in a bid to drive awareness and interest of users using your app. These advertising costs are paid to app developers that match the desired advertising inventory (advertising spaces on the app) and desired audience/users.

Here, there are 2 important points to take note of:
1. What determines the advertising value is the user attributes X number of users.
2. If you cannot find any advertisers, you won’t be able to get advertising revenue.

In short, there are two steps to deliver ads and get revenue:
1. App developers need to create apps that attract many users.
2. App developers need to find advertisers to deliver ads.

Therefore, these are methods of delivering in-app ads.

1. Receive fee and ad creative directly from advertisers
2. Receive fee and ad creative through an ad delivery system

It is difficult for app developers to find advertisers directly so what they can do to generate sufficient revenue is through the use of ad delivery systems.

An ad delivery system mainly consists of:
・Dashboard that shows performance of ad delivery ・An SDK, which is the system that actually delivers advertisements

Let’s talk about SDK, an abbreviation for Software Development Kit. This time, I will explain the delivery function of the SDK. In addition to AdMob (Google), which is the subject of this series, other ad delivery systems include MAX (AppLovin), ironSource (ironSource Mobile), Facebook Audience Network (Meta). These also deliver advertisements by combining dashboard and SDK.

This is a typical flow of an in-app ad delivery:
1. The process begins when the property with the ad unit is loaded. This will send a request to the server side: “Prepare to display ads!”
2. Receive information of the advertisement specified on your ad server and send a request: “Please give me the advertisement of this number,” to the advertiser’s ad server where the advertisement is stored.
3. Display the ad creative returned from the ad server on the page in the app

Advertisement delivery SDK = Order of displaying ads + actual displaying of ads Remember that there are these two roles.
However, it doesn’t mean that ads can be delivered if just the SDK is included.
It is necessary to install the SDK, register for the corresponding service, and open the dashboard.
The specific work procedure in this area will be explained in detail in “Vol.3 Flow and Precautions for AdMob Delivery”.

So far, we’ve given a brief overview of how to monetize apps and how ads are delivered.
From here, I will explain what the service called AdMob is like.

AdMob is a mobile application distribution platform provided by Google.
Originally, it was a service provided by AdMob, which was founded in California, USA, but the company was acquired by Google in 2009.

Google is also developing Google Adsense, Google AdExchange, etc., which are delivery platforms for the web, but AdMob is a distribution platform dedicated to mobile applications. On the other hand, AdSense can be delivered both on the web and in-app. AdExchange is limited to the Web, but it delivers higher-priced, higher-quality ads than Adsense.

3.Strength of AdMob

Let’s get back to the main topic!

AdMob is roughly divided into two parts: SDK and dashboard.
On the AdMob dashboard, users can issue, manage, and create reports for their inventory, AdMob will deliver the actual advertisement through the SDK implemented in the app.
As such, AdMob has three USPs: “easy,” “high profit,” and “multifunctional”.
I will explain each of them.

If you can’t wait until then, please contact us.

Apart from providing you with our AnyManager platform, we can also provide technical support for AdMob implementation and work directly with Google as a GCCP (Google Certified Publishing Partner).
If you have any problems implementing the AdMob SDK, please feel free to contact us.

First, let’s talk about “easy.”
AdMob has an easy-to-understand dashboard that can be operated with a click, allowing you to intuitively manage everything from setting ad units to checking and analyzing revenue.
In addition, the SDK is easy to implement as the official documentation is well prepared. For more information on SDK implementation and how to use the dashboard, please refer to “Vol. 2 Flow of AdMob Delivery and Precautions” and “Vol. 3 How to View the AdMob dashboard”

Next, AdMob is a “high-profit” ad serving platform.
As I wrote above, Google has a huge ad delivery network that spans from web to apps.
Remember that it is necessary to have interested advertisers, in order to serve your ad.
Google has an inventory of ads placed by a large number of advertisers around the world. (Google Ads) And it is possible to deliver the best advertisement from the overwhelming scale of options.
AdMob is connected to Google’s large global advertiser network. As a result, Google has high-priced ad inventory, and it is possible to increase the profits gained from an application.

Finally, I’ll explain about “multifunctional.”
Since AdMob is a platform dedicated to apps, it has a dedicated format and functions so as not to impair the experience of using the app.
This time, we will introduce two of the unique functions to the app.

Rewarded Video Ads: One of the ad formats, as of July 2020, it is only used in Apps. This is a format often implemented in manga apps and casual games. When the message “Watch the video and read the next story for free” or “Watch the video and continue for free” appears, users tap the button to watch the advertising video. You may have had such an experience, and that’s exactly what rewarded video ads are. The difference from other ads is that users see the ads on their own accord.

Developers get advertising revenue, and users can enjoy the app experience without paying. You can build a win-win relationship by using advertising as a monetization function to enable users to enjoy the app even more.
Rewarded video ads are a highly profitable format, but they have also been reported to have the effect of increasing user app usage.
Details will be explained in the next “What can be achieved with Vol.2 AdMob”.

Smart segmentation – there may also be users who think like this: “It’s good for non-paying users, but I can’t stand advertising to those who have paid for it.” AdMob’s “smart segmentation” function addresses such concerns.
Smart segmentation is a feature that can be used by linking with Firebase.
With AdMob, you can use Google’s machine learning algorithm features. This allows your app to catch users who don’t charge and show ads only to those users. With this feature, developers will be able to display ads with greater peace of mind. Details will be explained in the final article in this series “Vol.10 AdMob and Firebase Linkage.”

4.Conclusion

So far, I have explained about

・ How to monetize ads: Find advertisers or use ad networks
・ Role of advertisement distribution SDK: Command tower until advertisement is displayed
・ AdMob features: “Easy”, “Highly profitable” and “Multifunctional” ad distribution platform.

From next time, I will be explaining about

Process until delivery starts with AdMob
How to register for AdMob
How to implement AdMob SDK
Notes on AdMob implementation
For those who have made inquiries, you will be able to consult with the author of this article directly. Please let us know your concerns about application development and problems with application management!

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