TABLE OF CONTENTS


Introduction

  • A Strategy enables clients to:  
    • Easily manage and define their performance goals
    • Intuitively integrate with existing marketing processes
    • Utilize algorithm logic for improved success



Structure

  • The following diagram highlights the operational differences between the algorithm and user perspective within the platform.
    1. User's view: A strategy contains a strategy goal, a strategy budget, a bidding market group, and a bidding hotel group.
    2. Algo’s view: The algorithm will monitor the strategy performance and leverage the multiplier to adjust the bid, or split/merge the bid group for better performance.



Workflow


Section 1. Create a Strategy


Notes:

  • Please make sure that you have bound all the hotels to the Kayak channel on which you want to set up a bid for your strategy and that the status is active.
  • Unbound hotels or hotels in “pause” status could not be added to a strategy for bidding.
  • The hotels in the “Hotels in Channels” page with “active” status are the ones you can add to a strategy.



1-1 Strategy Goal-Bid Target/Budget

Step 1. Create Strategy

  • Under Strategies, click Create Strategy to build the first strategy. 

Step 2. Select Target Performance

  • You can select the target performance
    • Select from the drop-down menu
    • ROAS
      • Value range: 0.1~100
      • Min Spend: 
        • Description: A minimum spend cap refers to a predetermined spend threshold or limit you can set for a month, which can be regarded as a learning spend or training allowance for the users. It’s an additional spend control function for you to set.
        • Eg:

          -  When the MTD ROAS is above the target, the Algorithm will increase the bid to reach the target ASAP. 

          - Whenever MTD ROAS is below target, the Algorithm will cut off cost within the training allowance value you have set to control the total spend.

        • Value Range: Optional, [20 , Spend Cap]

          - If you set Spend Cap with quarterly cadence, then the Min spend range will be [20, Spend Cap/3]

    • Average Position
      • Value range:1~12

Step 3. Add a Spend Cap

  • Add a Spend Cap for the strategy with a monthly or quarterly cadence. 
    • Select from the drop-down menu
    • Monthly, Quarterly
    • Value range:20~1,000,000
    • If a Spend Cap of 1M is too restrictive, please contact the DerbySoft team to have this raised. 

1-2 Strategy Scope - Add Markets

Step 1. Select the Required Bidding Market

  • Click Add Markets to select the required bidding market.

Step 2. Get Available Markets

  • Start by adding a filter such as "Country/Territory" to retrieve available markets. 
    • Select a filter from the drop-down menu
    • You can add one or multiple filters to set the condition and get the required markets
    • Multiple filters operate using “and” conditioning

Notes:

  • One market can only be set into one strategy.
  • All markets that are already alive in other strategies will be excluded.
  • If all the markets are already alive in other strategies, then no market could be selected

  • You can view the selected market list and adjust by removing markets if needed.
  • You can also click Clear All to set the market group again.

1-3 Strategy Scope-Add Hotels

  • Add hotels by either clicking Manually Add Hotels or Import from Group.


Option 1.  Manually Add Hotels

  • Start by adding a filter such as "Hotel Country" to retrieve available hotels. 
  • Once the correct hotels are listed, click Add Hotels.

  • You should see the selected hotels populated in the hotel list section.
  • You can also remove several hotels from the list or by clicking Clear All to add hotels again.

Notes:

  • One hotel can be set into at most 5 strategies if the hotel group that contains this hotel is not reused.
  • All hotels that are already active in other strategies will be excluded.
  • [Reusable scope] The system will detect if your selection is the same as a current group. If yes, we will reuse the same one to reduce group usage.



Option 2.  Import From Group

You can reuse a hotel group by clicking Import from Group to a new strategy.

Notes:

  • To customize the market name, click Rename.

  • Hotel groups can be updated or changed.

1-4 Strategy Naming/List

  • After confirming all the target performance, market group, and hotel group settings, click Submit.

  • You can rename a strategy or use the one generated by the system, i.e. “Jun 13 Test”.

  • You can view the created strategy in the strategy list.



Section 2. Update a Strategy

Step 1. Manage Strategy Status

  • You can enable, pause, and archive a strategy by selecting one or multiple strategies.


Step 2. Update Strategy Settings

  • You can click the strategy name to view the strategy details and update the strategy settings.

  • Once a strategy is live, You can: 
    • Update the target performance
    • Rename the market name and hotel name
    • Remove the hotels one by one or in bulk from the hotel group
    • Remove the markets one by one or in bulk from the market group
    • Add new markets to the existing market group by filters
    • Add new hotels to the existing hotel group by filters

Tips:
The hotel group used by another strategy at the same time cannot be changed. If you want to change the hotels of this current strategy, you will need to remove the entire group and add hotels manually.


Bid Group Introduction

  • The Bid group is the unit for the Algorithm to set up the base bid and a combination of a market group and a hotel group.
  • Bid groups can be split into sub-layers of at most 5 and viewed in a hierarchy/list.
  • The base bid of a sub-layer bid group will override the base bid of its parent layer bid group and be pushed to the channel in the end.






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