Blog post
Holiday ROI opportunities: How publishers can win Q4
We all see it: Conversational AI has completely changed the way people find information and how traffic reaches publisher properties. But as generative AI and agentic usage continue growing, publishers have new monetization opportunities for both humans and automated systems—just in time for the busy holiday season.
The traditional approach of managed inventory planning based on third-party data and predictable audience behavior is under pressure. The impact is visible: Some publishers are already losing up to 25% of their search-driven traffic to AI-powered summaries, according to Digital Content Next.
As a publisher, if you can package your inventory as trusted, high-value, and transparent, supply will attract premium demand. However, the Programmatic Pioneers Summit reports that while there’s significant opportunity, the market itself is filled with challenges: too much complexity, poor quality inventory, and a lack of transparency.
So publishers today need tools to adapt faster and offer brand value across interactions. And the right, differentiated AI-powered tools and policies will make it easier to grow your revenue throughout the holidays in this evolving market.
Microsoft Monetize: Copilot, New Interface, New Opportunities
Launched in April 2025, Copilot in Microsoft Monetize is an AI-powered partner for publishers. With Copilot, users gain immediate access to deep platform knowledge, best practices, and contextual step-by-step support. It draws from Microsoft Learn, integrating API documentation, system configuration, and even third-party modules, helping every publisher unlock Monetize’s full potential.
Our newly unified homepage offers a performance-focused dashboard that’s designed to help you maximize ad revenue during Q4. The dynamic dashboard centralizes performance metrics and diagnostic alerts. AI identifies a publisher’s most pressing opportunities and provides solutions: missed revenue, blocked brands, and ads.txt issues, for example. Tasks that once required manual reporting or significant effort are solved in a few clicks, improving productivity and profitability.
“This is more than just a UI update—it’s the beginning of a strategic shift leveraging Copilot. AI is now deeply embedded into the core of Microsoft Monetize, helping companies like Gourmet Ads move faster and think smarter on a day-to-day perspective."
— Benjamin Christie, Founder and President at Gourmet Ads
Consider the impact: Over a seven-day period, 13% of platform users identified brand spend from a blocked category they should consider reviewing to potentially improve yield. Over the same timeframe, 10% detected one or more ads.txt or app-ads.txt issues, 15% identified a deal that stopped transacting, and 83% had an issue they should consider reviewing on their placements—all issues that historically would have eroded earnings.1
What once required hours of investigation now happens in moments, guided by intelligent automation.
2 ways to make the most of Microsoft Monetize in Q4
1. Maximize every impression with Native Assembly
Managing native ad inventory can be challenging, from sourcing demand to overseeing placement design and asset alignment. But you can’t afford to miss out on a native ad strategy, as native is projected to hit 36% of all digital ad spend in 2026.2 Site visitors prefer it as well, with 89% wanting less intrusive ads.
Native Assembly from Microsoft Advertising puts simple native inventory setup at your fingertips. It allows you to serve native demand through traditional display placements with no code changes required. The May 2025 update streamlined this even further, introducing an easy-to-use asset management interface within Monetize.
Publishers can also leverage Adaptive rendering to automatically optimize asset requests and styling for better performance. Activating Native Assembly supports this by increasing fill rates and capturing native budgets that might otherwise go untapped.
To make the most of your native ad inventory, apply these best practices:
- Identify which placements across your domains best align with native demand.
- Preview projected revenue uplift before launch to understand bottom-line impact.
- Monitor ad performance across display and native formats to stay ahead and optimize your business strategy.
2. Unlock premium demand with Media Marketplace
As of January 2025, over 80% of nonsocial programmatic display spend is now transacted through Private Marketplaces (PMPs) or direct deals, rather than open exchanges3 with buyers citing transparency and control as key drivers. Having your inventory stand out in a crowded programmatic landscape takes precision and partnership. The recently launched Media Marketplace is another way Microsoft Advertising is helping publishers unlock demand. It provides buyers with a self-service deal discovery tool, creating more opportunities for publishers to connect with advertisers.
Publishers can choose to have their inventory included in multi-publisher deals as well as have dedicated single publisher packages put in place. We manage all the package operations so you don’t have to, freeing up your development resources for other projects. The kicker? These curated packages are supported by our dedicated marketplace sales team and integrations with 30+ DSP partners. Consider opting into curation to maximize your supply discoverability ahead of this holiday season.
Ready to build your holiday 2025 monetization strategy?
Publishers ready to leverage AI and enhance their monetization strategies can partner with Microsoft Advertising to uncover new revenue opportunities. By activating Native Assembly, and using tools like Media Marketplace, you can take control of your inventory value and unlock stronger relationships with premium buyers.
Reach out to Microsoft Advertising expert to learn more.
[1] Microsoft Internal Data, July 2025
[2] eMarketer Forecast, January 2025. US Native Display Ad Spending, by Segment, 2022-2026.
[3] Ad Curation: What Marketers Need to Know about This Hot Advertising Topic.” EMARKETER, 30 Apr. 2025, https://www.emarketer.com
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