Programmatic Advertising Course Syllabus

Build a strong foundation before going deep into advanced topics

• Evolution of programmatic advertising and its role in the media ecosystem.
• Understanding the programmatic supply chain (DSPs, SSPs, Ad Exchanges, Ad Servers).
• Advanced buying methods – Open Auction, Private Marketplace (PMP), Programmatic Guaranteed (PG).
• Real-Time Bidding (RTB) mechanics and how bids are won.
• Key metrics & benchmarks for display, video, audio, and CTV.
• The role of data – First-party, second-party, third-party, and contextual targeting.

Master the most widely used Demand-Side Platform

• Detailed DV360 interface walkthrough.
• Creating advertisers, campaigns, insertion orders, and line items.
• Inventory planning tools & availability forecasts.
• Setting up targeting at the campaign, IO, and line-item levels.
• Creative formats in DV360 (Display, Video, YouTube, Audio, Native).
• Integration with Campaign Manager 360 and YouTube.
• Using DV360’s automated bid strategies for performance.
• Troubleshooting delivery and performance issues.

Get access to premium inventory and negotiate like a pro

• Identifying and negotiating Private Marketplace deals.
• Setting up and activating Deal IDs in DV360.
• Programmatic Guaranteed workflows and best practices.
• Optimizing deal performance for reach and viewability.
• Troubleshooting common PMP & PG delivery issues.

Data-driven targeting for precision and scale

• Building custom audience segments using DV360 Audience Builder.
• Leveraging Google audiences – affinity, in-market, and custom intent.
• Creating remarketing lists from Floodlight activity.
• Lookalike modeling for prospecting.
• DMP integration and data activation.
• Segment exclusions to avoid overlap and waste.

Fine-tune campaigns for maximum ROI

• Pacing analysis and budget redistribution.
• Optimizing bids and bid strategies.
• Placement analysis and exclusion for better inventory quality.
• Frequency capping strategies for awareness vs. performance campaigns.
• Creative A/B testing and performance tracking.
• Using DV360 automated rules and scripts for optimization.

From awareness to conversion – planning the entire customer journey

• Structuring campaigns for upper, mid, and lower funnel goals.
• Sequencing creatives for storytelling.
• Dynamic creative optimization (DCO).
• Leveraging DMPs for unified audience targeting.
• Integrating Programmatic with Search, Social, and CRM data.

Protect your brand while maximizing quality impressions

• Brand safety filters & pre-bid targeting.
• Using third-party verification tools (IAS, DoubleVerify, MOAT).
• Blocklists and allowlists.
• Inventory source analysis and selection.
• Viewability benchmarks and optimization.

Turn raw campaign data into actionable insights

• Setting up customized dashboards in DV360.
• CM360 reporting – standard vs. advanced reports.
• Attribution models – last click, data-driven, position-based.
• Post-campaign analysis for actionable recommendations.
• Preparing executive-ready performance summaries.

Apply what you’ve learned in real-world scenarios

• Hands-on practice setting up and running DV360 campaigns.
• Real client briefs and campaign simulations.
• Identifying issues, optimizing performance, and reporting results.
• Final presentation of strategy, execution, and learnings.