[Legacy Integration] Google Ad Manager Integration: Overview

The LiveIntent integration with Google Ad Manager (GAM), formerly known as DoubleClick for Publishers (DFP), gives publishers the ability to manage their inventory and traffic direct-sold campaigns via the Google Ad Manager platform. Understanding that our clients’ teams do not have the time to learn the multitude of platforms within the industry, this integration was built to save your team’s time. Currently, our integration is in its final form with no additional features planned or being built.

Our GAM integration is a trafficking-only integration. It’s important to note the limitations between what a publisher can do within GAM as opposed to what can be done within the LiveIntent platform. A key distinction being the ability to utilize the campaign efficiency and optimization tools and strategies provided by the LiveIntent platform.

Above all else, there needs to be a one-to-one sync between the capabilities of Google Ad Manager and the LiveIntent platform. This means that any capabilities selected within Google Ad Manager need to have an equivalent capability within the LiveIntent platform, or the sync will fail.

LiveIntent	Google Ad Manager
Single ad serving fee	Double ad serving fee (Google and LiveIntent)
Full suite of optimizations available	Trafficking only integration (reporting will need to be from LiveIntent and cannot be pulled from within GAM)
Launch and any changes take 45 minutes for go live (XML update)	Less frequent sync times – depending on the volume of sync
Edits can be made with reliance	Edits directly within GAM – unreliable
Many available campaign types	Standard and sponsorship campaign setups
Impression, click, CPA, goals	Can only push towards an impression delivery goal
Conversion tracking supported	No conversion tracking supported
Ability to utilize Custom Audiences (uploaded hash list)	No Custom Audiences capability
Ability to append two third party trackers	Ability to append one third party tracker
Forecasting available	No forecasting available within GAM platform
Ability to use bundled newsletters or ad slots	No ability to use bundled newsletters or ad slots
Error messaging available	Reliance on syncing – with no error messaging
No reliance on an OMS	When working with an OMS – no edits can be made from the OMS once initially synced
Sponsorship priority levels can be utilized	Priority levels cannot be utilized. The preset priority for sponsorship and standard must be used

Google Ad Manager Sync Time

Demand syncs take around one hour depending on the volume being synced.
Supply (Inventory) syncs take 24 hours after the activation of our LiveTags. This activation is our internal QA process in where a newsletter is sent to activate@liveintentseed.com to ensure the correct placement of our LiveTags. These LiveTags are what house the creative within your newsletter.

Common Sync Errors (Tips and Tricks)

Order/Line Item Information:

Do not implement discount option.
Do not adjust delivery options toggles.
Leave comments section at line item level blank so that successful syncs and error messaging will show. Note: error messaging is very limited in GAM.
Standard line item type must have a price to sync.
Targeting: Only Inventory and Custom Targeting can be used.
Capabilities not selected within LiveIntent that are selected within Google Ad Manager will cause a sync failure.

Date Range:

Make sure dates matchup across order, line item, creative dates.
Make sure to select a current or future date.
Line items within GAM can start and end at specific times of the day (this is now a capability within our platform).

Creatives/Creative Links:

The only creative type that is supported is Type: Image
Creative sizing: make sure the creative matches the ad unit selected (inventory)
Make sure all click-through URLs and third-party trackers with a CACHEBUSTER are swapped out with our acceptable LiveIntent macro of ${DECISION_ID}.
When replacing a third-party tracker timestamp or CACHEBUSTER with LiveIntent’s $(DECISION_ID) macro, you must replace the timestamp or CACHEBUSTER and immediately save the creative. If you do not, the LiveIntent macro will not hold.
The display creatives option is not supported.
Ensure that the correct size creative units are uploaded into GAM. If incorrect sizes are uploaded, they will sync with ad slots but not match the ad slot’s size settings. This will result in a campaign or line item not serving as intended.
Ensure creatives abide by LiveIntent’s creative formatting requirements
Within the ‘Expected Creatives’ section at the line item level ONLY implement the creative sizes you plan on using.
When using 3rd party trackers implement with a secure URL (https)
Any creative adjustments to a synced line item will require re-trafficking the initiative in a new line item.
There are two options for adjusting creative already synced to a line item:

Pause the line item with the creative you want to change or do not want to run and reach out to LiveIntent to manually traffic the initiative in the LiveIntent platform.
Pause the line item with the creative you want to change or do not want to run. Then re-traffic the line item entirely in GAM.

Naming Conventions:

Do not change any of the inventory names within GAM directly. Any changes made to naming conventions must be made in the LiveIntent platform first to then sync over to GAM. Otherwise, there will be sync errors.
All naming conventions have a 120 character limit. If any of the naming conventions go over this limit, there will be syncing errors.

Additional Limitations:

There is no ability to define specific CPM rate for sponsorship campaigns, everything syncs over at $1 CPM.
There is no ability to set-up multiple line items under the same campaign for reporting structure purposes.
Changing line item and creative flight dates once a line item or creative has been booked can cause sync issues.

For more info on the LiveIntent GAM Integration please see the following:

Google Ad Manager Integration: Setup Instructions

Google Ad Manager – Troubleshooting Tips & Pointers