sales-skills/sales-adserver-online

Adserver.Online Platform Help

Step 1 — Gather context

If references/learnings.md exists, read it first for accumulated platform knowledge.

1. What are you trying to do?

   • A) Set up Adserver.Online to serve ads on my website
   • B) Serve ads in my email newsletter
   • C) Manage campaigns, ads, or zones via the API
   • D) Set up programmatic RTB (OpenRTB / Prebid)
   • E) Configure targeting (geo, device, retargeting, custom)
   • F) Compare Adserver.Online to other ad servers

2. Your role?

   • A) Publisher (monetizing my own site/newsletter)
   • B) Advertiser (placing ads on publisher sites)
   • C) Ad network operator (managing publishers + advertisers)

3. Current plan: Free trial, Starter ($49/mo), Premium ($199/mo), or Ultimate ($599/mo)?

Skip-ahead rule: if the user's prompt already contains enough context, skip to Step 2.

Step 2 — Route or answer directly

| If the question is about... | Route to... | |---|---| | Newsletter monetization strategy (subscriptions, pricing models) | /sales-newsletter [question] | | Self-serve advertiser portal | /sales-adbutler [question] | | Direct-sold ad management for local publishers | /sales-broadstreet [question] | | Free self-hosted ad server | /sales-revive [question] | | Email deliverability (SPF/DKIM/DMARC) | /sales-deliverability [question] | | API-first custom ad platform | /sales-kevel [question] |

If the question is Adserver.Online-specific, continue to Step 3.

Step 3 — Adserver.Online platform reference

Read references/platform-guide.md for the full platform reference — capabilities, pricing, email ad setup, API overview, data model, integration recipes, code examples.

Answer the user's question using only the relevant section. Don't dump the full reference.

Step 4 — Actionable guidance

Focus on the user's specific situation:

• Publisher getting started: Create a site and zones (display/email/video), create campaigns with ads, assign ads to zones, generate ad code and paste into your site. Ads rotate automatically.
• Email newsletter ads: Requires Premium plan ($199/mo). On the zone page, select "Email" as the code type, choose your ESP, copy the generated <a> + <img> tag into your template. Image banners only — no JavaScript in email. Each message needs a unique ID via ESP macro.
• API automation: Create a Bearer token in Account > API tokens. Make requests to https://api.adsrv.net/v2/{endpoint}. Owner, publisher, and advertiser tokens access different endpoint sets. 100 req/min rate limit.
• Choosing Adserver.Online vs alternatives: Best for ad network operators and publishers wanting email + video + REST API in one platform at competitive pricing (Premium $199/mo for 10M). Note: programmatic OpenRTB, Prebid, Google RTB, and multicurrency bidding require the Ultimate plan ($599/mo) — not Premium. For self-serve portal, use AdButler. For API-first custom builds, use Kevel. For free self-hosted, use Revive.

If you discover a gotcha, workaround, or tip not covered in references/learnings.md, append it there.

Gotchas

Best-effort from research — review these, especially items about plan-gated features and integration gotchas that may be outdated.

1. Email ads require Premium plan — Starter ($49/mo) does not include email banner support, video, or API access. You need Premium ($199/mo) minimum.
2. Image banners only in email — no JavaScript, iframes, or HTML5 in email zones. Use JPG/GIF/PNG image banners.
3. Unique message ID is mandatory — each email send must include a unique per-message identifier via your ESP's merge tag. Without it, impression/click tracking breaks.
4. No webhooks — Adserver.Online has no webhook or push notification system. Poll the API for data changes.
5. Free plan discontinued — previously offered a free tier, but it has been removed. New users get a 14-day free trial.
6. No CORS support — API calls from browsers will fail. Use server-side proxying or backend integrations.

Related skills

• /sales-newsletter — Newsletter monetization strategy (paid subscriptions, sponsorships, ad sales, pricing)
• /sales-adbutler — AdButler full-stack ad server (self-serve portal, email ad zones, REST API + MCP)
• /sales-epom — Epom hosted ad server + white-label DSP (API included, RTB free for publishers)
• /sales-revive — Revive Adserver free open-source self-hosted ad server (email zones, XML-RPC API)
• /sales-adspeed — AdSpeed affordable hosted ad server (email newsletter zones, REST API, from $9.95/mo)
• /sales-advertserve — AdvertServe hosted ad server (email IMG tags, video + display, header bidding, white-label, API)
• /sales-kevel — Kevel API-first ad server infrastructure (build custom ad platforms, Decision API)
• /sales-adglare — AdGlare cloud-based ad server (display/native/VAST video/CTV, REST API v2)
• /sales-deliverability — Email deliverability strategy (SPF, DKIM, DMARC, warmup)
• /sales-do — Not sure which skill to use? The router matches any sales objective to the right skill. Install: npx skills add sales-skills/sales --skill sales-do

Examples

Example 1: Setting up email newsletter ads

User says: "I want to serve ads in my email newsletter using Adserver.Online. How do I set it up?" Skill does: Confirms Premium plan is required, walks through creating a campaign with an image banner, creating a banner zone, selecting "Email" code type on the zone page, choosing the ESP, and pasting the generated <a> + <img> tag into the template. Explains the unique message ID requirement. Result: User has newsletter ads serving with proper click and impression tracking via static tags

Example 2: Automating ad management via the API

User says: "How do I use the Adserver.Online API to create campaigns and pull stats?" Skill does: Shows Bearer token creation in Account > API tokens, demonstrates POST /campaign and GET /stats endpoints with cURL examples, explains owner vs publisher vs advertiser token scopes, pagination headers, and rate limits Result: User has working API integration for campaign management and reporting

Example 3: Choosing between ad servers

User says: "I'm building an ad network. Should I use Adserver.Online, AdButler, or Epom?" Skill does: Compares all three: Adserver.Online (Premium $199/mo for 10M with email + video + API; RTB, multicurrency, and white-label gated to Ultimate $599/mo), AdButler ($682/mo for 10M, self-serve portal, MCP, programmatic SSP), Epom ($250/mo, white-label DSP, RTB included on all plans). Notes Adserver.Online's competitive pricing and ad network builder focus, and that programmatic on Adserver.Online is Ultimate-only. Result: User picks the right ad server based on budget, self-serve needs, and RTB requirements

Troubleshooting

Email ad tags not rendering

Symptom: Newsletter ads show broken images or nothing Cause: Used JavaScript or iframe zone code instead of Email code type, or missing unique message ID Solution: On the zone page, select "Email" as the code type. Choose your ESP from the dropdown (or Custom). The generated code is a static <a> + <img> tag. Ensure the unique message ID macro from your ESP is included — without it, tracking won't work.

API authentication failing

Symptom: API requests return 401 Unauthorized Cause: Missing or invalid Bearer token, or using the wrong token scope Solution: Create a new API token in Account > API tokens. Include it as Authorization: Bearer <token> in the header. Owner tokens access /user, /campaign, /ad, etc. Publisher tokens only access /publish/* endpoints. Advertiser tokens only access /advert/* endpoints.

Campaigns not delivering

Symptom: Campaign is active but ads aren't showing Cause: Budget exhausted, scheduling dates not started, no zones assigned, or throttling mode too aggressive Solution: Check budget_daily and budget_total haven't been reached. Verify start_date/finish_date include today. Ensure ads are assigned to zones (POST /ad/assign). Check th_mode — mode 1 (spend evenly) may restrict delivery during low-traffic hours.