There’s a not-so-hidden battle going on in digital ads right now. Just keeping your brand safe? Not enough anymore. Meet brand suitability. Now it’s not just about dodging drama—your ads gotta hit the right vibe, every single time.
Used to be, ad rules were just about dodging disasters. Like, making sure your ad doesn’t play next to a wild news story you’d never support. That’s regular brand safety. Still matters, but it’s not all anymore. Platforms want you to think bigger now. It’s about precision: does your ad feel right here? Are you making people fans—or turning them off?
Here’s the big news: Amazon DSP and Adobe DSP just gave you, in open beta, new tools to steer your ad campaigns wherever you want—and avoid what you dread. Ever wonder where your ad budget actually goes? Or how to keep a nice ad from landing right after something super sketchy on Twitch? This is your playbook.
Now you get sharp tools, smart filters, even tweaks at the API level. Less "block all the bad stuff," more "make sure my ad fits in." It’s about context, brand style, and your real voice. Sounds a little sci-fi, right? But it’s happening now in open beta. The controls of tomorrow’s ad world—being built live, right now, by people like you.
In ad tech, you only get what you want if you tell the system what you DON’T want first.
You probably know brand safety: block violence, block fake news, call it done. Not anymore. Now, you gotta make sure your funny food ad doesn’t pop up next to a really dark doc. Or that your luxury brand stays far from wild Twitch memes…unless you actually want that.
Brand suitability is like brand safety’s older, wiser cousin. It’s more about making you look smart and on-purpose—not just “not embarrassing.”
In 2024, people see where your ad shows up. Health drink ad after horror movie? Wrong vibe. Eco soap on a fight forum? Trust lost in seconds.
Suitability is a tighter filter: more than just “don’t embarrass me.” Now you want every ad to feel smart and right. That means tuning your campaigns on factors like:
“Suitability is about the details—making your ad land not just safe, but in the perfect spot,” says Adweek analyst Jordan Cohen.
Open beta tools mean you get new controls. You can set your own filters, buddy up with experts like DoubleVerify, IAS, Comscore, and finally make your ads work for you instead of just playing defense.
What’s that mean for your ad campaigns? No more just reacting to bad placements. Now you call the shots. You decide where ads show, what topics or moods they land beside, and which places really fit your brand. You’re not just tiptoeing around risks. You’re picking what feels right.
Open beta is like real-time testing and tweaking. You get tomorrow’s features now, but you help make them better. Stop reacting later—set the rules before things go wrong. The sharper your rules, the less mess and the better your ad clicks with people.
Forget old “one-click to safety” stuff. 2016 is done. Modern tools have real dials, toggles, and API spots so you run the show, not just watch.
No more crossing fingers. Set hard rules before your ad even touches any content. You can get picky by publisher, topic, overall mood, or content type like “education” or “gaming.” Instead of hiding from “the bad stuff,” you hunt down the perfect match for your brand.
Say you’re a sneaker brand. Maybe you skip political podcasts, but double up on sports highlights. Or, if you want family-friendly, you block anything spicy or sarcastic—keeping every ad wholesome. This gets huge for brands with rules, like in CPG, healthcare, or finance.
Need more control? These betas let you tune suitability at campaign or ad group level right from the API. On Amazon DSP, you can tweak brandSafetyTierInheritedSettingDetails to set rules across a campaign or get micro, giving certain ad groups their own “safe zones” using brandSafetyTierTarget.
So you’re never stuck with just one setting. Run a super-safe brand campaign while testing a wilder launch—all side by side, all in your DSP.
Worried your brand rules won’t stick across the whole internet? That’s covered. Both DSPs let you add top verification pros like DoubleVerify or IAS straight into your controls. Zap their ID straight into the API, so every ad spot—Twitch, news, weird blogs—gets checked.
“Pre-bid blocking, audience filters, custom rules—brands can finally get picky,” says Mike Farrell, VP at Peer39.
Early access means some rough edges. Reports give you publisher data, impression types, and suitability scores, but hey, it’s beta. You usually get just seven days of deep detail, but that’s enough to spot what’s working or not—and fix things fast.
If your ad ends up somewhere iffy, you’ll see it, and can block or filter better next week. Real-time tweaks work now. Want months or years of data? Not quite yet—still gotta wait for that stuff to grow up.
During beta, it’s just for Twitch and Display/Video ads. Twitch is wild—chat flips from games to culture talk in seconds, so it’s a great testing lab. Early users get to shape how their brands appear—double down on gaming streams, or swerve from drama. Supported by API, monitored each week.
Say you’re selling energy drinks. Stick to “Family Friendly” or “Sports” streams. With these controls, you avoid hot takes or heated debates—every ad stays hyped and on message.
Every off-target ad wastes money. With tight brand suitability, you:
So, you’re not just playing defense. You’re making your brand shine. Your ads feel right, so people connect. Less time wasted. Every buck does more.
Smart suitability also fixes how you read your results. Use Amazon Brand Lift Study and Amazon Attribution to see what actually works. Early users see:
A big CPG advertiser using Adobe DSP’s beta cut wasted ads by 20% vs. old-school rules. That’s more clicks short-term, more loyal fans long-term—they trust your ad shows up in the right places.
“Tighter suitability cuts wasted ads by over 20% already,” says a major CPG brand in Adobe DSP’s beta.
And if you’re in riskier stuff—kids’ toys, banking, health—sentiment jumps up even faster, early surveys say.
Let’s be honest: beta means it’s not perfect. Some stuff you gotta watch:
“Suitability rules keep moving. Today’s drama is tomorrow’s normal. That’s why beta grows quick,” says one DSP product lead.
For now, if you want to go big or run cross-platform, you’ll need in-house checks and partner help. Update your rules a lot, cuz tomorrow’s content is always different.
Smart brands get specific. With the new DSP tools you can:
Adobe DSP shines at this. Campaign managers can nudge things toward "brand suitability first," or instead, "performance first." Running a strict brand drive? Dial it up. Launching something edgy? Loosen rules, but watch real close.
This is a lifesaver for brands running lots of styles or seasonal campaigns with changing vibes.
1. How’s brand safety different from suitability in DSPs?
Brand safety dodges obvious bad stuff like violence. Suitability finds exact spots where your ad really fits—based on audience, vibe, and context.
2. Which DSPs have suitability controls right now?
Amazon and Adobe DSP lead, with ad and ad group level controls, mainly for Twitch and Display/Video.
3. Do I need to code to use these settings?
API means dev skills help, but most let you do basics from the UI. For the deep end, your ad ops or dev team can sort the API magic.
4. How do these new controls change ad results?
Early days, but results are lower waste, better fit, more ROI. You’ll dodge angry viewers and get better matches.
5. Why use third-party checks for suitability?
Stuff like DoubleVerify or IAS gives you the same guardrails on every platform at once—less guesswork.
6. Any major beta limits?
Yup. Reports are short, it’s Twitch only, and AI is still learning. Good for testers right now, not set-and-forget.
Brand suitability tools are the future for running better ads. Not just to dodge PR headaches, but to make sure you show up in the right places, every single time. Right now, you’re both testing and building these rules—you’re setting the new normal.
The benefit? No more gambling. You set the rules, watch as your campaigns get sharper, safer, and truer to your brand. Jump in now, share feedback, help build the tools others will use later.
Want expert help making Amazon DSP suitability settings work? Or want to run ad campaigns at scale, with less hassle? Our DSP Services are made for this.
Want more key updates on DSP changes, or want to dive deeper on Amazon attribution and brand lift? Hit up our full guide to Amazon DSP optimization. And get the details on tracking performance with Amazon Attribution.