Create an Ad Schedule
The Ad Schedule functionality allows you to create granular hourly and daily ad delivery schedules for Onsite Sponsored Products line items. This helps you optimize visibility during the times your audience is most active and engaged.
In this guide, you’ll learn how to create an ad schedule for your Onsite Sponsored Products line items, use the scheduling interface and rules, apply best practices and recommendations, and understand when ad scheduling is and isn’t recommended.
To create a schedule for your Onsite Sponsored Products line item:
On the campaign dashboard, click the desired campaign name to open the line item dashboard.
On the line item dashboard, click + Line item to create a new line item or click the three dots against your desired line item to edit it
In the line item creation workflow, scroll down to find the Ad Schedule tool under the larger Schedule heading in Step 1.
Click the arrow next and choose Run ads on a schedule to reveal a series of three dropdowns that can be used to select your desired schedule: Day(s) of the week, Start Time, and End Time.
Choose a day of the week or use the weekday (Monday–Friday) or weekend (Saturday-Sunday) presets.
Input your desired start time, from 12:00 a.m. to End of Day (11:59 p.m.)
Input your desired end time, from 12:00 a.m. to End of Day (11:59 p.m.
Use the Add button to build out your schedule.
Click the x on the right of each rule to remove it. To reset the schedule entirely, click Run ads all the time.
Ad Scheduling Recommendations
Ad Scheduling is a powerful tool that helps you control delivery and ensure that you reach your target audience at the most impactful times. Here are some key tips:
Leverage data: Ad scheduling lets you adjust ad delivery based on when shoppers are most active and engaged, so use historical performance reporting to identify which time slots and days of the week routinely have higher conversion rates.
Test and Monitor: Start with a phased approach. Minimize risk to your campaign by implementing ad scheduling strategies on a smaller scale initially. Monitor the performance impact, and gradually adapt your delivery schedule based on ongoing review of the data, user behavior, and market trends.
Understand the Competition: Ad scheduling can be used to help advertisers with limited funds (i.e., routinely capping out)concentrate ad delivery during the most important time slots. That said, the time slots with the highest engagement may also be the most competitive. Adapt your CPC bidding strategy based on the competitiveness of certain time periods. You can adjust bids during high-conversion hours to ensure your ads remain visible and competitive.
Seasonal or Event-Based Campaigns: For advertisers running campaigns tied to specific events or seasons, ad scheduling allows you to intensify and concentrate your efforts during relevant periods, ensuring maximum impact during key moments. We recommend that retailers and brands leverage their promotional calendars to identify time frames where site traffic and consumer interest may be highest.
When is Ad Scheduling not recommended?
Always make sure that ad schedules are deployed toward achieving a specific strategic objective. Ad scheduling is not suitable for campaigns and line items struggling to scale. By limiting a line item’s delivery to specific time periods, you further reduce the chance that your ad will be seen by interested shoppers. Since Sponsored Products are on the CPC model, advertisers do not pay for impressions. Advertisers risk missing potential opportunities for engagement and conversions during other times of the day, and in these circumstances, the objective should be to maximize exposure.