Custom Ads API
Introduction
As a CityGrid partner, you can place CityGrid ads on your web and mobile applications and get paid when your users click on them. Ads can be obtained by requests to the Custom Ads API, which provide you raw advertisement data in XML, leaving you free to customize all look-and-feel aspects of the display, including formatting, colors, and fonts.
Advertisements are requested by category and geography. Consider an application in which a user searches for "restaurants". The application has previously determined that the user is located in or near Santa Monica, CA, and has left that information in a cookie. The application can create relevant CityGrid advertisements by using "restaurants" and "Santa Monica, CA" as arguments when making a call to the Custom Ads API.
The Custom Ads API contains two endpoints: one for which the location is defined in terms of the name of a geographic region, and the other for which it is defined in terms of latitude and longitude.
Custom Ads by design contain no display information. If you wish to obtain pre-redendered ad units from CityGrid, see the Web Ads API for ads you can display on desktop browsers or the Mobile Ads API for ads you can display on mobile native and web applications.
Contents
Audience
The Custom Ads API is intended for developers of web and mobile applications who want place custom advertisements from CityGrid into their applications to earn credit when the advertisement is clicked. Custom advertisements are ads which do not contain display information; instead, publishers are free to match their application's look-and-feel when rendering ad data.
Version 2 Updates
- Changes to results elements
- Added impression id, i
- The ad_destination_url is now an obfuscated URL. This URL will be decrypted and the proper redirect will take place when this link is followed.
Obtaining Custom Ads by Named Geographic Region
The where endpoint returns custom ads using a region (city, neighborhood, or metro) name or zip code. It is useful for free-form text and broad geographical region-based searches.
Where HTTPS Endpoint
The following endpoint is used with HTTPS GET:
https://api.citygridmedia.com/ads/custom/v2/where
Where Request
The following query string parameters are used with the Custom Ads API where endpoint:
Parameter | Description | Required | Valid Values | Default | Examples | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
what | What a user is searching for | Yes |
|
| pizza |
|
where | The geographic location, generally a zip code or city-state pair | See Notes below | A zip code, city-state pair, or street address (Spaces are optional following the comma between a city and state) |
| 91011 |
|
raw_what | The original user search phrase if available. | No |
|
| italian%20food |
|
raw_where | The original user search phrase if available. | No |
|
| los%20angeles |
|
radius | Radius of a circle search using client_ip. | No | An integer between 1 and 25, inclusive | 25 | 2 | If radius is larger than 25, it defaults to 25 |
publisher | The publisher code that identifies you | Yes |
|
| acme | This parameter is required so that we know who to credit |
max | The Number of ads that you want to be returned | Yes | Integers, 1 through 10 | 10 | 3 | Values over 10 will only return 10 results |
placement | An optional property for storing additional information you would like CityGrid Media to log for this view | No |
|
| google | An example: if you are re-syndicating advertisements, you can use this parameter to record the ultimate destination for the advertisement. If you are placing CityGrid advertisements on your own site, you can record where on your site the advertisement will be placed |
mapping_url | A callback URL | No |
|
| See #Mapping URL for more information. | |
client_ip | The IP address of your client | See Notes below | IPv4 or IPv6 |
| 17.148.221.102 | This is used to determine a geography if the where parameter is not supplied |
user_agent | The version of browser or device the ad is served on | No |
| The user agent value from the request header | Mozilla%2F5.0+%28BlackBerry%3B+U%3B+BlackBerry+9800%3B |
|
serve_url | The URL of the requested page | No |
|
| http%3A%2F%2Fnational.citysearch.com%2Fprofile%2F10843791 |
|
| sem_network | Property for storing the network for you to optimize your marketing campaigns against, if you do marketing | No | Alphanumeric | Google, Bing, Ezanga etc. | ||
| sem_network_source | Property for storing network source for you to optimize your marketing campaigns against, if you do marketing | No | Alphanumeric | Search network, Run of network, google.com etc. | ||
| sem_affiliate_id | Property for storing an affiliate id for you to optimize your marketing campaigns against, if you do marketing | No | Integer | Publisher id e.g. 3 | ||
| sem_sub_affiliate_id | Property for storing sub-affiliate_id for you to optimize your marketing campaigns against, if you do marketing | No | Integer | Sub-publisher id e.g. 21 | ||
| sem_campaign_id | Property for storing campaign id for you to optimize your marketing campaigns against, if you do marketing | No | Integer | 45723 | ||
| sem_adgroup_id | Property for storing adgroup id you to optimize your marketing campaigns against, if you do marketing | No | Alphanumeric | Generic Auto Parts | ||
| sem_creative_id | Property for storing creative id for you to optimize your marketing campaigns against, if you do marketing | No | Alphanumeric | swf1 | ||
| sem_query | Property for storing a query for you to optimize your marketing campaigns against, if you do marketing | No | Alphanumeric | pizza, sporting goods | ||
| sem_matched_keyword | Property for storing a matched keyword for you to optimize your marketing campaigns against, if you do marketing | No | Alphanumeric | construction | ||
| sem_device | Property for storing the device for you to optimize your marketing campaigns against, if you do marketing | No | Alphanumeric | mobile device, desktop etc. |
Arguments must be properly URL-encoded (spaces as %20 or +, ampersands as %26, and so on).
