Managing on-line advertising using metrics such as return on investment and/or profit

• US 20060069614A1
• Filed: 09/29/2004
• Published: 03/30/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 09/29/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Agarwal, Sumit, Korte, Thomas
• Granted Patent: US 7,734,503 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/14.460
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0244 Optimization
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0247 Calculate past, present or future revenues
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0251 Targeted advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0256 User search
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0277 Online advertisement

Abstract

To help advertisers to manage their online advertising, some business metric, such as ROI, profit, gross profit, etc., may be estimated and/or tracked with respect to an ad campaign, or a portion of the ad campaign. An advertiser may provide a business metric target, such as a target ROI, a target gross profit, a target profit, etc. An ad delivery system may then adjust information in an ad campaign (or a portion of an ad campaign) in an effort to meet the target. Similarly, an advertiser may provide a goal, such as maximizing or minimizing a business metric. The ad delivery system may then adjust information in an ad campaign (or a portion of an ad campaign) in an effort to meet the goal. The targets or goals may be subject to one or more constraints. The advertiser may provide limits on values of one or more business metrics. The ad delivery system may then turn off, or govern, the delivery of ads if the limits are violated.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

a) accepting a metric limit;

b) determining the metric for one or more ads;

c) determining whether or not the determined metric violates the metric limit; and

d) if it is determined that the determined metric violates the metric limit, then reducing the serving of the one or more ads.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the act of reducing the serving of the one or more ads includes stopping the serving of the one or more ads.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the metric limit is a minimum return on investment.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the metric limit is a minimum profit.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the metric limit is a minimum profit after ad expense.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the act of determining the metric for one or more ads uses profit information provided by an advertiser associated with the one or more ads.

7. A method comprising:

a) accepting a metric limit;

b) determining the metric for one or more ads;

c) determining whether or not the determined metric violates the metric limit; and

d) if it is determined that the determined metric violates the metric limit, then notifying an advertiser associated with the one or more ads of the violation.

8. The method of claim 7 further comprising:

e) reducing the serving of the one or more ads after advertiser approval of the reduction.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein the act of reducing the serving of the one or more ads includes stopping the serving of the one or more ads.

10. The method of claim 7 wherein the metric limit is a minimum return on investment.

11. The method of claim 7 wherein the metric limit is a minimum profit.

12. The method of claim 7 wherein the metric limit is a minimum profit after ad expense.

13. The method of claim 7 wherein the act of determining the metric for one or more ads uses profit information provided by an advertiser associated with the one or more ads.

14. A method comprising:

a) accepting a target metric value for one or more ads; and

b) adjusting ad information for at least some of the one or more ads in an effort to meet the target metric.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein the act of adjusting ad information includes adjusting an offer per user action with respect to one or more ads.

16. The method of claim 14 wherein the act of adjusting ad information includes adjusting an offer per selection of one or more ads.

17. The method of claim 14 wherein the act of adjusting ad information includes adjusting an offer per conversion of one or more ads.

18. The method of claim 14 wherein the act of adjusting ad information includes adjusting an offer per impression of one or more ads.

19. The method of claim 14 wherein the act of adjusting ad information includes adjusting a maximum offer per user action with respect to one or more ads.

20. The method of claim 14 wherein the act of adjusting ad information includes adjusting a maximum offer per selection of one or more ads.

21. The method of claim 14 wherein the act of adjusting ad information includes adjusting a maximum offer per conversion of one or more ads.

22. The method of claim 14 wherein the act of adjusting ad information includes adjusting a maximum offer per impression of one or more ads.

23. The method of claim 14 wherein the target metric value is a target profit after ad delivery expense.

24. The method of claim 14 wherein the target metric value is a target profit.

25. The method of claim 14 wherein the target metric value is a target advertising return-on-investment.

26. The method of claim 14 wherein the act of adjusting ad information for at least some of the one or more ads uses profit information provided by an advertiser associated with the one or more ads.

27. The method of claim 14 wherein the act of adjusting ad information for at least some of the one or more ads uses constraint information provided by an advertiser associated with the one or more ads.

28. The method of claim 27 wherein the constraint information includes a budget constraint.

29. The method of claim 27 wherein the constraint information includes a constraint concerning a sales volume of goods that the advertiser can meet.

