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This page covers 15+ critical automation rules for Outbrain based on analysis of 1,867 real-world rules deployed by high-performing media buyers. On Outbrain, section-level management is what separates profitable campaigns from average ones — 415 pause rules and 80 bid adjustments operate at the section level, making it the engine that high-volume buyers use to scale. Publisher-level blocking and campaign safety nets round out the stack, but the section is where your profit margin lives. Adjust thresholds to match your payout structures.

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Section-level control & bid optimization

Sections are placements within publishers — think of them as publisher subsites or contexts. Section-level control is unique to Outbrain and is how buyers scale profitably at high volume.

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Rule 1: pause sections — high spend, crushing payout (3× spend rule)

Kill sections spending 3× your payout with zero conversions. This is aggressive but critical. Data Interval: Last 14 days | Scheduling: Once daily Action: Pause Section
If your payout is 30andasectionhasspent30 and a section has spent 90+ with zero conversions, it’s a drain. This rule fires automatically to prevent waste.

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Rule 2: pause sections — high LP CTR but zero conversions (landing page mismatch)

Sections with abnormally high LP CTR (75%+) but zero conversions indicate audience misalignment — your headline attracts clicks but the offer fails. Kill it and move budget. Data Interval: Last 7 days | Scheduling: Once daily Action: Pause Section

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Rule 3: pause sections — abnormally high CTR (1%+ on native)

Native CTR above 1% is rare and usually indicates bot activity, poisoned data, or fraud. Outbrain native typically runs 0.2–0.5% CTR. Use this as a fraud red flag. Data Interval: Last 7 days | Scheduling: Once daily Action: Pause Section

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Rule 4: optimize section bid — sophisticated bid ranges (advanced multi-condition)

Set bids based on a combination of CPC, EPC, conversion volume, and cost. This rule applies a tiered bid strategy that high-volume buyers use consistently. Data Interval: Last 14 days | Scheduling: Every 2 days Action: Set Section Bid to 30% above current bid
This rule targets sections with balanced metrics — decent click costs, good earnings potential, proven conversions, and adequate spend. Adjust thresholds to your vertical’s norms.

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Rule 5: reduce section bid — high cost per acquisition

When section CPA exceeds 100% of your campaign’s target CPA, reduce bid to bring costs in line. This prevents overweight sections from eating margins. Data Interval: Last 14 days | Scheduling: Every 2 days Action: Reduce Section Bid by 15–20%

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Rule 6: reactivate sections — positive ROI after pause

If a paused section recovers to positive ROI over 7 days, resume it. This captures sections that had temporary dips but have stabilized. Data Interval: Last 7 days | Scheduling: Every 2 days Action: Start Section

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Sophisticated publisher blocking

While publisher-level blocking accounts for a large share of rules in the dataset, it’s less critical than section-level control for high-volume buyers. However, blocking patterns at the publisher level remain important for brand safety and quality gates.

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Rule 7: pause publishers — high spend, zero conversions

If a publisher has spent meaningful money with zero conversions, stop it. This fires across all sections of that publisher. Data Interval: Last 7 days | Scheduling: Once daily Action: Pause Publisher

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Rule 8: pause publishers — extreme spend velocity with negative ROI

Some publishers spend fast but burn money. If they’re burning 80% of your daily budget with poor ROI, pause to prevent runaway losses. Data Interval: Today | Scheduling: Every 4 hours Action: Pause Publisher

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Rule 9: block publishers by name — brand safety tier

Use name matching to block known low-quality publishers. This is foundational quality control. Data Interval: Last 7 days | Scheduling: Once daily Action: Pause Publisher

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Fraud detection & bot prevention

Sophisticated buyers use 3+ condition rules (448 out of 1,867 rules in the dataset). Fraud detection is a key use case — don’t skip it.

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Rule 10: detect publisher click vs. traffic source click mismatch (bot detection)

When publisher clicks are 10% or less of traffic source clicks, it’s a massive red flag for bot activity. Real users follow the click path; bots don’t. Data Interval: Last 7 days | Scheduling: Once daily Action: Pause Section
Publisher clicks reflect actual user engagement. TS (traffic source) clicks are Outbrain’s record. A large gap between the two signals fraudulent inventory.

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Rule 11: bot detection — high impressions, near-zero engagement

Sections with 20k+ impressions but CTR below 0.1% with zero conversions are likely bot-filled or low-quality content blocks. Data Interval: Last 7 days | Scheduling: Every 2 days Action: Pause Section

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Rule 12: fraud detection — high cost per click with no payout

If you’re paying high CPCs relative to your payout but earning nothing, demand-side fraud or bad inventory is likely. Data Interval: Last 14 days | Scheduling: Every 2 days Action: Pause Section

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Campaign budget & ROI management

These are the safety nets that prevent catastrophic losses.

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Rule 13: scale profitable campaigns — high spend velocity + positive ROI

When a campaign is hitting 80% of daily budget AND showing positive ROI, increase budget to capture more volume before hitting the cap. Data Interval: Last 7 days | Scheduling: Every 4 hours Action: Increase Campaign Budget by 25–30%

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Rule 14: pause campaigns — severe sustained losses

If a campaign is bleeding money over 2 weeks ($300+ spend at −70% ROI or worse), emergency stop it before compounding losses. Data Interval: Last 14 days | Scheduling: Every 6 hours Action: Pause Campaign

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Rule 15: kill campaigns — spent budget without ROI

A campaign that’s spent 70% of daily budget yet shows CPA 130% above campaign average is not scaling — it’s hemorrhaging. Data Interval: Last 7 days | Scheduling: Every 6 hours Action: Pause Campaign
This fires on campaigns that can’t optimize through section or publisher control — they’re systemically broken. Pause and investigate the offer or audience targeting before reactivating.

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Creative performance & scaling

Ad-level rules are less frequent because section-level control dominates, but creative scaling is still crucial.

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Rule 16: pause creatives — high spend, zero conversions

Individual creatives that accumulate cost without conversions should be paused to redirect budget to winners. Data Interval: All time | Scheduling: Every 3 days Action: Pause Ads

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Where to start

The framework above represents real patterns from 1,867 deployed rules. Focus first on section-level control and fraud detection — that’s where your profit margin lives. Adjust thresholds based on your payout and risk tolerance, but the logic stays consistent: move fast on winners, kill losers aggressively, and watch for fraud signals constantly.