Step-by-Step Onboarding Guide

*Once your account has been set up by the EX.CO team, please follow these steps to begin your onboarding process. Don't have an account? contact your EX.CO team. 

1.EX.CO’s Demand Partners Approval

As this step may take time, we highly recommend starting your onboarding process by completing this step first. 

1. ADS.TXT file 
Two ways to get your Ads.txt

• • Get your 'ADS.TXT' file from your EX.CO success manager. 
  • Download & Implement Your EX.CO ADS.txt Lines from the ex.co platform
    1. Access your account on the EX.CO platform.
    2. Onboard your domain to the EX.CO platform (here's how). 
    3. Download ads.txt (here's how).
    4. Implement the ads.txt file on the domains you wish to onboard.
    5. Please notify your EX.CO success manager once the implementation is complete.
       
       

2. Set Up Your Domains for EX.CO’s Demand Partners Approval

• Provide your Google MCM Details to EX.CO and wait for an invite (here's how).
• Approve MCM invite. 
• Navigate to the 'Domains Manager' page under the 'Account' tab in the left sidebar menu.
• Click on 'Add Domain' to open the new domain creation modal.
• Input a descriptive name, the domain URL, and the estimated monthly player loads.

2. Set Up Your Own Publisher Demand

1. Access Demand Management

• Navigate to Monetization > Demand Management: Initiate the setup by selecting 'Add new demand'.
• Configure Demand Types:
  • Here is a YouTube video on how to set up your demand in the Demand Management section
    1. Prebid: Recommended SSP List here. Please reach out to your existing partners to request Prebid IDs
    2. Google: Follow the instructions here to create a dedicated tag for your EX.CO placement. Once that is set up, you’ll also need to set up an automated, daily report to EX.CO (CPM Sync Reporting Instructions) (Required)
    3. Amazon: Please reach out to your Amazon rep who can provide you with a Publisher ID, Slot ID, and bidding table

2.  Activation

• Save Tag: Once saved, EX.CO will automatically start serving it as part of your monetized players.

3. Integrate your content & manage playlist  

The EX.CO platform allows you to integrate content in various ways, you can pick one or more from the list below:

1. Upload and Manage Video Content

• Use the 'Create' button or 'Import video' in the media library to add videos.
• Transcode videos into multiple quality versions.
• Edit video details like title, clickthrough URLs, and tags.
  
  

2. Create a Static Playlist

• Click on the ‘Create’ button and select ‘New Playlist’.
• Add up to 20 different videos and edit the playlist as needed.
• Associate the playlist with an existing player or create a new player.
  
  

3. Set Up an MRSS/RSS Feed

• Use 'Create' > 'New Feed' to add MRSS or RSS feeds.
• Provide a name, feed type, XML link, and the desired number of videos.
• The system refreshes the feeds hourly for updated content.
  
  

4. Create a Dynamic Playlist

• Click on "Create Dynamic Playlist" in the top right corner of the media library page.
• Enter a descriptive name and apply filters to select videos.
• Save and publish the curated playlist.
  
  
  

5. Integrate Your YouTube Videos

• Click on the “Media Library” and then the “Create” button.
• Select the “Connect YouTube” option and provide the YouTube account Data API key.
• Import videos manually or set up auto-import for new videos.
  
  

6. Don’t have content? Utilizing EX.CO Marketplace

• Access the 'EX.CO Marketplace' to explore a variety of video content.
• Use filters and search functionality to find and integrate high-quality content.
• Assign EX.CO curated playlists to your player for enhanced content engagement.

4. Generate player tag

1. Create Your First Player

• Click 'Create' in the top right corner and select the player type (Vertical, Horizontal, Highlights).
• Provide a descriptive name and associate it with your domain.
• Customize the player’s aesthetics, UI, and functionality.
• Preview the player using the ‘Preview’ button.

5. Implement the EX.CO Player on Test Pages

Before going live, please confirm the player and content look good on a test page/ dev environment, and send to your EX.CO team to green light for launch. Please note; that you’ll be able to test monetization on a live page only.

1. Previewing Your Player:

• During the creation process, preview your player using the ‘Preview’ button at the top.
• View how the player appears in both desktop and mobile formats.
  
  

2. Embedding the Player on Your Website’s test page:

• Copy the embed code directly from the creator using the ‘Embed’ button.
• Choose from available embed code options such as JS, AMP, or AMP sticky for implementation.
• Test the player behavior and content connection on your test page 

3. Accessing and Editing the Player:

• Once created, the player will be listed on the 'Players' page.
• Edit the player by clicking on its name or use the ‘Actions’ menu to access the ‘Edit’ button.
  
  

6. EX.CO’s Test Pages QA

• Allow the EX.CO to access the test pages and check player appearance, load, sticky mode, and implementation. 
• EX.CO conducts a final demand check, ensuring domains are whitelisted and demand partners are connected.

7. Going Live

1. Greenlight and Initial Monitoring:

• EX.CO gives the green light to go live. 
• Once approved, let the EX.CO team know the day and time you’re planning to push the players to production
• EX.CO monitors initial health metrics, including unit placement, appearance, user distribution, load time, GEO spread, device, OS, PL, RPM, FR, negative interaction, session distribution, and URLs (first 24 hours).
• EX.CO conducts deep data analysis to optimize. 

2. Demand and Quality Check:

• EX.CO checks programmatic and direct demand performance, ensuring all approved demands are receiving requests and buying on the domain.
• EX.CO checks quality and viewability.
• EX.CO performs necessary testing, including split traffic and A/B tests where needed.

8. Ongoing optimization