Notes
- To define a geography, you must either specify where or client_ip. If you specify both, then where will be used, and client_ip will be ignored.
- For where, the Specifying Where section in the Places API topic provides more details.
- For client_ip, you may specify a radius to indicate a circle around the location of the IP address. If no radius is specified, then a radius of 25 miles is used.
Where Usage Examples
The following table provides some example uses of the Custom Ads API and their corresponding URL with query parameters. Click on the links to try them out.
Usage | URL |
|---|---|
Return restaurants in Los Angeles | |
Return restaurants for postal code 90069 | https://api.citygridmedia.com/ads/custom/v2/where?what=restaurant&where=90069&publisher=test |
Return restaurants for a user at IP address 4.74.197.0 | |
Return up to 5 spas near zip code 90069 | https://api.citygridmedia.com/ads/custom/v2/where?where=90069&what=spa&publisher=test&max=5 |
Return up to 10 bars in Detroit. Note that 10 is the default maximum | https://api.citygridmedia.com/ads/custom/v2/where?where=Detroit,MI&what=bar&publisher=test |
Return up to 10 bakeries for whatever region the user with IP 23.110.26.29 resides | https://api.citygridmedia.com/ads/custom/v2/where?what=bakery&client_ip=23.110.26.29&publisher=test |
Return up to 10 pet businesses in Reno, telling CityGrid you would like this request logged under the placement identifier “magazine.” | |
Return up to 10 bars near zip code 90004, including an XML schema location with the results | https://api.citygridmedia.com/ads/custom/v2/where?where=90004&what=bar&publisher=test&schema=true |
Obtaining Custom Ads by Latitude and Longitude
The latlon endpoint returns custom ads using a geographic region defined by latitude and longitude.
LatLon HTTPS Endpoint
The following endpoint supports HTTPS GET:
https://api.citygridmedia.com/ads/custom/v2/latlon
LatLon Request
The following query string parameters are used with the Custom Ads API latlon endpoint:
Parameter | Description | Required | Valid Values | Default | Examples | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
what | What a user is searching for | Yes |
|
| pizza |
|
lat | Latitude of the center of a circle for a geographic search | See Notes below |
|
| 37.65056 |
|
lon | Longitude of the center of a circle for a geographic search. | See Notes below |
|
| -119.03639 |
|
radius | Radius of a circle search. | See Notes below | An integer between 1 and 50, inclusive | 4 | 2 | If radius is larger than 25, it defaults to 25 |
raw_what | The original user search phrase if available. | No |
|
| italian%20food |
|
raw_where | The original user search phrase if available. | No |
|
| los%20angeles |
|
publisher | The publisher code that identifies you | Yes |
|
| acme | This parameter is required so that we know who to credit |
max | The Number of ads that you want to be returned | Yes | Integers, 1 through 10 | 10 | 3 | Values over 10 will only return 10 results |
placement | An optional property for storing additional information you would like CityGrid Media to log for this view | No |
|
| google | An example: if you are re-syndicating advertisements, you can use this parameter to record the ultimate destination for the advertisement. If you are placing CityGrid advertisements on your own site, you can record where on your site the advertisement will be placed |
mapping_url | A callback URL | No |
|
| See #Mapping URL for more information. | |
client_ip | The IP address of your client | See Notes below | IPv4 or IPv6 |
| 17.148.221.102 | This is used to determine a geography if the where parameter is not supplied |
