Here comes another review about an Ad network that nobody really knows.
I found Optad360 in the list of publishing partners and I thought that it would be a good idea to reach out and see if one of my sites qualified.
My site got accepted and at the moment of writing this post, one of my sites is running Optad360 ads along with Adsense and Ad.Plus Ad units.
These are my honest thoughts about using Optad360
Table of Contents
Optad360: Certified Publishing Partner
Optad360 is a certified publishing partner so you will find them listed along with other big ad management companies such as Ezoic, Mediavine, and AdThrive.
I don’t think that they aren’t as big as other big players but at least you can trust them.
Google seems to trust them.
Optad360: Their Presence
Optad360 is never part of any make money with display ads conversation.
Nobody is really talking about them or recommending them.
They have an active Facebook page that makes me think that they really want to start making a name for themselves.
When it comes to Twitter, some people were talking about Optad360 but it seems that they have an official Twitter account.
If you search for Optad360 on YouTube, you will that they don’t have a YouTube channel. It seems that they haven’t been invited into any podcast either.
If you search for Optad360 reviews on Reddit, you won’t hear much about them either.
If you use LinkedIn, You can find that they have a presence on that platform.
Onboarding Process
I filled out the form on the Optad360 site and I was contacted on July 21, 2022.
Since I am from Costa Rica, I was approached by an Optad360 publisher manager from Latinoamerica
I was told to send them some Google Analytics reports and I got a confirmation that my site had been approved on August 11, 2022.
I was sort of busy and kind of discouraged by other Ad networks so I started the process to show Optad360 ads on my site until September 2, 2022.
By September 6, 2022, I had accepted the Optad360 Google Ad Manager request and I also had added the scripts to my site and some data to my Ads.txt file.
I heard back from Optad360 again from the publisher service manager until September 13, 2022, and then she contacted me again on September 19, 2022.
I indicated that my site was ready to show ads as soon as they wanted.
I don’t know if every publisher gets the same level of service I got but emails every three to seven days would make lots of people not want to move with the process.
I woke up on September 20, 2022, and I checked my site and I could see that my site was showing Optad360 ads.
They use a technology called AdMapper so their ads detect my Adsense setup and place ads where there aren’t other ad units around.
Using Optad360: Initial Thoughts
I like a few things about Optad360 despite using them for a few hours:
- Their ads refresh.
- They use AI to place their ads.
- Optad360 ads work well with other ad networks
- Their integration process isn’t difficult, every ad network out there requires pretty much the same.
- Their ads are inserted from their end so you don’t need a plugin or learn how to manage some online software.
- They have inview ads, similar to what Mediavine does to improve ad viewability.
- From what I see, Optad360 lazy loads their ads so they are displayed when they are about to be seen.
- No major impact on my site speed.
The things that they should definitely improve:
- Provide access to a dashboard before or as soon as your site starts showing Optad360 ads. Publishers want to see how much they are earning, impressions, and other relevant stats.
- Communication should be better. Emails should be answered in 24 hours, not 7 days later.
- They should have more documentation about their processes and what to expect. You are pretty much left in the dark after the integration is over.
Optad360 Review: First Week
These are my thoughts after a week of having Optad360 ads on my site.
- I got an email from my account manager 8 days later. She might be pretty busy.
- If you don’t want Optad360 ads, you can remove their code from certain categories of your site and ads won’t show on those.
- There is no Optad360 dashboard, you check how much money you are making using a link that they provide. (API)
- Since they place the ads and all you have to do is sit and wait for the money to be deposited into your bank account, there is not much to learn or analyze. Optad360 is not freaking Ezoic.
- If you make a minimum of $50 by the end of the month, you will get paid 30 days later (That’s what every ad company out there does)
- You can get paid via Transferwise, Paypal, Payoneer, or Wire Transfer.
- Based on my experience, it seems that Optad360 ads are placed every 2 or 3 paragraphs.
- Optad360 ads reserve the space where an ad will be shown, sometimes you get a blank spot and no ad is shown.
- I don’t know what you can request from Optad360 in terms of ad placements.
- I am happy with the additional earnings. I am making around 15% more from sections of my blog posts that were not being monetized.
Optad360 Review: First Month
These are my thoughts after five weeks of having Optad360 ads on my site.
- Optad360 ads are inserted after every two or three paragraphs and that makes the mobile version of my site look really spammy.
- The ads after every two or three paragraphs don’t affect the user experience on Desktop devices.
- I got my September Earnings Payment via Paypal and this is proof of it.
- I haven’t had any issues with Optad360. I will keep using them so I can get a few extra dollars a day.
- I place Adsense ads above the fold and below the fold, not beyond paragraph 30, and Optad360 places ads on unmonetized areas of my content.
