As we’ve been ramping up our pilot of Microsoft adCenter Content Ads, we’ve been asked how advertisers can set individual keyword bids for content. While it’s not necessary to set individual bids for content, this option will give you additional control over your campaigns.

Selecting a distribution method
Before setting individual bids, first confirm that Content Ads are enabled for your ad group. If you are participating in the Content Ads pilot, then your ad groups have been automatically set to include content distribution. You can also confirm this by selecting your ad group. On the Ad Group Settings tab, look for the Targeting section and then click the Select a distribution method for this ad group link shown below. Options for distribution will then appear. If the Content check box is checked, your ad group is currently distributing on the content network. By the way, this is the same location where you can turn off Content distribution—simply clear the Content check box.

Setting individual keyword bids
Next, to set your keyword bids for content, click the Keyword Performance tab, and then click the Edit Bids button. You’ll then see the Pricing screen where you have options to adjust bids and your monthly spend settings. On this screen, click the Advanced bidding options link shown below.

To set individual keyword bids for content, click both check boxes next to Bid separately for Content Ads and Change the base bid for individual keywords. Options for bidding separately for Content Ads and changing your base bids will then appear. You will also see the option to enter a maximum base bid and apply it to either search or content (pictured above the Performance and spend to date table). Your screen will update and show a table that allows you to set bids for each of your keywords and match types. To set bids specifically for content distribution, enter your base bid (CPC) for the keyword’s content match type. In the example below, we’ve set the base bid for “tax filing” as 0.05 for content.

If you don’t need to set individual bids for each keyword, but you do want a separate base bid for your content match type keywords, you can do this easily. First, enter your maximum base bid (CPC) in the text box above the Performance and spend to date table. Then, click the Apply to content button. This will update all of your content match type keywords to the bid value you entered.

Please note, if you haven’t yet been migrated to our beta site, these options will not be available. We hope this helps demonstrate how to control content bidding. If you have any other questions, feel free to post a comment or email us.

Jeanie
Microsoft adCenter Community Team