30. A method comprising:

a) accepting a goal for a metric for one or more ads; and

b) adjusting ad information for at least some of the one or more ads in an effort to meet the goal.

31. The method of claim 30 wherein the act of adjusting ad information includes adjusting an offer per user action with respect to one or more ads.

32. The method of claim 30 wherein the act of adjusting ad information includes adjusting an offer per selection of one or more ads.

33. The method of claim 30 wherein the act of adjusting ad information includes adjusting an offer per conversion of one or more ads.

34. The method of claim 30 wherein the act of adjusting ad information includes adjusting an offer per impression of one or more ads.

35. The method of claim 30 wherein the act of adjusting ad information includes adjusting a maximum offer per user action with respect to one or more ads.

36. The method of claim 30 wherein the act of adjusting ad information includes adjusting a maximum offer per selection of one or more ads.

37. The method of claim 30 wherein the act of adjusting ad information includes adjusting a maximum offer per conversion of one or more ads.

38. The method of claim 30 wherein the act of adjusting ad information includes adjusting a maximum offer per impression of one or more ads.

39. The method of claim 30 wherein the goal is to maximize a profit after ad delivery expense.

40. The method of claim 30 wherein the goal is to maximize a target profit.

41. The method of claim 30 wherein the goal is to maximize advertising return-on-investment.

42. The method of claim 30 wherein the act of adjusting ad information for at least some of the one or more ads uses profit information provided by an advertiser associated with the one or more ads.

43. The method of claim 30 wherein the act of adjusting ad information for at least some of the one or more ads uses constraint information provided by an advertiser associated with the one or more ads.

44. The method of claim 43 wherein the constraint information includes a budget constraint.

45. The method of claim 43 wherein the constraint information includes a constraint concerning a sales volume of goods that the advertiser can meet.

46. Apparatus comprising:

a) an input for accepting a metric limit;

b) means for determining the metric for one or more ads;

c) means for determining whether or not the determined metric violates the metric limit; and

d) means for reducing the serving of the one or more ads if it is determined that the determined metric violates the metric limit.

47. The apparatus of claim 46 wherein the metric limit is selected from a group consisting of (A) a minimum return on investment, (B) a minimum profit, and (C) a minimum profit after ad expense.

48. Apparatus comprising:

a) an input for accepting a metric limit;

b) means for determining the metric for one or more ads;

c) means for determining whether or not the determined metric violates the metric limit; and

d) means for notifying an advertiser associated with the one or more ads of the violation if it is determined that the determined metric violates the metric limit.

49. The apparatus of claim 48 wherein the metric limit is selected from a group consisting of (A) a minimum return on investment, (B) a minimum profit, and (C) a minimum profit after ad expense.

50. Apparatus comprising:

a) an input for accepting a target metric value for one or more ads; and

b) means for adjusting ad information for at least some of the one or more ads in an effort to meet the target metric.

51. The apparatus of claim 50 wherein the means for adjusting ad information includes at least one of (A) means for adjusting an offer per user action with respect to one or more ads, (B) means for adjusting an offer per selection of one or more ads, (C) means for adjusting an offer per conversion of one or more ads, (D) means for adjusting an offer per impression of one or more ads, (E) means for adjusting a maximum offer per user action with respect to one or more ads, (F) means for adjusting a maximum offer per selection of one or more ads, (G) means for adjusting a maximum offer per conversion of one or more ads, and (H) means for adjusting a maximum offer per impression of one or more ads.

52. A machine-readable medium having stored thereon machine-executable instructions which, when executed by a machine, perform a method comprising:

a) accepting a metric limit;

b) determining the metric for one or more ads;

c) determining whether or not the determined metric violates the metric limit; and

d) if it is determined that the determined metric violates the metric limit, then reducing the serving of the one or more ads.

53. A machine-readable medium having stored thereon machine-executable instructions which, when executed by a machine, perform a method comprising:

a) accepting a metric limit;

b) determining the metric for one or more ads;

c) determining whether or not the determined metric violates the metric limit; and

d) if it is determined that the determined metric violates the metric limit, then notifying an advertiser associated with the one or more ads of the violation.

53-1. A machine-readable medium having stored thereon machine-executable instructions which, when executed by a machine, perform a method comprising:

a) accepting a target metric value for one or more ads; and

b) adjusting ad information for at least some of the one or more ads in an effort to meet the target metric.