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Learn moreProgrammatic advertising, explained for retailers
What programmatic is, what a DSP does, why DV360, and how it all works alongside Google Ads, Search and Shopping.
Understanding programmatic
What is programmatic advertising?
Programmatic advertising is the automated buying and selling of digital advertising inventory. Instead of manually purchasing advertising space from individual websites, advertisers use technology to evaluate opportunities and buy suitable impressions in real time.
The objective is not simply to buy more impressions. It is to buy the right impressions: the right audience, environment, creative, timing and price for the campaign objective.
Audience
who the advertiser wants to reach
Content
what the user is reading or watching
Geography
where the user is, or where a retail opportunity exists
Technology
device, browser, operating system and environment
Inventory
publisher, exchange, deal or media environment
Frequency
how often an audience should see an ad
Performance
how the campaign delivers against agreed KPIs
Concepts explained
DSP, DV360 and programmatic for retail — at a glance
Click a card to flip it.
What is a DSP?
A Demand-Side Platform is technology used by advertisers and agencies to buy digital inventory programmatically across publishers, exchanges, apps, video, connected TV and other channels.
What is a DSP?
- Build and activate audience strategies
- Buy inventory programmatically
- Apply audience, content, geo and tech targeting
- Manage budgets, bids and pacing
- Control frequency and exposure
- Select or exclude inventory sources
- Use programmatic deals and private inventory
- Measure and optimise performance
Why DV360?
Google's enterprise platform for programmatic media buying, bringing campaign management, audiences, creatives, inventory and insights into an integrated environment.
Why DV360?
- Multi-channel programmatic activation
- Advanced audience management
- Contextual and content targeting
- Geographic and proximity strategies
- Inventory-source and publisher controls
- Frequency and pacing management
- Deals and private marketplace opportunities
- Integration with Google Marketing Platform
Why programmatic for retail?
Retailers need to do more than capture customers who are already searching. Programmatic creates awareness and consideration before a customer searches for a product or brand.
Why programmatic for retail?
- Complements Search and Shopping
- Works with Social and CRM
- Connects performance marketing and brand building
- Extends the store beyond its local market
- Reconnects with interested users
Why retailers need a DSP
Reach customers before they search
A DSP can act as the technology layer between your advertising strategy and the large number of digital advertising opportunities in the market. Programmatic complements Search, Shopping, Social, CRM and other channels by moving customers through a broader journey.
The strategic opportunity is to connect performance marketing with brand building rather than treating them as separate activities.
Awareness
Consideration
Site / Store
Retargeting
Search
Conversion
Retention
Google Display & Video 360
Why choose DV360?
DV360 can support programmatic activity across Display, Video, YouTube, Connected TV, Audio, Mobile and Digital Out-of-Home environments, subject to market, inventory and product availability. It also supports open exchanges, preferred/direct deals and programmatic guaranteed arrangements.
The value is not access to one ad format. It is the ability to plan, activate, manage, optimise and measure multiple programmatic environments through a more unified workflow.
- Multi-channel programmatic activation
- Advanced audience management
- Contextual and content targeting
- Geographic and proximity strategies
- Inventory-source and publisher controls
- Frequency and pacing management
- Programmatic deals and private marketplace opportunities
- Cross-channel campaign management
- Campaign measurement and reporting
- Integration with the wider Google Marketing Platform ecosystem
Better together
DV360 vs Google Ads
Google Ads and DV360 are not simply competitors. They are different tools that can complement each other.
| Area | Google Ads | DV360 |
|---|---|---|
| Primary role | Capture demand and advertise across Google's advertising ecosystem | Advanced programmatic media buying and campaign management |
| Search | Core strength | Not the primary use case |
| Shopping | Core strength | Not the primary use case |
| Programmatic display | Available through relevant Google Ads solutions | Core capability |
| Open-web programmatic inventory | More limited depending on campaign type | Core programmatic capability |
| Publisher / inventory controls | Available but generally less extensive | More extensive programmatic controls |
| Programmatic deals | Not the primary workflow | Supports multiple programmatic buying approaches |
| CTV / video | Available through relevant Google solutions | Strong programmatic video / CTV workflow |
| Audio | Available in selected Google solutions | Programmatic audio capability |
| DOOH | Solution-dependent | Programmatic DOOH capability where supported |
| Audience strategy | Strong | Advanced programmatic audience management |
| Campaign structure | Generally simpler | More granular campaign, insertion-order and line-item structure |
| Best fit | Capturing existing demand and Google advertising objectives | Sophisticated cross-channel programmatic activation |
Product capabilities, inventory availability and targeting options can vary by market, account, inventory source and current Google product policies.