user_agent | The version of browser or device the ad is served on | No |
| The user agent value from the request header | Mozilla%2F5.0+%28BlackBerry%3B+U%3B+BlackBerry+9800%3B |
|
serve_url | The URL of the requested page | No |
|
| http%3A%2F%2Fnational.citysearch.com%2Fprofile%2F10843791 |
|
| sem_network | Property for storing the network for you to optimize your marketing campaigns against, if you do marketing | No | Alphanumeric | Google, Bing, etc. | ||
| sem_network_source | Property for storing network source for you to optimize your marketing campaigns against, if you do marketing | No | Alphanumeric | Search network, Run of network, google.com etc. | ||
| sem_affiliate_id | Property for storing an affiliate id for you to optimize your marketing campaigns against, if you do marketing | No | Integer | Publisher id e.g. 3 | ||
| sem_sub_affiliate_id | Property for storing sub-affiliate_id for you to optimize your marketing campaigns against, if you do marketing | No | Integer | Sub-publisher id e.g. 21 | ||
| sem_campaign_id | Property for storing campaign id for you to optimize your marketing campaigns against, if you do marketing | No | Integer | 45723 | ||
| sem_adgroup_id | Property for storing adgroup id you to optimize your marketing campaigns against, if you do marketing | No | Alphanumeric | Generic Auto Parts | ||
| sem_creative_id | Property for storing creative id for you to optimize your marketing campaigns against, if you do marketing | No | Alphanumeric | swf-1 | ||
| sem_query | Property for storing a query for you to optimize your marketing campaigns against, if you do marketing | No | Alphanumeric | pizza sporting goods | ||
| sem_matched_keyword | Property for storing a matched keyword for you to optimize your marketing campaigns against, if you do marketing | No | Alphanumeric | construction | ||
| sem_device | Property for storing the device for you to optimize your marketing campaigns against, if you do marketing | No | Alphanumeric | mobile device, desktop etc. |
Arguments must be properly URL-encoded (spaces as %20 or +, ampersands as %26, and so on).
Notes
- To define a geography, you must either specify lat, lon, and radius, or else client_ip. If you specify both, then lat/lon/radius will be used, and client_ip will be ignored.
- For lat/lon/radius, the Point-Radius Circle section in the Places API topic provides more details.
- For client_ip, you may specify a radius to indicate a circle around the location of the IP address. If no radius is specified, then a radius of 25 miles is used.
LatLon Usage Examples
The following table provides some example uses of the Custom Ads API and their corresponding URL with query parameters. Click on the links to try them out.
Usage | URL |
|---|---|
Return restaurants for an area described by latitude, longitude and radius | |
Same as above, but limited to 10 responses |
Mapping URL
The mapping url is an optional ad callback URL.
The mapping_url parameter is not commonly used. Work with your account manager if you are interested in using a callback.
The mapping url must have the following form:
https://<hostname>/<path>?impressionId=${adImpressionId}&referenceId=${refId}&listingId=${listingId}&cgRefId=${cgRefId}&actionTarget=${actionTarget}
Here <hostname> and <path> are provided by you; the API will generate the tracking information and replace the ${...} placeholders to provide the actual callback URL. You must provide parameter names and placeholders, exactly as specified above, for impressionId, referenceId, listingId, and cgRefId. Only actionTarget is optional.
The URL should be encoded before passing it as a parameter in the request.
Response
The Custom Ads Where results are returned in XML.
