Don’t miss next week’s AI webinar  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ Raptive News MARCH 11, 2026 By Lauren Fitzpatrick Director, Editorial Strategy Hi Raptive, The last six months have been an exercise in patience, as we see advertisers’ confidence levels play out in real time. “Advertising is an investment in future sales,” says James Baldwin, our SVP of Creator Performance. “If you think that spending $1 today will help you generate $5 in sales in a few months, you’ll invest. If you don’t think you’ll make that $5, you may choose to save that money or invest it somewhere less risky.” As RPMs slowly climb, it appears advertisers are becoming less hesitant about investing those ad dollars. But whatever they decide, you can trust that we’re pulling every lever on our end to make you the most money—and we’ve got a lot of levers. Here’s what’s inside: • Programmatic trends we’re watching in 2026 • Tips for getting creative with video • Sign up for next week’s AI webinar What’s new Predicting the future of programmatic advertising We asked our Chief Strategy Officer Paul Bannister to pull out his old crystal ball to see what’s in store for programmatic advertising this year. He did us one better, and shared insights based on real-world trends. Between major sporting events, increased advertiser demand for outcomes, and our push to shape better industry standards, here’s why Paul is optimistic about 2026 ad spend. Trends to watch → Top resource Get more creative with video YouTube recently took the title of world’s largest media company, with nearly $60 billion in revenue during 2025. So there’s no escaping the truth: video is a lucrative part of content creation. But creating video can be one more hefty serving on your already-very-full plate. If the mere mention of video feels overwhelming, we have nine proven ideas to get you started. Your challenge? Start with one idea and see where it takes you. Choose your favorite video idea → Quick tip What advertisers want from your site “Advertisers want a premium site when they’re paying a premium for advertising. At first glance, they’re looking for a great design, a clean experience, and rich content. Site design matters because they want the consumer experience to be really positive.” MaryRay Lombardo SVP, Advertising Partnerships Don’t miss Catch tomorrow’s live SEO Workbook walkthrough It’s great to hear how the SEO Workbook is simplifying your workflow and saving you time. Turn your data into actionable next steps. Join us live on Thursday, March 12, at 1 pm EST if you’ve been trying out the SEO Workbook and have questions. Eddie Mercado, VP of SEO Solutions, will walk you through the tool and show how the core tabs work together to help build a focused growth plan. Register now to join us → Join our AI webinar on March 19 AI is reshaping how content gets created, discovered, and monetized. We’ve been building behind the scenes to help you stay ahead and lead in an AI-first world. Join us on Thursday, March 19, at 2 pm EST for a webinar with Chief Strategy Officer Paul Bannister. He’ll share an important update on the: • Impact of AI on our network traffic • New approaches to content monetization • Tools we’re building to help you succeed • Lawsuits and regulations that protect content creators We’ll host a live Q&A—please share your questions when you register. Reserve your spot now → In the news Google Discover is gaming sites’ secret weapon Google Discover accounts for almost half of Google traffic to tech and gaming sites in the Raptive network, and that share is poised to grow. After Google’s recent Discover-focused core update, we saw a 20% spike in Discover traffic for gaming sites in our network. Our SEO team’s insights on this shift are featured in a new GamesBeat article exploring why Discover has become such a powerful driver of traffic for gaming. “What’s fundamentally different about Discover from search is that it is interest-based and topical, rather than being keyword-based.” Tom Critchlow EVP of Audience Growth Read the full story on GamesBeat → What we’re reading Catch up on news from around the industry • Google AI mode cites itself more often, with more organic links (Search Engine Journal) • Our transformation in action (Business Insider) • Behind NYT’s first foray into in-game advertising (AdExchanger) Question of the week What’s your favorite type of video to create? 🧑‍🏫 How-to I’m either type A or an eldest child 🛍️ Product review I have opinions 🤸 Day in the life Strengthening those parasocial bonds ❌ None I’m a writer, not Spielberg Was this email helpful? You’re receiving this email because you help manage a site that works with Raptive. 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