Google Ad Manager vs. Smart AdServer

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Google Ad Manager
Score 8.6 out of 10
N/A
Google Ad Manager is a platform for publishers that combines the former DoubleClick for Publishers and DoubleClick Ad Exchange products.N/A
Smart AdServer
Score 10.0 out of 10
N/A
Smart AdServer is a French ad server provider with a large international presence. Customers tend to be European media outlets. Smart AdServer It has been a subsidiary of the Axel Springer Group since 2007.N/A
Pricing
Google Ad ManagerSmart AdServer
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Google Ad ManagerSmart AdServer
Free Trial
NoNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional Details
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Google Ad ManagerSmart AdServer
Considered Both Products
Google Ad Manager
Chose Google Ad Manager
The UI is better against all other options in the market. Even the opportunity that you have to integrate new inventory from your own is easier when doing it by yourself; we always had to go back to the support teams on all other products in order to do so. Also, the robust …
Smart AdServer

No answer on this topic

Top Pros
Top Cons
Features
Google Ad ManagerSmart AdServer
Ad Network Integration
Comparison of Ad Network Integration features of Product A and Product B
Google Ad Manager
7.6
24 Ratings
3% above category average
Smart AdServer
8.0
1 Ratings
8% above category average
Data Transfer7.524 Ratings8.01 Ratings
DSP integration7.719 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Ad Campaigns
Comparison of Ad Campaigns features of Product A and Product B
Google Ad Manager
8.7
33 Ratings
11% above category average
Smart AdServer
8.0
1 Ratings
2% above category average
Ad campaign creation8.733 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Ad deployment8.433 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Display advertising8.632 Ratings7.01 Ratings
Ad display and retargeting segmentation8.731 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Sequence targeting8.924 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Ad Reporting & Analytics
Comparison of Ad Reporting & Analytics features of Product A and Product B
Google Ad Manager
8.3
33 Ratings
7% above category average
Smart AdServer
7.5
1 Ratings
3% below category average
Ad dashboards8.931 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Ad performance reports8.433 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Ad conversion tracking8.932 Ratings7.01 Ratings
Ad attribution reporting7.829 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Cross-channel ad management8.226 Ratings7.01 Ratings
Ad forecasting and optimization7.729 Ratings7.01 Ratings
Best Alternatives
Google Ad ManagerSmart AdServer
Small Businesses
Adobe Advertising Cloud
Adobe Advertising Cloud
Score 8.9 out of 10
Google Ad Manager
Google Ad Manager
Score 8.6 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
The Trade Desk
The Trade Desk
Score 8.1 out of 10
The Trade Desk
The Trade Desk
Score 8.1 out of 10
Enterprises
Adobe Advertising Cloud
Adobe Advertising Cloud
Score 8.9 out of 10
Adobe Advertising Cloud
Adobe Advertising Cloud
Score 8.9 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Google Ad ManagerSmart AdServer
Likelihood to Recommend
8.9
(33 ratings)
8.0
(1 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
7.0
(1 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Usability
9.0
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Support Rating
7.0
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
Google Ad ManagerSmart AdServer
Likelihood to Recommend
Google
Google Ads Manager is great if you need major visibility on a large ad network rather than targeting one specific website, app or platform. Let's be real here if you have any business that is done online (sell products, generate leads, etc) you pretty much have to be on Google. I've tried other advertising solutions including competitor search engines, sponsored content solutions, social media advertising, and none really compare to the traffic you can get that is keyword-driven, meaning a user is actually demonstrating interest in whatever you sell or offer.
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Smart AdServer
Smart AdServer is great for a marketing department, to track stats and clicks of their audience. It's a great way to engage the client without actually engaging them. We use it all the time to monitor where they're going, what they're interested in, and how engaging our posts are. I would say it's probably not a good idea for a smaller organization, as one social media manager could work it all out
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Pros
Google
  • Interface. You can understand how to build the ads very easily. When you first begin, and throughout the process, there are little help icons which explain what you need to understand.
  • Pricing. By this, I mean the ability to change it at any time. You can select a variable rate, or you can preset it. Either way, you can change how much you spend every second if you'd like. This makes it easier to control your budget if you need to make emergency purchases and don't have much space in your budget.
  • Always growing. They are always announcing something new. Always growing and always trying to update.
