Prerequisites:

1. a product catalogue in XML, JSON, CSV, or API format
2. the DSP, SSP, or a recommendation system

Here is an example of the product catalog that we will be using in this tutorial. It has the product ID column, product description, product image, landing URL, etc.

Now, let’s create a BigTable connection for our product catalog. The BigTable is used when you have more than 100 products (it can even be used if you have 100 million products in your catalog).

Enter the product catalog URL (in our case, it will be the CSV file that is hosted on a website). Select CSV, refresh once per day (BannerNow will update all the product info daily). In the Advanced Settings, enter the Item Primary Key that matches the product ID column in your product catalog.

Our BigTable connection is now active, and it will automatically update the product data daily

Now, let’s create a Data Feed

Select BigTable as the source

Select the BigTable that we have just created

Select all the fields that will be used in the banner (like price, image, …)

Next, create a banner

Select a Bannerset

Select the Feed that we have just created

Next, bind all the items in your banner to the feed data

In this tutorial, we will be creating a banner that displays 2 different products.
For the first product, we will set Fixed Line to ON and the Row Number = 1

The same for the image, button, description and the landing URL:

And for the second product, simply set the Row Number = 2

Save the Banner and click Preview

In the Preview panel, you can input different product IDs to test the banner.
For example, entering 2,3 will load the products with ID 1 and ID 2 from the BigTable

Then click Publish

Next:

Select the Ad Network (in this tutorial, we’ll be using Google Ad Manager).
If you don’t need any Ad Network simply select the BannerNow from the Ad Networks list

In the Ad Tag generation panel, there is an additional input called Feed Items IDs where you can input the product IDs separated with the comma (,) or use the macros from the Ad Network.

For the Google Ad Manager, this macro will be %%PATTERN:key%% where the key can be replaced with the “product” if you’re targeting products or “segment” if you’re targeting a specific audience segment.
For another Ad Network, it will have a different format.

Next, copy/paste the Ad Tag in the Ad Network (DSP/SSP).
Here is a tutorial for the Google Ad Manager third-party Ad Tag publishing:

For the Google Ad Manager Unit, the setTargeting method needs to be added after addService():

googletag.defineSlot("/1234/adunit1/adunit2", [728, 90], "div-gpt-ad-123456789-0")
.addService(googletag.pubads())
.setTargeting("product", "5,8");

Obviously, the setTargeting method values should be dynamic (usually this is managed by the recommendation system), so simply update the Google Tag JavaScript code to use the product IDs from the recomendation system (or simply read the first-party cookies or the Local Storage where the product IDs that the user visited are stored).

Feel free to contact us if you you need any help with the retargeting setup.

Google Ad Manager step-by-step remarketing integration:

Here is a quick overview of how this feature works:

1. The user opens a website with the banner. The website (or the DSP/SSP platform on the website) loads the BannerNow Ad Tag and passes the segment this user belongs to.
   For example, &segment=age18-20 (where the segment value will be different for each website user).
   Basically, the website or DSP/SSP should know the segment the user belongs to before the banner starts rendering
2. Once banner is rendered using the additional Ad Tag parameter, it tries to search for the segment value match in the Feed connected to the banner.
3. If a match is found, it will display the data from the same feed/table row where the match was found.

Let’s create a Google Spreadsheet and use it as a data source for this tutorial.
The Age column will represent the Segment values

Next, click the Share button located in the top right corner.
Choose the Anyone with the link option to make your feed public, then click Done.
Now, this spreadsheet can be used as a feed data source in BannerNow.

Let’s return to BannerNow -> Data -> Feeds tab. Click Create new feed button.

Select the Google Spreadsheet option.

Next, copy/paste the spreadsheet URL (the link from Google Sheets), and enable the targeting option.

Choose the columns from the feed that you want to display in your ad.

In the Targeting tab, click Add New Rule.
Rule Type: INCLUDE
Rule match type: SEGMENT ( string, = )
Column from our table to match: age

Now it’s time to build a creative.

Select the Bannerset format.

In the pop-up modal, select the feed that we have just created and click Create.

After creating your design, you need to bind the feed data to the element values (images, texts, landing URLs).

To do this, select the text element and click on the feed icon to bind the text value to the feed data.