The following table describes the return elements:
Element | Parent Element | Description |
|---|---|---|
ads |
| Top level container of advertisement elements |
ad | ads | Advertisement data |
id | ad | The ID to uniquely identify the ad |
impression_id | ad | The impression ID returned per ad |
type | ad | The type of the ad. Always "local PFP", which indicates the ad to be local Pay For Performance |
listing_id | ad | The ID to uniquely identify CityGrid's businesses |
name | ad | The name of the advertiser's business |
street | ad | The street address of the business |
city | ad | The city of the business |
state | ad | The state of the business |
zip | ad | The postal code of the business |
latitude | ad | The latitude of the business |
longitude | ad | The longitude of the business |
phone | ad | The phone number of the business |
tagline | ad | The tagline of the business (always one line) |
description | ad | A description of the business |
overall_review_rating | ad | The rating of the business |
ad_destination_url | ad | The obfuscated url target of a click on the ad. This url is not visibly aesthetic, because it contains a number of tracking parameters |
ad_display_url | ad | A clean, but fake, url to show on a page, so end users are comfortable clicking on the associated ad |
ad_image_url | ad | The url of the image to display with the ad |
gross_ppe | ad | Price per event |
offers | ad | Offers the business is currently offering |
reviews | ad | Reviews of the business |
distance | ad | Distance the business is located from latitude/longitude provided. (Only provided for lat/lon Search) |
attribution_text | ad | The attribution text from our ads partners. This text must be displayed if attribution_text is provided. |
character data is required to be escaped, so you will likely see the character entities for ", &, >, <, and '.
XML Output
The following is an example of an XML response:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" standalone="no" ?>
<ads>
<!-- Copyright 2011 CityGrid -->
<ad id="46765212">
<impression_id>f777cba07607441e9ad8c67896bb61b0</impression_id>
<type>local PFP</type>
<listing_id>160089</listing_id>
<name>Nawab of India</name>
<street>1621 Wilshire Blvd</street>
<city>Santa Monica</city>
<state>CA</state>
<zip>90403</zip>
<latitude>34.0286</latitude>
<longitude>-118.4869</longitude>
<phone>3105847733</phone>
<tagline>Exotic Indian Cuisine</tagline>
<description/>
<overall_review_rating>7</overall_review_rating>
<ad_destination_url>http://pfpc.citygridmedia.com/pfp/ad/v2?
X7MFxm8prCBE3CqXUCtlE0UUuNO5pBYbX06LlRR3AAYnzLu4JPHmAVWlQsIhzkUkcuGU9iP0fi3n1cTOm2rDZYC8g5kvEzOeKTbqq0kOLs8KyIcaIENB0fL7wWxAg-aUimQMlKfw18-
019ihs_CtFKHqwORNXqZDUmDSlb03r7mAezr7aL7qOiZkr8HB_o7tYXkA37emJ7ldX0r51uG9xAfgbHqe61n-3szsh4fhb-W3tjiZT1dN8iH4_WeuS2XIYpDf9MDWUESLkcH2zO3r5TqOj6ht316M3OIIPUq55kVb9QytsGaYWA</ad_destination_url>
<ad_display_url>http://www.citysearch.com/profile/160089</ad_display_url>
<ad_image_url>http://images.citysearch.net/assets/imgdb/advertorial_profile/d3/e8/V-LOSCA-55109833_ID216108_guide_inclusion.jpg</ad_image_url>
<gross_ppe>0.13</gross_ppe>
<reviews>25</reviews>
<offers/>
<distance/>
<attribution_text/>
</ad>
</ads>
Error Codes
Errors are indicated in the HTTPS response as follows:
HTTPS Status Code | Type | Message | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
403 | Status report | Invalid 'publisher' parameter | Access to the specified resource has been forbidden because of an invalid publisher parameter. |
403 | Status report | Missing 'publisher' parameter | Access to the specified resource has been forbidden because of a missing publisher parameter. |
403 | Status report | Missing 'what' parameter | Access to the specified resource has been forbidden because of a missing what parameter. |
403 | Status report | Missing 'where' or 'lat' and 'lon' or 'client_ip' parameter | Access to the specified resource has been forbidden because of missing location information (where, lat and lon, or client_ip). |
403 | Status report | Invalid 'max' parameter | Access to the specified resource has been forbidden because of an invalid max parameter |
403 | Status report | Invalid 'lat' parameter | Access to the specified resource has been forbidden because of an invalid lat parameter |
403 | Status report | Invalid 'lon' parameter | Access to the specified resource has been forbidden because of an invalid lon parameter |