Sizmek Ad Suite vs. StackAdapt

I've use Sizmek as media analytics and reporting tool. Unless a site doesn't work properly with Google DoubleClick, I rarely recommend Sizmek over DoubleClick. It can do everything DoubleClick does, but with almost twice the hassle. One Area that makes it easier to track is that ads are given individual tracking ID's that creative can look up and search by when indexing and testing to make sure all ads are working and input.

Incentivized

StackAdapt is well-suited in situations where you need to drive awareness to a niche audience that cannot be easily targeted on the GDN. For our agency it is useful for our Canadian clients only, as HST is added to the advertising costs. We cannot pass this on to our international clients and therefore do not use the platform for any clients outside of Canada.

Incentivized

• Easy Dashboard Navigation - Search bar allows user to quickly locate details about any campaign
• Insightful Analytics Tools - Platform provides users customizable graphs to leverage for reporting presentations
• Extensive Reporting Metrics - Ability to pull ad performance reports on all aspects of campaign
• Simple Creative Hosting - Easy upload and path location details for creative files

Incentivized

• Communication: Their reps are incredibly transparent, thorough and detailed. I really, really appreciate that.
• Creativity: Not only are the reps communicative, they actually bring new, fresh ideas to the table. As busy as we are, I can't thank them enough for that.
• Easy-to-use: As detailed as the dashboard is, it's actually pretty easy to use and bring new users up-to-speed on.

Incentivized

• Sizmek's trading desk was a total miss when I tested it a few years ago.
• I briefly used Abakus and did not find it intuitive, accurate or helpful. It has a long way to go before it can compete with the likes of VisualIQ.

Incentivized

• There is no way to QA your own ads. They QA for you and based on the level of their customer support, you can trust their QA, but the lack of self-assessment can cause problems for your company/agency.
• To know where your ads were actually deployed, when, and for how long would be amazing. They certainly know because they can track all sorts of analytics.
• Budgeting.

Incentivized

The platform is easy to use and understand whether it is being used as self-serve or a managed service. The audience targeting is solid, and array of placements is versatile. With these, the level of engagement for video content is usually great

Incentivized

Simple, streamlined interface. I would rate it higher if there was a proper agency portal (like an MCC "My Client Center") that allows you to control multiple client accounts from a unified login.

Incentivized

Support has been exceptional. Our dedicated team is always available and ready to answer any questions that may arise. We receive updates from them on a regular basis and they go above and beyond providing assistance when needed. The team is absolutely one of the bright spots in our relationship with StackAdapt

Incentivized

For me the main point here is the support, all the adservers offer more or less the same functionality and capabilities. The real advantage you will gain using Sizmek will be their customer support team and their open approach with other vendors.

In terms of Native advertising, StackAdapt blows Outbrain and Taboola out of the water. The ability to drive impressions is similar between all three, but we have seen a large improvement in the quality of these impressions from StackAdapt. Clicks, engagement, and sales are all up on StackAdapt when compared to the other platforms we have used in the past.

Incentivized

• Sizmek has had a positive impact on ROI because it delivers the reports our clients want and need
• Sizmek has had a postive impact on employee morale due to ease of use

Incentivized

• Excellent traffic from our ads. Traffic exceeded our forecast.
• Excellent management of our budget. We did not spend near as much as we budgeted for the response we received through our test.
• The lead conversion was not expected to be high due to the type of content we deployed, but we received zero conversions, well below anticipated when compared to other ads for the same content.

Incentivized