Programmatic Media Course

Programmatic advertising’s ever growing presence in Canada continues to change the way digital media is bought and sold. In 2025, it was estimated that programmatic accounted for 89% + of all digital display ad spend and that number is expected to continue to rise. Get up-to-speed on the basics of programmatic and much more with our all intensive in-person course.

Programmatic buying and selling advertising has gotten so big we couldn’t cover it all in just one day!

DAY ONE – PROGRAMMATIC OVERVIEW (Full Day)
Day one of the course will give you an overview of programmatic advertising; how it works, who the major players are, what the essential tools of the trade are as well as how it is planned and measured. The primary focus is on the buy side of the process, though the supply side is also covered, so as to give you a complete picture of the ecosystem.

DAY TWO – TECH OVERVIEW AND DEMO (Half Day)
On Day 2, we will dive into data and its role in programmatic advertising: various types of data, how it is sourced, how it’s used in programmatic advertising and the legalities surrounding it. We’ll also cover the future of programmatic advertising as the industry continues to evolve.

To finish the course we do live tech demonstrations so you can see how data is used in SSPs (Supply Side Platforms) and DSPs (Demand Side Platforms) to create successful programmatic campaigns.

Come with your questions and get ready to learn!

This course was developed and is maintained by a committee of peers from across the industry.

Learning Outcomes

  • Understand how programmatic advertising works and where it fits in the current digital media buying process
  • The various methods buyers and sellers can use to buy programmatically
  • How data can be sourced and used in programmatic advertising

Who Should Attend?

This is an introductory course of value to all marketers, agency account directors, media planners and buyers, publishers and sales people who are new to programmatic advertising.

All attendees should have a good understanding of online display advertising prior to taking this course.

[section title=”Dates and Locations”]

Date
Time
Language
Venue
March 10, 2026
10:00am – 5:00pm EST
English
Virtual
March 11, 2026
10:00am – 1:00pm EST
English
Virtual
June 2, 2026
10:00am – 5:00pm EST
English
Virtual
June 3, 2026
10:00am – 1:00pm EST
English
Virtual
October 27, 2026
10:00am – 5:00pm EST
English
Virtual
October 28, 2026
10:00am – 1:00pm EST
English
Virtual

NOTEs:

  • Course includes a break for lunch
  • Course end times may vary
  • All courses times are list as EST

[/section]

[section title=”Curriculum”]

[accordion_group xclass=”curriculum”]

DAY ONE – THE BASICS (FULL DAY)

[accordion title=”1.0 Programmatic Advertising Fundamentals” open=”true”]

  1. 1.1: What is Programmatic?
  2. 1.2: The Evolution of Programmatic Advertising
  3. 1.3: Scale of Programmatic

[/accordion]

[accordion title=”2.0 How Programmatic Advertising Works”]

  1. 2.1: Evolution of Media Buying
  2. 2.2: How Programmatic Compares to Traditional Digital
  3. 2.3: The Canadian Programmatic Landscape
  4. 2.4: The Programmatic Ecosystem

[/accordion]

[accordion title=”3.0 Forms of Programmatic Advertising”]

  1. 3.1: Real Time Bidding
  2. 3.2: Programmatic Guaranteed

[/accordion]
[accordion title=”4.0 The Programmatic Channels”]

  1. 4.1: Display Ads
  2. 4.2: Native Ads
  3. 4.3: Video Ads
  4. 4.4: Social Ads
  5. 4.5: Audio Ads
  6. 4.6: Digital Out of Home (DOOH)
  7. 4.7: Connected TV

[/accordion]
[accordion title=”5.0 Selling Programmatically”]

  1. 5.1: Why Sell Programmatically
  2. 5.2: Ad Exchanges
  3. 5.3: Publishers and Ad Networks
  4. 5.4: Programmatic Guaranteed
  5. 5.5: Supply Side Platforms
  6. 5.6: The Publisher Inventory Waterfall
  7. 5.7: Header Bidding
  8. 5.8: Private Exchanges

[/accordion]

[accordion title=”6.0 Buying Programmatically”]

  1. 6.1: Key Benefits of Programmatic
  2. 6.2: Demand Side Platforms
  3. 6.3: How to Select the Right DSP For your Needs
  4. 6.4: Agency Trading Desks

[/accordion]

[accordion title=”7.0 The Programmatic Planning Process”]

  1. 7.1: The Media Planning Buying Workflow
  2. 7.2: Defining Objectives
  3. 7.3: Campaign Types
  4. 7.4: Defining Success with KPIs

[/accordion]

[accordion title=”8.0 Creative Considerations”]

  1. 8.1: Importance of Creatives
  2. 8.2: Tips for Creating a Good Banner Ad
  3. 8.3: Key Areas of Programmatic Creatives
  4. 8.4: Dynamic Creatives
  5. 8.5: Creative Considerations

[/accordion]

[accordion title=”9.0 Measuring Success”]

  1. 9.1: KPIs that Matter
  2. 9.2: ROAS vs ROI
  3. 9.1: Choosing the right KPIs for your Campaign
  4. 9.1: Viewability
  5. 9.1: Attribution

[/accordion]

