Uploading VAST Tags

Add new creatives to the DSP from the Creative panel or the tactic editor.

VAST (Video Ad Serving Template) is the IAB's standard for communicating the details of video ad serving. This standard handles the display of ads in, on, or around a video or audio player.

While we support third-party VAST, we recommend that you upload audio and video ads directly to Basis DSP. There are two main advantages: first, when you upload an ad to the DSP, we can automatically transcode it into variations that cover all known publisher requirements. Second, we can track companion impressions and clicks for ads in the DSP. When you use third-party VAST, it isn't possible for us to track companion impressions and clicks due to limitations in the VAST specification.

For information about bulk uploading VAST tags, see Bulk Uploading Vast Tags and Bulk Uploading Ads.

Upload VAST Tag

To upload a VAST tag:

  1. Go to Main Menu [] > Campaigns.

  2. Select the campaign and media plan.

  3. Select DSP ActionsCreative.

  4. On the Creative panel, select AddVAST.

  5. Enter the creative's details:

    • Ad Name: Enter the creative's name (maximum 150 characters). Use a descriptive name that you'll recognize when you have many creatives in the DSP.

    • VAST XML File URL: Enter the VAST tag (the code used to call a VAST ad).

      • Click Insert macros to automatically insert Basis DSP macros for Campaign Manager 360.

    • VPAID Version (Optional): If your ad uses Video Player Ad Interface Definition (VPAID), select the appropriate VPAID version.

    • Declare Vendor (Optional): Select a vendor. Google requires that certain ad serving vendors must be declared for ads to run on Google Ad Manager. If you're not using any of the vendors on the list, you don't need to make a declaration.

    • SSL Status: If the creative and all of the trackers that it uses meet the requirements for secure environments, select SSL secure.

      Make sure that you declare the ad's SSL status appropriately. The DSP uses this status to decide if the ad can be used for ATS-compliant impressions, and if you mark an ad that contains non-secure elements as secure, it may not render correctly. See ATS Compliance for more information about testing ads for ATS security.

    • Event Tracking URLs (Optional): Event tracking URLs are called when a particular event happens (for example, the video or audio file starts playing). Click Add Tracking URL, select the Event Type, and enter the Tracking URL (including https://). You can add multiple event trackers of the same type, up to 100 total.

    • Brand Domain: Enter the domain that represents the brand. When you add a domain for the first creative that you upload for a brand, it becomes the default domain for any new creatives that you upload for that brand. See our FAQ section on Brand Domains and Verticals for more information.

    • Brand Verticals: Select the categories that best represent the ad. When you add verticals to the first creative that you upload for a brand, they become the default verticals for any new creatives that you upload for that brand. See our FAQ section on Brand Domains and Verticals for more information.

      If you are creating a political campaign, you must select Sensitive Categories > Political (Elections). When you select this vertical, additional fields for political ad details appear. See Uploading Political Ads for more information.

  6. Select Save, then select Close to return to the Creative panel.

    After uploading a creative, make sure it works correctly, then link it to a tactic. See Previewing Creatives and Linking Creatives to a Tactic.

Rotating VAST Creatives

If you want to run multiple VAST ads in a rotation, upload two separate creatives to the DSP.

The DSP reads and stores media file info at the time of upload, so if you upload a 15-second video file and then add a longer video to the tag for rotation, there may be issues when we try to fulfill bid requests. If a bid request only accepts 15-second ads, but we try to serve a 30-second ad, an error will occur or the ad will fail to play on the publisher's end.

Bid requests rarely have a fixed video length, but often have a minimum length and a maximum length, so any ads between the specified lengths would be eligible for delivery.