Top 5 Bot Filtering Techniques for your next campaign

In the ever-evolving realm of digital advertising, one of the most formidable foes that advertisers and publishers face is bot traffic. With the surge in online activity, the need for foolproof bot filtering techniques has become more pronounced than ever before. According to a study, in 2022, 47.4% of all internet traffic came from bots. Imagine investing your marketing budget into campaigns that, unbeknownst to you, are being predominantly viewed by automated bots rather than actual human eyes. This not only drains your resources but also skews your campaign metrics and undermines your ROI.

Fear not, for in this blog, we'll delve into the top techniques that are turning the tide in the battle against fraudulent traffic. So, if you're a digital advertiser or publisher keen on maximizing your campaign's impact, buckle up as we navigate the intricate world of bot filtering.

Google Analytics to the rescue

Before going ahead with any other bot filtering technique, it is best to master the kingmaker that provides us with the much-needed analytics report i.e., Google Analytics. It is simple to detect and prevent bot traffic through Google Analytics. Follow these simple steps to filter bots using this tool

1. Log in to your Google Analytics account and select the website for which you want to filter bot traffic
2. Click on “Admin” at the bottom of the left-hand menu and then select “View Settings” under the “View” column.
3. Scroll down to “Bot Filtering” and check the box that says “Exclude all hits from known bots and spiders”
4. Click “Save”

In case you wish to understand the presence of bot traffic on your website for any of your existing campaigns, here’s how that can happen

1. Log in to your Analytics account and navigate to the "Reports" section
2. Under the "Audience" tab, click on "Technology" and then "Network."
3. You'll find a list of service providers generating traffic to your website. Identify any suspicious providers with high bounce rates or unrealistic activity levels.

Until this stage, we understood how bot filtering can be mastered through Google Analytics. Various other techniques can be used to achieve this purpose. Let’s take a look at them

Bot Filtering techniques in trend

It is important to understand that there are a variety of tools available that specialize in providing either of the techniques mentioned above. While one company might be a master at IP filtering, the same may not provide JS challenges as a solution. Thus, it is always advisable to opt for solutions from companies that can incorporate maximum techniques under a single offering.

This is where brands like ClearTrust come into the picture that have mastered the techniques of filtering bots, especially through their customized filters which are based on the foundation of machine learning. This provides them with an upper hand against dealing with such invalid sources effectively.