Custom delivery curves

Custom delivery curves allow you to provide hints on how you want delivery to be skewed over a campaign, such as a boost in delivery amounts during certain time intervals. Learn how to set line item pacing to use a custom curve.

For example, if a TV show is premiering on a given day, you could boost the intended delivery goal for that hour to deliver more over that specific time period. Or, you could serve half of the campaign in the two weeks before the premiere, and the other half over the rest of the campaign.

Ad Manager uses the custom delivery curves provided by you to calculate pacing goals corresponding to the actual traffic patterns. This allows for a stable satisfaction index (SI), even with spiky and variable traffic, and reduces subsequent under delivery.

Set up a custom delivery curve

When you set up or edit a line item, you can set the "Delivery pacing source" to "Custom curve" in the adjust delivery section. Custom curves allow you to set a series of absolute or percentage goals for the duration of the line item.

Individual goals in the series are set by indicating a Start time and either a Percentages or Impressions amount. Since goals must span the entire line item duration, the start time of the first goal must match the line item start time. Each goal applies until the next goal's start time, or in the case of the last goal, the line item end time.

As you set goals, the Remaining or overage amount is displayed. This is the amount that must be added or subtracted to your goals to meet the line item requirement. The total of all goals must add up to either 100% or the full impression goal for the line item.

Amounts are used to derive goals, are not applied literally, and are not guaranteed. If updates are made to a line item impressions goal that has a custom curve uploaded, Ad Manager recalculates the goals without requiring you to modify the curve. Any remaining amount not delivered based on an individual goal is distributed across the other goals.

Example

• Campaign period: 12/1/2023 – 12/5/2023
• Amount: 9920 impressions

Intended delivery plan

Start time	Amount
12/1/2023 12:00 AM	3000
12/2/2023 12:00 AM	4200
12/3/2023 12:00 AM	720
12/4/2023 12:00 AM	500
12/5/2023 12:00 AM	1500

 

If you apply a custom curve to a line item that is already active, the start time in the curve can be the current time (you don't have to provide historical data). Calculation of impression goals for the line item uses the count of remaining impressions for that line item.