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Real Time Bidding FAQ

Amanda Cross
Updated

This article answers the common questions asked about Real Time Bidding (RTB) with Ringba. 

This article contains the following sections:

Does Ringba provide buyers for RTB campaigns?

Ringba does not provider buyers on our platform. You must source your own buyers. 

However, Ringba's new marketplace platform, Ringba X, does connect you with buyers and sellers. For more information, see How can I join Ringba X?

Does Ringba support integration with buyers' payment systems?

Ringba does not connect to buyer's payments systems or collect payments. However, Ringba has a very robust integration framework and you can use it to integrate with just about any application. 

For example, imagine you wanted to integrate with your buyers’ payment methods so that when they win a bid, the call routes to them and payment is automatically charged. You could use Ringba's integration tools to pull the needed data then send it to a billing/payment processor. 

However, you must provide the development resources necessary to build services. See Ringba's Integration Tools and API documentation. 

Once my publisher sends me a bid, how do they know the RTB contract and number?

When the publisher sends a bid, they receive a response with the RTB contract. This contract has at least the following information:

  • Bid amount
  • Expiration time
  • Number to be called
  • Duplicate settings

If the bid fails, the publisher doesn't receive the info mentioned above, but they do receive an error code. A few of the following questions cover the meaning of each error code.

What happens if my account receives a request for a bid before the previous bid expires?

When a publisher requests a bid on a call from your account, Ringba caches the request based on its caller ID (CID) and the tags included in the request. It also stores the expiration date and time that is included on the bid. If the publisher sends another request with the same CID and tags before the expiration time, Ringba sends a cached version of the bid with a message explaining that it is the same bid as before:

{"code":230,"description":"Previous bid for this request not yet expired. This is a cached version"}]}

Ringba shows a count of the cached responses you sent to duplicate bid requests. See the RTB Duplicate Bid Requests row on the dashboard for a count by day. See the RTB Duplicate Bid Requests row on the Performance Summary tab of a campaign to see the count by campaign.

Do RTB campaigns support call flows in the routing plan?

No, RTB campaigns do not support call flows in the routing plan.

How do I use the "Logic" values I see when I set up bid modifiers?

Bid modifiers have a lot of flexibility and power, in part because of the many types of logic you can use when you set them up. The following list contains all the values you can choose from the Logic dropdown, plus a brief description of what they do:

  • Always: Ringba modifies every bid as specified; no criteria must be met.
  • Begins With: If the tag value begins with exactly the value you specify, including capitalization, Ringba modifies the bid.
  • Bulk: Choose this option to use bulk bid modifiers. See Bulk RTB Bid Modifiers for more information.
  • Contains: If the tag value contains exactly the value you specify, including capitalization, Ringba modifies the bid.
  • Does Not Begin With: If the tag value does NOT begin with exactly the value you specify, including capitalization, Ringba modifies the bid.
  • Does Not Contain: If the tag value does NOT contain the exact value you specify, including capitalization, Ringba modifies the bid.
  • Does Not Equal: If the tag value is NOT equal to the value you specify, Ringba modifies the bid.
  • Does Not Equal Single Value: If the tag value does not equal single value, Ringba modifies the bid.
  • Does Not Exist: If the tag is not present, Ringba modifies the bid.
  • Equals: If the tag value equals the value you specify, Ringba modifies the bid.
  • Equals Single Value: If the tag value equals single value, Ringba modifies the bid.
  • Exists: If the tag is present, regardless of whether it has a value, Ringba modifies the bid.
  • Greater Than: If the tag value exists and is a number greater than the value you specify, Ringba modifies the bid.
  • Has No Value: If the tag is present but has no value, Ringba modifies the bid.
  • Has Value: If the tag is present and has any value, Ringba modifies the bid.
  • Is Not Number: If the value of the tag is a non-number value, Ringba modifies the bid.
  • Is Number: If the value of the tag is a number value, Ringba modifies the bid.
  • Less Than: If the tag value exists and is a number less than the value you specify, Ringba modifies the bid.
  • Regex Does Not Match: To use this logic, the value you specify must include regular expressions. If the regular expression match is NOT successful, Ringba modifies the bid.
  • Regex Match: To use this logic, the value you specify must include regular expressions. If the regular expression match is successful, Ringba modifies the bid.
  • Required: If the tag is not present, Ringba rejects the bid request.
  • Wildcard Does Not Match: To use this logic, the value you specify must include one or more wildcards. If the wildcard match is NOT successful, Ringba modifies the bid.
  • Wildcard Match: To use this logic, the value you specify must include one or more wildcards. If the wildcard match is successful, Ringba modifies the bid.

