Preferred Deals for Publishers
Last updated: November 7, 2026
What this is
Selling inventory is easier when you know two things up front: the price a buyer is targeting and how much they plan to spend over time. That lets you price smartly, plan capacity, and focus on the buyers who matter most.
Preferred Deals give publishers exactly that: predictable demand, clear spend commitments, and allocation based on performance.
Key takeaway: Preferred Deal buyers commit spend for 3+ months at a preferred CPE, so you can see the total opportunity. Bids above the deal's CPE cap aren't eligible. Allocation can be automatic, based on your Performance Rating, Max Avails, CPEs, and whether the buyer has favorited you.
What are Preferred Deals?
Preferred Deals are a transactional model for buyers who commit spend up front for 3+ months.
Here's how the two models compare:
Model | What it means for you |
|---|---|
Preferred Deal | Advertisers commit spend up front for 3+ months and set a preferred cost per engagement (CPE). You can see the total committed spend and the price needed to win. Your CPEs must stay within the deal's CPE cap. Campaigns need broad audiences, and custom questions are limited. |
Programmatic Guaranteed | Advertisers send an RFP with no spend commitment and no CPE cap. You bid on the RFP. Narrow targeting, custom qualification and smaller budgets are supported. |
Unlike on Programmatic Guaranteed, Preferred Deal buyers commit to a defined spend over time and set a preferred cost per engagement (CPE) for inventory in that deal.
That longer commitment plus a preferred CPE gives you clear visibility into:
the total size of the opportunity
the price needed to win demand
how steady future campaign flow will be
What you get as a publisher
Clear view of committed spend
Preferred Deals include an up-front customer commitment over a set period. You can see the total committed spend for the whole deal, so it's easier to size the opportunity and plan your resources.
Steadier, more predictable demand
Spend is committed at the customer level, which reduces swings from campaign to campaign. Longer commitments mean more consistent campaign flow and fewer surprises.
Fair, performance-based allocation
As with Programmatic Guaranteed, buyers can allocate manually. Preferred Deals also support Auto-Allocation, powered by Audyence's decision engine.
Auto-Allocation is dynamic, and taking part doesn't guarantee an allocation. It's based on:
your Performance Rating (visible on Achiever and Earner plans)
your Max Avails for the campaign
your Standard and Discounted CPEs (within the deal cap)
whether the buyer has favorited you
Tip: Performance and competitive pricing, not guesswork, drive how much you get. See Performance Ratings.
Limits for Preferred Deal buyers
Preferred Deals are built for scale and predictability, so:
campaigns must have broad target audiences
custom questions are limited
minimum campaign budgets must be met
This model suits steady, repeatable demand, not highly customized campaigns.
Programmatic Guaranteed still matters
Preferred Deals don't replace Programmatic Guaranteed campaigns. Programmatic Guaranteed is still available and still:
runs without a CPE cap
supports narrow targeting, custom qualification, and smaller budgets
Buyers who don't commit to longer-term spend, or who are new to Audyence, keep running campaigns through Programmatic Guaranteed.
Note: You can take part in both models at the same time. The dashboard labels every campaign as Preferred Deal or Programmatic Guaranteed, so it's always clear which is which.
Bidding cap based on the customer's commitment
Preferred Deals enforce a CPE cap during bidding.
The cap is set by the customer's committed spend, so pricing stays in line with what the buyer committed.
CPE values can include decimals, so you can price more precisely and competitively.
The discounted CPE can equal the standard CPE on Preferred Deal campaigns.
Important: Bids above the cap aren't eligible for allocation.
The bottom line
Preferred Deals give you up-front transparency, predictable demand, and performance-driven allocation. Together with Programmatic Guaranteed, they make Audyence, and you as a supplier, more scalable and strategic.