What is SmartBid?

SmartBid is Taboola's core machine learning algorithm that utilizes historic data to automate your campaign's bid. SmartBid is designed to maximize your campaign performance at scale. Bid optimizations are made in order to maximize the conversions included in your "Total Conversion Value". 

Built with deep learning, Enhanced CPC starts from your campaign’s baseline bid, increasing your bid on high-value impressions while reducing bids on impressions that are less likely to lead to conversion. Enhanced CPC ensures that you are bidding the lowest amount required to win any impression by reducing all winning bids to match the second highest bid (second price auction). You may see an example of how SmartBid makes modifications here. 

At any time you may modify your baseline bid per individual site to optimize for performance. Learn more here.

Benefits of Enhanced CPC:

1. Leverage network learnings: SmartBid operates according to historic performance data of your campaigns. The deep learning algorithm takes into account historical campaign performance of similar campaigns - along with user data and context - and then produces a CPC bid based on the likelihood to convert.
2. Incremental scale: With the ability to run optimized bids across all 20,000+ sites on Taboola’s network, SmartBid increases your campaign reach exponentially - with less risk.
3. Conversion-based learning: SmartBid maintains competitive bids on the publishers and audiences that are most likely to drive conversions for your marketing objectives. Through automatic bid adjustments, SmartBid prioritizes higher conversion rates, at scale. 
   
4. Reliable optimizations: SmartBid continuously runs back-end A/B tests to validate a user’s likelihood to convert. SmartBid will only alter your baseline bid when it outperforms the results of fixed bidding.
5. Efficient bidding: SmartBid reduces winning CPC bids to match the second highest bid of that auction. This ensures all SmartBid’s recommendations meet the market rate for that impression.

New Campaigns and Ads

Enhanced CPC helps you successfully launch new campaigns and ads. Through semi-autonomous bid modifications, SmartBid will alter your baseline bid through Learning, Expedited Learning, and Scaling.

Throughout Expedited Learning, your Campaign Bid may be increased in order to win the best impressions and clicks to accurately estimate CTR, but SmartBid will continue to manage bids to ensure they are the lowest required to secure the impression during the learning process. Learn more about Expedited Learning here. 

During all other SmartBid phases your campaign bid will increase or decrease in relationship with the opportunity of a given impression. Learn about all ad and campaign statuses here.

How to Implement Enhanced CPC

You may update your Bid Strategy from multiple fields. The following instructions indicate how to opt into SmartBid when setting up a new campaign.

1. Create a new Campaign
2. Navigate to the Bidding and Budget section and click on the drop down that says 'What do you want to focus on?'
3. Click on Bid Control
4. Under Bid Type, click on Cost per click (CPC)
5. Toggle Enhanced CPC and insert your baseline CPC bid