Call Bidding Setup Guide and Advantages

CallGrid's Call Bidding Advantage#

CallGrid's Call Bidding system provides two key differentiators that set us apart from other platforms:

Advanced Bidding Rules#

Our advanced bidding rules allow you to make campaign overrides based on any tag filters you want - meaning you can change bidding behavior based on:

Buyer or destination characteristics
Source or vendor performance
Custom tags and parameters
Sub IDs for granular optimization

This allows you to centralize your campaign management under a single campaign because of the flexible rule bidding system, with all settings accessible in the same view.

Call Source Priorities#

Our call source priorities feature allows you to set the priority of your sources so that when multiple sources send bid requests for the same caller ID (duplicate bids), you get to choose which sources take priority. Priority sources are selected while lower ones are rejected - this is our solution to the duplicate bid problem and allows buyers to optimize delivery by choosing which sources they value and trust most.

Accessing Call Bidding Settings#

Navigate to: Campaigns → Select Campaign → Bidding tab

Core Bidding Configuration#

Caller ID Requirements#

Require Caller ID#

Toggle ON to reject anonymous calls
Reduces spam and improves call quality
Required by most buyers in the marketplace
Impact: ~5-10% call volume reduction

Passthrough Enabled#

Allows original caller ID to pass through to buyers
Required for caller verification and compliance
Significantly improves buyer answer rates
Essential for premium buyers and higher payouts

Cost Plus Enabled#

Transparent pricing model for trusted partnerships
Shows your markup percentage to strategic partners
Builds long-term buyer confidence and relationships
Use for: Volume commitments and preferred partnerships

Base Bidding Parameters#

Base Bid#

Starting bid amount for all calls entering auctions
Format: Dollar amount (e.g., "26")
Sets the minimum acceptable price floor
Strategy: Start conservative, optimize based on performance

Min Bid#

Absolute floor price - protects against unprofitable calls
Prevents accepting bids below your cost threshold
Format: Dollar amount (e.g., "14")
Calculate: Your acquisition cost + minimum profit margin

Max Bid#

Ceiling for bid amounts to prevent runaway auctions
Controls maximum payout expectations
Format: Dollar amount (e.g., "35")
Strategy: Set 20-30% above your average target price

Payout Configuration#

Payout Type#

Duration: Pay after X seconds of connected time
Connect: Pay immediately on call answer
Conversion: Pay only on confirmed conversion/sale
Industry recommendation: Duration for most verticals

Duration Start Type#

Connect: Timer starts when buyer answers
Dial: Timer starts when dialing begins
Impact: Typically 10-15 second difference in payout timing

Payout Call Length#

Minimum connected duration required for payout
Industry standards by vertical:
- Insurance: 90-120 seconds
- Solar: 120-180 seconds
- Home Services: 60-90 seconds
Format: Seconds (e.g., "90")

Margin Management#

Cost Plus Margin Type#

Percentage: Markup as percentage of your cost
Fixed Amount: Dollar markup per call
Recommendation: Percentage for scalability and flexibility

Cost Plus Margin#

Your markup amount above costs
Percentage format: Whole number (e.g., "15" = 15%)
Fixed format: Dollar amount per call
Industry standard: 10-20% margins depending on vertical

Duplicate Handling#

Expired Bid Action#

Reject: Don't accept bids that arrive after timeout
Accept at Base: Accept late bids at base bid price
Accept at Last: Honor the last valid bid price
Strategy: "Reject" for quality control, "Accept at Base" for volume

Bid Expiration#

Seconds before bid requests expire
Default: 60 seconds
Longer timeouts for complex sales processes
Shorter timeouts for high-volume operations

Pay On Duplicates#

Toggle ON to pay for repeat callers within window
Consider your duplicate prevention strategy
Industry variations:
- Insurance: Usually disabled (NO)
- Home Services: Often enabled (YES)

Duplicate Interval#

Days before a caller is considered "new" again
Range: 1-365 days based on sales cycle
Common settings by vertical:
- Insurance: 30-90 days
- Home Services: 7-14 days
- Finance/Lending: 90-180 days

Request Limits#

Max Requests Per Minute#

Rate limiting per individual buyer
Prevents system abuse and ensures fair access
Default: 100 requests
Increase for high-volume, trusted buyers

Max Requests#

Total daily request limit per buyer
Protects against unexpected cost spikes
Default: 100 requests
Calculate: Expected daily calls × safety factor of 2

Time Limit Days#

How long to remember and enforce limits
Default: 60 days
Impacts duplicate tracking accuracy
Longer periods = more accurate duplicate prevention

Advanced Bidding Rules - CallGrid's Key Advantage#

This is our biggest differentiator - advanced bidding rules enable dynamic campaign management through tag-based overrides, allowing centralized control under a single campaign.

