How do sponsored posts and takeovers work in placements?

Overview

Showing Placement and Format: Detailing precisely where and how a brand's sponsored content will be displayed.
Differentiating Sponsorship Types: Explaining the different behaviors of a Sponsored Post versus a Sponsored Takeover, enabling brands to select the optimal format for their objectives (awareness, consideration, or high-impact campaigns).
Explaining Prioritization: Clarifying the system's selection process when multiple active sponsorships are competing for visibility, which ensures that pricing (CPM) and budgeting decisions accurately reflect expected priority.
Minimizing Confusion: Reducing questions about why a live campaign is not visible by addressing potential issues related to placement, environment, or state.

Guide - Configuring Sponsored Content Delivery

1. Sponsored Post (In-Feed Delivery)

In feed placements, selected posts are showcased as sponsored content.
Currently, there is no strict limit on the number of posts included in a sponsorship during this initial phase.

2. Sponsored Placements and Takeovers: Content Strategy

General Principle: Sponsored content is the primary focus of the placement.

Carousel Specifics: When a sponsorship is active, the entire carousel is dedicated to sponsored posts from that single sponsor.

Takeover Toggle: "Allow other content after takeover"

ON: Sponsored content is displayed first, followed by a transition to organic (non-sponsored) content.
OFF: Only the sponsored content from the takeover occupies the carousel for the duration of the takeover period.

Conditions for Displaying Sponsored Posts or Takeovers

Sponsored content (posts or takeovers) will only be delivered if all the following requirements are met:

Placement is Active: The specific placement must be currently enabled in the Ad Config settings.
Placement is Targeted: The identical placement must be selected and configured within the sponsorship settings.
Sponsorship is Live: The sponsorship must be in a Live status.
Budget is Available: If a budget has been allocated, it must not be fully exhausted.

3. Placement & Environment Logic

Placement and Embed Selection Independence:
The selection of placements/embeds for Sponsorships is separate from the settings in Ad Config.

This allows you to set up sponsorships even if the full Ad Config setup is pending.

However, sponsored ads will only be displayed in placements/embeds that are:
- Part of an active ad preset in Ad Settings, and
- Specifically chosen within the sponsorship configuration.

Environment-Based Delivery Requirements:
Supported environments for ad delivery include:
- Mobile Web
- Desktop Web
- iOS
- Android

For a sponsorship to serve on a specific environment, two conditions must be met:
- That environment must be enabled in Ad Config for the placement.
- That environment must also be selected within the sponsorship settings.

4. Multiple Campaign Delivery Logic

When multiple sponsorships are eligible to appear on the same placement simultaneously, the following priority rules determine which sponsorship wins:

Highest CPM (Cost Per Mille) has priority.
If the CPM is equal, the sponsorship with the higher remaining budget wins.
If both CPM and budget are equal, the sponsorship with more impressions delivered wins.
If all the above factors are equal, the First Come First Serve (FCFS) rule applies, based on the sponsorship creation time.

5. Rendering Behavior

How Post Eligibility and Display Order Are Determined

If multiple sponsorships are active for a placement, all eligible posts from those sponsorships are considered for rendering.

Example:

Sponsorship A contributes 5 posts.
Sponsorship B contributes 5 posts.
Total eligible posts for the placement: 10.

The final display order and frequency of these eligible posts are managed by the ad slots and Frequency settings configured in the Ad Settings for that specific placement.

6. Sponsored Metadata

Original posts remain unchanged.
For sponsored delivery:
- A version with copied metadata is generated specifically for the sponsorship.
- This allows for the customization of descriptions, links, and linkouts solely for the sponsored context.

Specs & Limitations

Sponsored content display is subject to the following requirements:

Placement Activation: The placements or embeds must meet three conditions:
1. Enabled within the Ad Config settings.
2. Part of an active ad preset.
3. Specifically selected for the sponsorship deal.
Environment Alignment: The designated environment in Ad Config must match the environment specified in the sponsorship.
Takeover Scope: Takeovers are limited to the placement level; no special, session-level takeovers are supported in this current phase.
Priority Determination: The priority for sponsored content is fixed and follows this order: CPM (Cost Per Mille) > remaining budget > impressions >FCFS (First-Come, First-Served).
Metadata Integrity: Only copies of the original post metadata are modified for the sponsorship; the original post's metadata remains unchanged.

Example Scenarios

Scenario 1: Feed Integration

Sponsored posts appear between organic posts for seamless discovery.

Scenario 2: Full Takeover Campaign

All visible content is sponsored, ideal for launches.

Scenario 3: Competitive Campaigns

Multiple sponsors compete; higher CPM gets priority.

FAQs

1. Why are my sponsored posts not visible?

Check:

Placement enabled
Campaign is live
Correct environment selected

2. What is the difference between Sponsored Post and Takeover?

Sponsored Post = blended in feed
Takeover = full placement control

3. Does sponsorship affect organic content?

No, organic content remains unchanged unless takeover is enabled.

4. Can I control the order of posts?

Yes, via prioritization during setup.

Future Enhancements

Session Takeover format
Advanced placement-level controls
Real-time pacing & optimization
Network-based targeting