In-House Vs. Outsourced Ad Management

Robert Frost's "The Road Not Taken" made us think about choices and their impact on our lives. It emphasized the importance of decisions, setting us on paths we might not fully understand until much later.

Why the poetry you ask? This is because in the vast ocean of advertising, full of twists and turns, you as a publisher often find yourself at a crossroads: should I build my in-house ad management system or should I outsource one by partnering with a provider? The choice you make could shape the destiny of your business, much like choosing which path to take in Frost's poem.

You know, Henry Ford once said, "Stopping advertising to save money is like stopping your watch to save time." Classic Ford, always dropping truth bombs! But let's be real, finding the right advertising strategy to generate more revenue while keeping the advertisers and audience happy is also daunting. That’s why the common dilemma that publishers of every size face is to either build or buy the ad tech stack or combine both approaches.

This dilemma isn't just about cost-effectiveness; it's about finding the right balance between control, customization, and convenience because the choice made will directly influence your long-term revenue growth. So, let's unravel this dilemma together, examining the pros and cons of both approaches and making the right call for your business.

Building In-House Ad Management Solution

When you build from scratch, you have the freedom to customize every little detail to your heart's content. It's like being your own architect, designing a dream house where every nook and cranny is just how you imagined it. Plus, there's that sense of satisfaction knowing that you've built something entirely unique, tailored precisely to your needs.

Building ad management solutions from scratch also offers publishers the freedom of tailor-made functionality, unmatched customization, flexibility, and complete control over their ad operations. You can design a platform precisely to your specifications, ensuring every feature meets your unique needs and preferences. Additionally, owning the infrastructure provides you with complete ownership and control over your data, addressing concerns regarding privacy and security.

However, building your own software comes with challenges, including significant initial investments and ongoing maintenance demands. The main disadvantage is the potential drain on resources, whether that be time, money, or institutional energy. Let's break down it into the key points:

Pros of Building:

Customization: When you build your in-house ad management system, you can make it fit your needs perfectly. According to a study by McKinsey, 70% of businesses cite customization as a key reason for building in-house solutions, as it helps you to tailor every aspect of your ad management system to fit your unique needs, from user experience to compliance with local laws.
Independence & control: With an in-house system, you're in control of everything, especially when it comes to data privacy and security. This means less reliance on outside vendors, which is pretty important these days. Also, when you build something new from scratch, you have the final say on what the end product looks like giving you more independence and increasing data security plus operational control
Expertise development: By building your own system, you're not just buying a solution - you're investing in your team's skills. They'll become experts, and you will cultivate a team with deep ad tech knowledge, ensuring they understand your ecosystem inside out.
Scalability: Your business isn't static, so why should your ad system be? Building your solution allows seamless scalability, which means it can grow as your business does without any hiccups.
Strategic flexibility: If you spot a new opportunity, you can pivot your platform to take advantage of it. Having your technology gives you the freedom to adapt and innovate.
Differentiation: Building an in-house ad stack sets you apart from the crowd. It gives you a competitive edge, unlike using the same off-the-shelf products as everyone else in your industry. It's a chance to showcase what makes your business unique with a unique solution.

Cons of Building:

Cost: Building your ad management system can be very expensive, putting a dent in your wallet. According to Gartner, the average cost of developing custom software ranges from $75,000 to $500,000 per project. It really seems a big expense. Doesn’t it?
Time-consuming: Crafting a solid system from scratch takes time and resources. This can lead to delays in getting your system off the ground, messing with your plans to hit the market.
Resource drain: Building and maintaining your system demands a lot of time, talent, and money. It's a hefty commitment that can drain your resources.

Silver Lining -

There exists an escape from this maze of cost, time, and resources - outsourcing. Yes, you read it write. But, outsourcing here doesn’t mean outsourcing ad management (it defeats the purpose, right?). Outsource a platform that helps you build an in-house team.

Mile empowers you to manage your advertising in-house with increased control, efficiency, and scalability. You can build and own your own programmatic setup, gaining full control over your ad tech stack and decision-making.

We simplify this process by offering streamlined tools, dedicated support, and advanced features like real-time analytics, AI-powered optimization, and multi-variate testing. It allows you to nurture direct demand relationships, improve visitor addressability, and optimize revenue while saving time and resources on development. Ultimately, the platform promises to guide you towards building a robust and scalable in-house ad stack without the need for lengthy development projects.

Outsourcing the Ad Management Solution

In the fast-paced world of ad monetization, outsourcing a pre-built ad management solution can be a game-changer for publishers.