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Smart AdServer
  • It is easy to use, with functionality covering mobile, desktop and even tablet. I'm always on the go, so it's nice to be able to access my server from pretty much anywhere.
  • It has a wonderful intuitive user interface, every facet of this is designed and thought over, so it's easy to navigate around the program.
  • It offers a free trial so there's no real commitment if you just want to try it out, which is nice.
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Cons
Google
  • Bumper Machine - While this is still in beta, there is a lot of room for improvement for the machine to pick proper clips. I'm sure that will come in time though.
  • Inclusion of a Home Page Button - This is a simple request, truly, but one that bothers me everyday. I have a campaign home button, but it's not accessible unless you go back to the beginning of the platform. If the 'home' button was static, I'd be able to go to my preferred view with one click instead of having to loop around, as there isn't a trustworthy 'back button' option either.
  • Display - This is a big one. I have a love/hate relationship with display campaigns and algorithms. I have seen where they can perform [strongly] but also be massive budget bleeds with little ROI. It's not very industry specific either so I'm hoping to gain more consistency and trust with the future of the display algorithm.
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Smart AdServer
  • I would like a more in-depth look at my traffic stats. I can see clicks, where my audience is going, but I'd like maybe some kind of perspective into who my audience is (18-24, adult, etc).
  • Constant updates. It's nice that they're always looking to update program, but the update can kinda get in the way of my work sometimes.
  • I'd prefer it if were a little cheaper – the free trial is nice, but getting my superiors to sign off on the cost (they're a bit old school) is a bit tough sometimes.
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Likelihood to Renew
Google
I think it's useful for our team and we rely on it to improve our business. It is within our budget also. Although we still will need an approval from the upper-level management team, I don't see any problem with that
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Smart AdServer
No answers on this topic
Usability
Google
Love the product and how the GUI is as it is user friendly. When working with the product it is better to have some knowledge of what ad's you want to deploy where so that it is easier to use and move forward.
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Smart AdServer
No answers on this topic
Support Rating
Google
I could say a lot about this topic. As an agency, we get a new [representative] to talk to almost every quarter to go over select accounts and the campaigns within. Most of the time, these [educated representatives], don't provide any new feedback, or I just simply [disagree] with their approach. This is not all the time however. I have learned a lot from a rare few, [individuals] that have given me new strategies and access to betas early on. The other side of support, is the [overseas support platform]. [It] is usually not very helpful, but you can [emphasize] issues and they can research [them]. The Google Tag Implementation team is pristine though. When you need them, you need to set an appointment, which is usually 2 weeks out; they are so over-my-head intelligent, I've never had a bad experience with them and whenever I needed them for a fix, they solved it [within] the first call.
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Smart AdServer
No answers on this topic
Alternatives Considered
Google
The main advantage of Google Ad Manager over The Trade Desk is based on the fact that Google Ad Manager has better data to identify a user on any device as it has more data and the user is signed in over Google Ad Manager´s set of properties. That is why results on Google Ad Manager´s platform are better as The Trade Desk needs to develop a unified id solution that is more complex and less performing that Google Ad Manager's data.
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Smart AdServer
Honestly, you can use either/or. I'm all about AdServer right now because since Adobe has implemented their cloud service, they've gotten more expensive. Smart AdServer is just one cost, and it's cheaper than Adobe Cloud
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Return on Investment
Google
  • It had a massively positive impact for us, allowing us to generate revenue from ad space on our website.
  • Being able to custom quote ad space on our site, instead of relying on AdSense allowed us to increase our monthly ad revenue as well.
  • Providing reliable data to advertisers regarding impressions and CTRs helped create repeat-customers.
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Smart AdServer
  • It's helped my organization better manage our traffic flow.
  • It's reduced the amount of work on our social media manager.
  • It's helped my organization get a better perspective on our clientele - where they're going, what they're interested in, it's been a great asset to our business.
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ScreenShots