Select the column you want to display for a specific text element.
Also, select the Fixed Line option and set the Row Number = 1
This will ensure that if no match is found, it will take only the first row from our feed (which in our case is the default one).

Perform the same action for each dynamic element in the design.

Don’t forget to bind the Landing Page URL (Global settings) to the Landing URL from the Feed

Save your creative and click Publish.

Select the sizes you want to publish and click Next

Pick the Ad Network where the banner should be published.
If you just plan to use it on your website (without SSP/DSP), then select the BannerNow Ad Network

The Ad Tag is now generated for your banner.
Next, we need to add the &segment= to our Ad Tag:

Because the segment will be dynamically replaced for each end-user, we suggest you to use the Macros.
A Macro is a special string that can be easily replaced in the code with the real value.
For example, &segment=%%segment%% (where the %%segment%% is the string macro that will be replaced by the SSP/DSP or your website).
Each Ad Network has its own format for the segment macros, so please check the Ad Network documentation to find the right macros format.

If you plan to replace it with the code on your website, then just use the default %%segment%%

For example, the BannerNow Ad Tag will look like:

<script src="https://storage.bannernow.com/MVDq2PxpdlGOk5Axgea8ryZeQb7LWBwKgMqbFFb2Gk/embed.js?responsive=0&bnTag=&segment=%%segment%%" async></script>

And on your website, once the %%segment%% is replaced with the real value, it should look like this:

<script src="https://storage.bannernow.com/MVDq2PxpdlGOk5Axgea8ryZeQb7LWBwKgMqbFFb2Gk/embed.js?responsive=0&bnTag=&segment=age18-22" async></script>

or like this for another website end-user:

<script src="https://storage.bannernow.com/MVDq2PxpdlGOk5Axgea8ryZeQb7LWBwKgMqbFFb2Gk/embed.js?responsive=0&bnTag=&segment=age55-60" async></script>

To access the Analytics page, in the top menu click Analytics.

The first thing you’ll notice on this page is the summary of clicks, impressions, and CTR (click-through rate) information.

Below that, you’ll find a chart illustrating the performance of your ads within the selected date range. You can also view the analytics map, which indicates the countries where your ads have been viewed. This map provides valuable insights into the geographic reach of your campaigns.

Next to the analytics map, you’ll find information about how your ads perform across different devices, along with the corresponding CTR (click-through rate), impressions and rollovers.

The analytics pie chart provides a clear breakdown of the devices where your ads have been viewed.

Let’s generate an analytics report to access details regarding creatives, projects, decision trees, A/B tests, and every aspect of your campaign. Go to the Reports tab and click New Report.

With our customizable report, you have the power to tailor your analytics to suit your specific needs. Choose from a variety of analytics options including heatmaps, feeds, and decision trees. Additionally, you can select specific ad sizes from your creative set to include in your report.

Select specific schedules placeholder for your report, allowing you to track performance over specific time when the ads were displayed. Incorporate decision trees, to analyze the data-driven decisions.

Gain valuable insights by adding feeds. For example, if you have a feed with products, the report allows you to analyze which ads featuring specific products from your feed received the most clicks.
Below, you’ll find an option to schedule your report. By setting the frequency to “monthly,” you’ll receive an email with your report on a monthly basis.

Once your customized report is created, you will receive it directly in your email inbox. The report is conveniently packaged into a downloadable zip file, providing you with detailed analytics.

Here’s what you’ll find in your report:

Heatmap, allowing you to identify which areas of your ad are capturing the most attention;

Ad Performance: Detailed analysis of each banner, including impressions, clicks, click-through rates, and conversions. Understand which banners are performing best and optimize accordingly;

Date Range Analysis: Track performance over specific date ranges to identify trends and patterns in your ad campaigns;

Browser Analysis: Insight into the browsers your audience is using to view your ads;

Impressions: Get a clear picture of how many times your ads have been displayed across different platforms and devices;

Product Performance: See which products are getting the most attention from your ads;

Geographic Data: Understand where your audience is located geographically;

Domain: Track performance across different domains;

A/B Testing: A/B tests are created to compare the performance of different ad variations and determine which ones yield the best results;

Decision Trees: Utilize decision trees to understand the factors influencing ad performance and make data-driven decisions to optimize your campaigns.

and more…

*These dynamic images can be integrated with feeds, ensuring that any feed updates automatically re-render the image.