Choosing to outsource a pre-built ad management solution offers convenience and helps to speed up time-to-market. With plenty of options available, you can pick a solution that fits your needs and budget without having to start from scratch.

Managed platforms come with a range of features and functionalities that have been refined over time through user feedback. These solutions often offer advanced analytics and optimization algorithms, using large amounts of data to improve campaign performance. Research from Gartner shows that 78% of companies that opted to outsource ad management solutions experienced faster implementation times.

This allowed them to speed up their advertising campaigns and adapt more quickly to market changes. By leveraging the expertise of dedicated ad management providers, you can access cutting-edge technology without the hassle of development and maintenance. It is much like having a team of expert chefs to fine-tune your recipes for success.

Pros of outsourcing:

Speed & time to market: Buying the ad management solution offers quick deployment, enabling businesses to launch ad campaigns rapidly. According to Forrester, 60% of companies prioritize speed to market when considering pre-built solutions. This is because a software solution from scratch will always be slower than buying one meeting your ad goals faster by reducing the time to market.
Cost-effectiveness: While there are initial licensing or subscription fees, pre-built solutions often prove more cost-effective in the long run compared to in-house development. Purchasing a solution eliminates the need for continuous development costs and you won't need to keep shelling out money for maintenance and development.
Expert support: In-house software requires team support to keep it maintained and updated and this responsibility again falls on the shoulders of your internal team. Buying will help you to shift this task to a partner who can focus on it full time giving the desired results. As most vendors provide dedicated support and maintenance services, it relieves you and your team of the burden of technical stuff.
Ease of implementation: These third-party vendors have smooth setup processes which provide ease of implementation. This means you can start analyzing revenue across multiple streams in no time.
All-in-one solution: Some of these buying solutions combine various features into one, saving your money and streamlining operations. This will help you to replace multiple vendors with a single solution combined with various features that are important to meet your ad goals.
Constant customization, innovation, and updates: The buying solutions allow you to create unlimited custom variants, features, alerts, and dashboards and provide regular updates to keep things fresh. Dedicated teams are always working to improve the platform based on client needs and new trends.

Cons of outsourcing:

Limited customization: Flexibility is the biggest hurdle of outsourcing as these solutions might not be flexible enough to meet all your unique business needs. While customization is possible to some extent, there are limits, and you may have to compromise on desired features or adjust your business processes.
Vendor reliance: You have to depend on the vendor's roadmap for updates and features that don't always align with your business needs. Sometimes compromises become crucial while purchasing such solutions.
Data security concerns: Entrusting sensitive data to third-party vendors raises worries about data privacy and security breaches. It then becomes indispensable to check if the vendor adheres to GDPR and local privacy regulations to protect your data integrity. It is also important to check the vendor's track record for uptime and support responsiveness to avoid potential service disruptions.
Integration and compatibility: Getting the solution to work smoothly with your current systems might take some effort. It sometimes becomes quite a tedious task but good expertise can also take you there in no time.
Cost: Last but not the least is the cost involved. Buying software can eat up a big chunk of your budget as you rely on someone else's products in a subscription-based software world.

We are different (literally)-

First, unlike most outsourced platforms, we believe in flat fee. We don’t just focus on increasing your revenue, but your revenue profit - the actual money you save after all platforms take their cut.

Mile, a Google Certified Publishing Partner, offers an ad management platform designed specifically for publishers. It promises a one-stop solution to maximize ad revenue while minimizing costs and preserving user experience. By offering access to high-quality, multi-format ads, leveraging global partnerships, and utilizing advanced AI technology, we aim to streamline ad operations, automate tasks, and provide dedicated support. This allows you to focus on your core business while achieving superior return on investment through a flat fee model.

With features like real-time analytics, A/B testing, and white-glove support, Mile positions itself as a comprehensive solution for publishers seeking to optimize their advertising strategy and boost their bottom line.

Striking the Right Balance

Ultimately, the decision between in-house vs outsource depends on a multitude of factors, including budget, timeline, and organizational priorities. While building offers unparalleled customization and ownership, it requires significant upfront investment and ongoing maintenance. Buying, on the other hand, provides convenience and expertise but may entail higher long-term costs.

For many businesses, the optimal approach lies somewhere in between leveraging pre-built solutions for core functionalities while customizing certain aspects to align with specific requirements. This hybrid model allows organizations to strike a balance between flexibility and efficiency, maximizing the value of their ad management investments.

In any case, count us in, and you are just a call away from the best setup for you business.