Creative delivery types

When setting up a line item in Emperor, you must select a Creative Delivery Type. This setting controls how creatives are served across the placements targeted by the line item.

There are three options: Rotation, Fixed, and Roadblock.

Rotation

Creatives assigned to the line item rotate across the selected placements. Each time an impression is served, the ad server selects a creative based on the rotation logic configured.

Example

A line item targets three placements in a newsletter. Two creatives are assigned. Each placement independently receives one of the two creatives on each sendout, rotating between them over time.

When to use

Use Rotation when you want to A/B test creatives, spread impressions evenly across multiple ads, or give the ad server flexibility in creative selection.

Fixed

One specific creative is assigned to each placement. The same creative always serves on that placement for the duration of the line item — there is no rotation.

Example

A line item targets a top banner and a mid-article placement. Creative A is fixed to the top banner; Creative B is fixed to the mid-article placement. Every subscriber sees the same creative in each slot.

When to use

Use Fixed when an advertiser requires a specific creative to appear in a specific placement, or when placement-level creative control is part of the campaign brief.

Roadblock

One advertiser's creatives fill all selected placements in the same newsletter sendout simultaneously. Instead of competing with other advertisers across placements, the roadblock ensures the line item owns every targeted slot in a given edition.

Roadblock uses a master and companion setup:

Master placement: the primary placement that triggers the roadblock. The ad server selects the line item based on the master placement's targeting and availability.
Companion placements: all other targeted placements that are filled automatically once the master is selected.

Example

A newsletter has four ad slots: a top banner, a mid-article native unit, a sidebar, and a footer. An advertiser books a roadblock on two of them — the top banner (master) and the mid-article unit (companion). When a subscriber opens that edition, both slots display creatives from that single advertiser. The sidebar and footer are not part of the roadblock and are filled through regular ad selection.

When to use

Use Roadblock for premium sponsorships where an advertiser wants complete, uninterrupted presence throughout a newsletter edition. A master placement must be selected for each targeted newsletter.