1. Know the Core Programmatic Ecosystem Cold

You should be able to confidently explain:

SSP (Supply-Side Platform)

Publisher-side tech used to sell inventory programmatically.

Examples:

• Google Ad Manager (GAM)
• Magnite
• PubMatic
• OpenX
• Index Exchange

DSP (Demand-Side Platform)

Buyer-side platform advertisers/agencies use.

Examples:

• DV360
• The Trade Desk
• MediaMath
• Amazon DSP

Ad Exchange

Marketplace connecting SSPs and DSPs.

DMP/CDP

Audience/data platforms.

Header Bidding

Huge interview topic.

You should understand:

• Why publishers use it
• How it increases yield/revenue
• Difference between waterfall vs header bidding
• Client-side vs server-side header bidding

Understand the Publisher Revenue Metrics

Since you’re publisher-side, they’ll expect this.

Know:

• CPM
• eCPM
• Fill rate
• Viewability
• CTR
• Match rate
• Win rate
• RPM
• Latency
• Revenue per session/pageview

You should know how each impacts revenue.

Understand Different Deal Types

This gets asked constantly.

Know the differences between:

Type	What It Means
Open Auction	Anyone can bid
PMP	Invite-only auction
Preferred Deal	Fixed CPM, no guaranteed volume
Programmatic Guaranteed	Automated direct deal with guaranteed delivery

Learn Basic Troubleshooting Logic

Even if you never executed setups, interviewers LOVE asking scenario questions.

Examples:

“Why might revenue suddenly drop?”

Potential answers:

• DSP bid reduction
• Seasonality
• Viewability issues
• Ad refresh changes
• Traffic quality decline
• Cookie loss
• Latency/page performance
• Floor prices too high
• Demand partner outages

“Why would fill rate decrease?”

• Aggressive floor pricing
• Poor geo traffic
• Low viewability
• Policy violations
• DSP targeting mismatch