Common Causes of Digital Ad Waste
1. Bot Traffic and Ad Fraud
Ad fraud remains one of the largest contributors to digital ad waste. Malicious actors use bots to mimic human behavior, generating fake clicks and impressions. This makes campaigns appear successful on the surface while driving zero ROI.
Example: Chobani, the popular Greek yogurt brand, once reported that a substantial portion of their programmatic display ad budget was being eaten up by non-human traffic. They’ve since shifted toward direct publisher deals and stricter anti-fraud tools.
2. Poor Audience Targeting
When ads are shown to the wrong people, they become digital wallpaper—present, but ignored.
Example: Peloton faced backlash for an ad targeting the general public during the 2019 holiday season. While the ad gained attention (for the wrong reasons), much of their spend failed to convert due to misaligned messaging with audience sentiment at the time.
3. Low Viewability
An ad served does not always mean an ad viewed. Ads placed below the fold, autoplayed in muted tabs, or shown on non-premium sites often have low viewability rates.
Example: Procter & Gamble famously cut $200 million in digital ad spend in 2017, citing inefficiencies and poor viewability, only to see no drop in business results.
How to Measure Digital Ad Waste
Understanding how to measure digital ad waste is the first step in solving it.
1. Viewability Metrics
Use tools like Google Active View or IAS to assess how often your ads are actually seen. A viewable impression must have at least 50% of the ad visible for one second (display) or two seconds (video).
2. Click Quality & Bounce Rate
Check whether clicks result in meaningful engagement. High bounce rates and short session durations may indicate accidental or bot-driven clicks.
3. Conversion Path Attribution
Use advanced attribution models instead of last-click to understand where conversions are actually coming from.
Continue reading…
Next, let’s talk about how to prevent ad waste using data, technology, and better strategy.