Already using Google Ads? Add DV360.
Google Ads can be excellent for capturing existing demand. A retailer can use Search and Shopping to reach customers already looking for products. DV360 adds another layer: creating awareness and influencing demand across the wider digital ecosystem before, during and after the search journey.
The stronger question is not “Google Ads or DV360?” but “How can Google Ads and programmatic advertising work together?”
Example customer journey
- A potential customer sees a retail brand through display or video.
- They become familiar with the brand or visit the website.
- They later see a relevant product or promotional message.
- They search for the brand or product on Google.
- Search or Shopping captures the existing purchase intent.
- They purchase online or visit a physical store.
Don't just sell products. Build a brand.
Turn your retail business into a recognised brand
Programmatic display advertising helps retailers build a consistent brand presence before a customer actively searches for a product. Your physical store may serve one local market while your e-commerce operation can serve a much wider audience — programmatic extends the visibility of the brand beyond the store and into the digital ecosystem.
FROM
Products + Store + Website
TO
Products + Experience + Recognition + Trust + Visibility
Example: a local retailer becomes a recognised brand
A retailer has five physical stores in the Netherlands and an e-commerce website. It relies mainly on Search, Shopping and social media and wants to grow both online sales and physical store visits.
Audience
Identify relevant consumers using appropriate audience signals.
Geography
Define store catchment areas and proximity strategies.
Display
Build awareness using suitable display inventory.
Video
Communicate the brand, product or promotional message.
Mobile
Reach audiences in mobile environments.
CTV
Extend the brand story into connected television.
DOOH
Reinforce the campaign around relevant physical locations.
Retargeting
Reconnect with users who have interacted with the brand.
Optimisation & Measurement
Shift investment to stronger audiences and environments, and evaluate against agreed KPIs.
Audience & targeting strategy
The right audience is at the heart of effective programmatic
We explain targeting in business language, not platform jargon. Targeting is both positive targeting and exclusion: focus investment on useful impressions and avoid what isn't relevant.
- In-market audiences
- Affinity audiences
- Custom audiences
- First-party audiences
- Remarketing
- Combined audiences
- Customer data
- Commerce-oriented audiences where available and appropriate
- Contextual targeting
- Keywords
- Content categories
- Topics
- Publisher environments
- Placement lists
- Video content
- Brand-suitability controls
- Whitelists and exclusion lists
- Age
- Gender
- Parental status
- Relevant household signals
- Countries
- Regions / provinces
- Cities
- Postal areas
- Local areas
- Store catchment areas
- Proximity and radius targeting
- Desktop
- Mobile
- Tablet
- Connected TV
- Browsers
- Operating systems
- App environments
- Positive targeting — focus investment on the audiences, locations and environments you want to reach
- Negative targeting — exclude audiences, inventory or environments that do not support the objective
- Granular control — apply targeting and optimisation at campaign, insertion-order or line-item level
Programmatic channels
One platform, many environments
Video
Online video, YouTube and premium video environments.
Learn moreConnected TV / OTT
Television-style storytelling with digital targeting and measurement.
Learn moreAudio
Reach audiences during screen-free moments.
Learn moreMobile
Mobile web and app environments.
Learn moreDOOH
Digital billboards, airports, transit, shopping and retail environments.
Learn moreProgrammatic deals also give access to selected publisher or premium inventory opportunities.
Brand safety & media quality
Where your advertising appears matters
We build campaigns with appropriate controls around publisher selection, inventory quality, content suitability, exclusions, frequency, viewability and placement quality.
- Publisher and inventory selection
- Whitelists / inclusion lists where appropriate
- Exclusion lists
- Content and brand-suitability controls
- App and placement exclusions where appropriate
- Frequency management
- Viewability considerations
- Fraud and media-quality considerations
Measurement beyond clicks
Judge a campaign by its business objective
- Impressions
- Reach
- Frequency
- Clicks & CTR
- Video completion
- Viewability
- Conversions
- CPA
- ROAS
- Revenue
- Engagement
- Store visits / footfall (where measurable)
- Audience performance
- Creative performance
- Geographic performance
- Inventory performance
The SAM programmatic advantage
We don't simply buy impressions. We build campaigns around business objectives.
StrategyAudienceInventoryCreativeActivationOptimisationMeasurementGrowth
Build your programmatic strategy
Your competitors are not only competing for today's customers — they are competing for tomorrow's too. Make your brand visible before customers start searching.