<b>The old way (waterfall) quietly underpaid you</b>

<b>The old way (waterfall) quietly underpaid you</b>

Before header bidding, sites used a "waterfall" — ad partners were asked to buy your ad space one at a time, in a fixed line.

Why that hurts:
— The first partner in line got first dibs, even if a partner further down would have paid more.
— Partners were ranked by their average past price, not what they'd actually pay right now.

Tiny example: Partner A usually pays $2, so they go first. But today Partner C would have paid $5 — they never got asked.

One thing to try: ask your ad setup whether you're still on a waterfall. If yes, that's the upgrade conversation to have.

<b>In plain English:</b> a waterfall asks buyers in order; header bidding asks them all at once, so the real top bidder wins.