Steps to Enable Custom Ads.txt on Blogspot

 

Setting up a proper custom ads.txt on Blogspot is essential to ensure legitimate advertisers are serving ads on your blog and to increase transparency and trust in the digital advertising ecosystem. Ads.txt (Authorized Digital Sellers) is a simple text file that tells third-party ad platforms who is authorized to sell ad inventory from your blog.

Steps to Enable Custom Ads.txt on Blogspot:

1. Go to Blogspot Dashboard:

- Login to your Blogspot account, and select the blog you want to set up.

2. Go to Settings:

- Select Settings from the menu on the left.

3. Enable Custom Ads.txt:

- Scroll down to the Monetization section.

- Under Custom ads.txt, enable the feature.

4. Add Custom Ads.txt Script:

- After enabling it, a text field will appear where you can enter your custom ads.txt code.

Correct Ads.txt Setup Example:

If you are using Google AdSense, the correct ads.txt example is as follows:

```txt

google.com,pub-00000000000000000,DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0

```

Explanation:

- google.com: This is the domain of the legitimate ad seller (Google).

- pub-00000000000000000: This is your publisher ID. You can find this ID in your Google AdSense account. Replace `0000000000000000` with your AdSense ID.

- DIRECT: Indicates that you are the direct owner of this ad inventory and are selling it directly through Google AdSense.

- f08c47fec0942fa0: This is the unique ID (or Certification ID) for Google AdSense. You should use this as is.

If you use more than one ad network or other advertising platform, add a new line for each ad network. For example:

```txt

google.com,pub-0000000000000001,DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0

appnexus.com,234567,RESELLER,5a6c31f2c3a24b7

openx.com,789012,DIRECT,6c8bcd00af8dfb2

```

Further Explanation:

- Ad Domain: The domain name of the authorized ad seller.

- Publisher ID: The ID associated with your ad account on that network.

- DIRECT / RESELLER: If you are the direct owner (DIRECT) or reseller (RESELLER) of the ad inventory.

- Certification ID: Each ad platform has a unique ID. Make sure this ID matches the one provided by the ad network.

Importance of Using Ads.txt:

- Protecting Revenue: With ads.txt, you prevent unauthorized parties from selling your ad inventory, which can lead to reduced revenue.

- Increasing Transparency: Advertisers can verify whether they are buying ads from legitimate sources or not.

- Required by AdSense: Google AdSense now strongly recommends publishers to use ads.txt to protect their ad inventory. Otherwise, ad revenue may be affected.

Conclusion:

By properly installing ads.txt on Blogspot, you protect your blog from unauthorized ad sellers, as well as comply with Google AdSense and other ad networks’ policies. Make sure to always check the latest guidelines from the ad networks you use to ensure your ads.txt is compliant.