What does each RTB error mean?

For a list of errors and their meanings, see RTB error codes.

What if my publisher sends me a Bid ID and I want to check the info for that bid?

See this knowledge base article to for information about the search bid feature: Search Bids by ID

How do I use bulk bid modifiers?

To learn about bulk bid modifiers, see Bulk RTB Bid Modifiers

I receive the error "Limit of 100 Bid Modifiers Reached" when I try to add a bid modifier. What should I do?

The Bid Modifiers table on the Real Time Bidding tab of your campaign has a limit of 100 rows. If the table already has 100 rows but you still need to add more, delete some rows to make space.

Are Instant Caller Profile and TCPA Shield charged for each RTB ping?

Instant Caller Profile (ICP) and TCPA Shield are paid features that charge per ping, so if you are using Real Time Bidding, the same call may result in multiple charges. The charges are non-refundable, even if the call doesn't occur. Please reach out to your manager about the costs. 

How can I use the ICP data my RTB campaign pulls?

When your RTB campaign pings the Instant Caller Profile (ICP) feature, it adds the data as tags to the call. You can find this information on the Tags tab in your Call Details report.

You can use tokens to use this data with other features, such as to send the data to a third party with a pixel. The following table lists the most commonly used ICP data elements and the tokens you can use to reference them:

Data in Tag Token
City:  [tag:Address:City]
State:  [tag:Address:State]
ZIP Code:  [tag:Address:Zip 5]
Email address:  [tag:Email Addresses:Email 1 Address]
Age:  [tag:Demographics:Age]

Can I override the RTB settings per publisher?

All the settings on the Real Time Bidding tab of your campaign apply to all the publishers inside your campaign. However, if you want to override for a specific publisher(s), you can go to your Publisher section, click to edit, and toggle on the Override Real Time Bidding Settings switch. Then just change the settings and save.

edit_publisher.png

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Can I use revshare with RTB?

It is possible to use revshare with RTB. This part of the feature is called "Pass Through." You can find more information here: RTB Pass Through.

Can I export all the bids for a certain day?

Yes, you can export the bids. See this article: Exporting RTB Bids

Is it possible to have publishers using both static DIDs and RTB for a certain campaign?

Yes, you can accomplish that by assigning a call tracking number to the publisher in the Publishers section of the campaign and setting the Payout by clicking on Override Campaign icon under the Actions column. When you do, every call that hits the call tracking number considers the payout settings to generate payout. The calls to the RTB link use the campaign payout settings.

What "CID" parameter format should the publisher use?

Publishers can send caller IDs (CID) with or without the country code or plus sign. For example, 16199270485, +16199270485 and 6199270485 are all acceptable.

What is the main difference between RTB and RTB with Passthrough?

Real Time Bidding checks agent availability, meaning the system checks if you have eligible targets based on caps, hours of operation, and filters. It also lets you modify a bid according to a specific criteria. For example, you can set up bid modifiers to add an amount of money to the base bid amount when a call meets certain criteria.

With RTB, Ringba sends the response with the bid to your publisher before pinging the ring tree targets (RTTs) in your routing plan. On the other hand, in RTB with Passthrough, Ringba pings the RTTs during bid time to check the bid sent by them to calculate the final bid. It also checks the acceptance/availability before sending the response to the publisher.

What should I do if I still need help with Real Time Bidding?

If you have any questions or need additional help, please reach out to our support team via chat or email at support@ringba.com.

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