Big Advertising Muddle Explained: DSP vs SSP

You are a marketing manager tasked with driving an online advertising campaign. Your goal is clear: reach the right audience, at the right time, with the right message. But as you start reading more about programmatic advertising, you are confronted with a choice that leaves you scratching your head: DSP vs SSP – which one do you need? Or perhaps you need both?

DSP vs SSP: What Do You Need?

Let’s say you represent a brand looking to place your ads across a variety of websites and digital platforms. You want maximum reach, efficient spending, and detailed targeting. In this scenario, you may find DSP (Demand-Side Platform) the most appropriate for reaching your goal. 

A DSP gives you the ability to automate the purchasing of ad space in real-time, bidding on impressions that go hand in hand with your audience profile.  In this case, a DSP is your way to reaching consumers efficiently.

On the flip side, if you are a publisher trying to sell your ad space to the highest bidder, you need an SSP (Supply-Side Platform). The SSP helps you maximize the value of your inventory by connecting it with multiple ad exchanges. 

Thanks to SSP each impression is sold at the best possible price. In short, think of an SSP as your tool for managing and optimizing the revenue from your available digital ad space. 

DSP and SSP Work in Tandem

In a way, both the DSP and SSP work in tandem within the ecosystem of programmatic advertising. One facilitates the buying process, while the other optimizes selling. 

Together, the DSP and SSP create a complete system: one helps you advertise, and the other helps you make money from your website. 

When You Need Both: How DSP and SSP Work Together

Let’s paint another picture. This time you are running an online store, and you want to advertise your products to reach more customers. At the same time, you have a popular blog on your website where you want to sell ad space to make extra money. 

In this case, you would need both a DSP and an SSP. Why? Just look at how they work together: 

DSP (Demand-Side Platform)

You’re running a campaign to promote a new line of sneakers from your online store. You use a DSP to help with this. You set a budget of $5,000 and target an audience of 18- to 35-year-olds who are interested in fitness and fashion. 

DSP scans thousands of websites and apps, identifying the best ad spaces where your target audience is likely to be browsing. 

SSP (Supply-Side Platform)

You also run a popular blog on your sneaker website that gets a lot of traffic. You want to make extra money by selling ad space on your blog. With the SSP, you list your blog’s available ad spaces. 

The SSP connects your blog with advertisers looking to reach your audience. For example, an athletic apparel brand might want to place ads on your blog because they know your readers are interested in sneakers and fitness. The SSP automatically puts your ad spaces up for auction, attracting bids from various advertisers using DSPs.

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