[/accordion_group]
[accordion_group xclass=”curriculum”]

DAY TWO – DATA DEEP DIVE (HALF DAY)

[accordion title=”10.0 Programmatic Runs on Data” open=”true”]

10.1: The Importance of Data
10.2: The Growth of Data
10.3: Data’s Role in Programmatic
10.4: Types of Data
[/accordion]

[accordion title=”11.0 Data Ownership”]

11.1: 1st, 2nd, 3rd and Zero Party Data
11.2: Data Management Platforms
11.3: 3rd Party Data Providers
11.4: Industry Data Transparency
11.5: Cross Device Identity
11.6: Targeting Strategy
[/accordion]

[accordion title=”12.0 How Data is Collected”]

12.1: Tag Types
12.2: How Tags Work
12.3: Google Tag Manager
12.4: User Identifiers – The Cookie
12.5: 1st and 3rd Party Cookies
12.6: Mobile Tracking
12.7: Cookie Independence
12.8: Google’s Privacy Sandbox
[/accordion]

[accordion title=”13.0 Data Providers”]

13.1: How to Evaluate Data Providers
13.2: Industry Data Transparency
[/accordion]

[accordion title=”14.0 Data Management”]

14.1: Customer Relationship Management Platforms
14.2: Ad Servers
14.3: Data Management Platforms
14.4: Customer Data Platforms
[/accordion]

[accordion title=”15.0 Programmatic Without Cookies”]

15.1: Seller Defined Audiences
15.2: Unified ID 2.0
15.3: Data Clean Rooms
[/accordion]

[accordion title=”16.0 Regulations in Advertising”]

16.1: Self Regulatory Organizations
16.2: Canadian and International Regulations
16.3: Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL)
16.4: PIPEDA
16.5: Law 25
16.6: The Digital Charter Implementation Act 2022
16.7: Consumer Privacy Protection Act (CPPA)
16.8: Artificial Intelligence and Data Act (AIDA)
16.9: General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
16.10: California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA)
16.11: Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule (COPPA)
16.12: Privacy Regulation
16.13: Disclosure and Consent
[/accordion]

[accordion title=”17.0 The Challenges and Opportunities in Programmatic Advertising”]

17.1: Ad Collision
17.2: IP/Geo Precision
17.3: Ad Fraud
17.4: The Environmental Impact
17.5: Brand Safety
17.6: Cross-Device Cross-Environment Programmatic Ads
17.7: AI in Programmatic
[/accordion]

[accordion title=”18.0 Tech Demonstrations”]

18.1: DSP Demonstration
18.2: SSP Demonstration
[/accordion]

[/accordion_group]

[/section]

Testimonials

  • I took part in the Programmatic Trading Course and it was THE BEST programmatic training course I have ever attended.– Victor Genova, Digital Account Executive, Blue Ant Media
  • IAB Canada is a wonderful source of up to date, Canadian information about best practices, trends and skills.  – Jacqueline Cook, Professor, George Brown College
  • The Programmatic trading course is a key course for all digital and advertising marketing teams in Canada.  Not only gives you a wide and updated perspective of programmatic ecosystem but sets you in the right direction of where the industry is heading to in the digital environment. – Javier Zambrano, Sheridan College
  • Great course! As a salesperson, I feel empowered and confident to have better client/agency conversations.  Looking forward to putting these learnings and practices to use.  Would recommend to colleagues, digital media buyers or sellers that want to get up to speed on the latest programmatic trends.  – Nina Sturm, Digital Account Executive, Metroland Media

[section title=”Course Policies”]

[accordion_group xclass=”Education_Policies”]

[accordion title=”Cancellation”]

If an attendee cancels his or her registration more than 14 days before the date of the seminar, the amount paid for the cancelled registration will be refunded in full. Registrations cancelled within 14 days of the seminar date will NOT be refunded.

NOTE: Only 2 cancellations or registrant substitutions are allowed per company, per course. A charge of $100 will apply to each additional cancellation or registrant substitution.

In the event that IAB Canada needs to cancel any seminar(s), a full refund or an opportunity to attend an equivalent future seminar(s), at the option of the attendee, will be provided by IAB Canada. However, IAB Canada shall not be responsible for, or offer any monetary compensation for, any expenses incurred by the registrant or attendee (including, but not limited to, non-refundable airline tickets, hotel fees or change fees) due to such a cancellation.

[/accordion]

[accordion title=”Transfers”]

Please provide 48 hours notice before the course if you wish to transfer to the next session or transfer to a different course. Requests made less than 48 hours notice will not be accommodated.

[/accordion]

[accordion title=”Payment”]

Your email confirmation represents receipt of payment and confirmation for your seat(s) for the course, workshop or seminar(s). You are not confirmed until payment in full is received by IAB Canada, and a confirmation email is sent to you.

[/accordion]

[accordion title=”Copyright”]

All printed materials provided by IAB Canada are meant for the exclusive use of the individual attendee, and no portion of any of the printed materials provided by IAB Canada may be scanned, copied, reproduced or in any other way distributed or made available for use by anyone but the original individual registrant or attendee at the session(s).

[/accordion]
[/accordion_group]

[/section]