To publish a banner as a dynamic image and track impressions:

Open the Banner: Select the banner you wish to publish as an image and click the “Publish” button.

Choose the sizes you want to publish and click Next.

Select the Bannernow (Static Image) Ad network.

Choose the image format (JPG, PNG, or Auto/WEBP). Enable the retina option if you require a 2x image size.

After publishing, copy the provided image URL.

You can now use this image URL on any webpage or ad network. For instance, you might create an HTML page with an <img src= /> tag that references the dynamic image generated by BannerNow.

Let’s do a test and reload our web page a few times.

Reloading the webpage multiple times will load the dynamic image accordingly.

o verify impression tracking, access the Reporting dashboard in BannerNow. The report will display the exact number of impressions, corresponding to the number of times the dynamic image was loaded. For example, if you reload the page 7 times, the report should show 7 impressions.

This functionality allows for effective monitoring of your dynamic images performance across various platforms.

For example, let’s imagine that you need to create a banner with 2 buttons and specify the hyperlinks for these buttons directly from the AdTag.

First, let’s prepare the banner to accept the dynamic landing urls.

For the first button enable the Landing URL/Hyperlink and input window.BN.urlParamsDecoded.a1

Here, a1 serves as a dynamic param that we will pass later from the AdTag.

For the second button add window.BN.urlParamsDecoded.d2 Landing URL/Hyperlink

The “d2” will be the dynamic param that we will pass later from the AdTag.

In the AdTag settings, assign values to your parameters:

a1 = https://bannernow.com

d2 = https://example.com

With this setup, clicking the first button directs users to https://bannernow.com, while the second button leads to https://example.com.

The Hyperlink append params can be used to add additional URL query params to the banner Landing URL/Hyperlink.

xample:

• Base URL: https://example.com
• Appended Parameters: ?utm_campaign=mycampaign1&utm_source=mysource1
• Resulting URL: https://example.com?utm_campaign=mycampaign1&utm_source=mysource1

This method enables you to gather insights into your campaign’s effectiveness and identify the most successful channels.

For more detailed information on URL parameters and tracking, refer to Google’s support resources.

Select the sizes you want to publish and click Next

Select the Income Access Ad network.

Copy the Ad Tag (Embed Code).

*If you have multiple banner sizes copy the embed codes one by one for each size.

In the Income Access network Navigate to Marketing Tools → Media Tools → Create Media.

Fill in all the Media Fields:
a. Media Name
b. Language
c. Media Status -> Change to PUBLISHED
d. Width and Height (of the banner)
e. Merchant 
f. Campaign selection 
g. Media Type -> Select HTML5 
h. HTML code -> Input the ad tag from Bannernow
i. Tag – Leave blank, or tag if needed. (I.e. Sportsbook, etc.) 
j. Save to save media

Api Access should be enabled in your Google AdManager account settings:

Publish your schedule placeholders directly to Google Ad Manager using the Direct integration option.

Api Access should be enabled in your Google AdManager account settings:

Publish your out-of-page advanced banners (interstitial, sticky, pushdown, bestfit) directly to Google Ad Manager using the Direct integration option.

Api Access should be enabled in your Google AdManager account settings:

Publish your banners directly to Google Ad Manager using the Direct integration option

Create new banner(s) and click the “Publish” tab.

In the Publish modal you will see the banner sizes you’ve chosen to publish.

Click Next button to move to the next step.

Select the “Google Ad Manager/ Doubleclick For Publishers [DFP]” Ad network.

Copy the Ad Tag (Embed Code). If you have multiple banner sizes copy embed codes one by one for each size.

In Google Ad Manager go to Delivery->Creatives and click “New Creative”

Select Advertiser and click on “Third party” creative format

Select ad unit size that corresponds to your banner (ex 728×90).

Paste the Ad Tag (Embed Code) that you have copied from Bannernow.

When copying embed code – make sure that quotes ” ” are not modified (for example if you will send this embed code to somebody via email – email client can display quotes in different format “ ” which will cause problems with displaying your banner).

Click Save and preview your banner. If banner preview is not working it could be because of wrong quotes format (“ ” instead of ” “) in embed code or because of the Safe Frame.