Understanding Advanced Bidding Rules#

CallGrid's advanced bidding rules allow campaign overrides based on any tag filters, meaning you can modify bidding behavior based on:

Tag Filter Categories#

Buyer/Destination Tags: BuyerName, BuyerCategory, BuyerRegion
Source/Vendor Tags: SourceName, VendorName, SourceCategory
Custom Tags: Any custom parameters you've defined
Sub ID Tags: Granular campaign tracking identifiers
Geographic Tags: InboundStateCode, InboundZipCode, InboundCity
Time Tags: Hour, DayOfWeek, CallDate
Quality Tags: CallDuration, SourceQuality, LeadScore

Creating Advanced Bid Rules#

Click "Add Rule" in the Bid Rules section
Name your rule descriptively
Set conditions using ANY available tag
Define adjustments to apply
Set priority order for multiple rules

Strategic Bidding Rule Examples#

Buyer-Based Optimization#

- Name: "Premium Buyer Discount"
- Condition: BuyerCategory Equals "Preferred"
- Adjustment: Base Bid -$2
- Use Case: Volume partnership rates

Source Performance Rewards#

- Name: "Google Traffic Premium"
- Condition: SourceName Contains "Google"
- Adjustment: Margin -3%
- Use Case: Reward high-converting traffic sources

Custom Tag Routing#

- Name: "High-Value Sub ID"
- Condition: SubID Equals "premium-landing"
- Adjustment: Cost Plus Margin +10%
- Use Case: Premium traffic monetization

Multi-Tag Combinations#

- Name: "CA Google Premium Hours"
- Condition: InboundStateCode Equals "CA" AND SourceName Contains "Google" AND Hour Between 9-17
- Adjustment: Base Bid +$5
- Use Case: Stack multiple premium conditions

#

Centralized Campaign Management#

Key Benefit: Because bidding rules can override based on any tag filters, you can:

✅ Manage multiple buyer relationships under one campaign
✅ Handle different source types with different pricing
✅ Customize vendor payouts without separate campaigns
✅ Apply complex logic all in the same interface
✅ View all rules in a compact, easy-to-scan format

This eliminates the need for multiple campaigns and complex routing setups.

Call Source Priorities - Duplicate Solution#

CallGrid's Call Source Priorities feature solves the duplicate bid problem by allowing you to set priority rankings for your sources.

How Source Priorities Work#

When multiple sources send bid requests for the same caller ID:

CallGrid compares source priorities
Highest priority source wins automatically
Lower priority sources are rejected
You control which sources you value most

Setting Up Source Priorities#

Navigate to: Sources → Priority Settings

Priority Configuration#

Priority 1: Google Ads Traffic

Priority 2: Facebook Direct

Priority 3: Native Network

Priority 4: Affiliate Traffic

Strategic Benefits#

Quality Control: Ensure best traffic sources get preference
Revenue Optimization: Higher-converting sources win duplicates
Relationship Management: Reward top-performing partners
Delivery Optimization: Media buyers can ensure better buyer delivery

Advanced Priority Strategies#

Performance-Based Tiers#

Tier 1: Conversion rate >15%

Tier 2: Conversion rate 10-15%

Tier 3: Conversion rate 5-10%

Tier 4: Conversion rate <5%

Geographic Prioritization#

Priority 1: Local/Direct traffic

Priority 2: Regional networks

Priority 3: National networks

Priority 4: General traffic

Advanced Bid Adjustments#

Fine-tune bidding strategies based on any available tag characteristics.

Adjustment Operations#

Mathematical Operations#

Add: Increase bid by specific amount (+$3)
Subtract: Decrease bid by amount (-$2)
Multiply: Percentage adjustment (×1.15)
Set: Override to specific amount (=$25)

Tag-Based Adjustment Examples#

State Performance Optimization#

InboundStateCode Equals "FL,TX,CA" → +$4

InboundStateCode Equals "WY,MT,ND" → -$3

Source Quality Scoring#

SourceCategory Equals "Premium" → +$5

SourceName Contains "Google" → ×1.2

Buyer Relationship Management#

BuyerCategory Equals "Preferred" → -$1

BuyerRegion Equals "West Coast" → +$2

Custom Tag Optimization#

CustomTag_LeadScore > 8.5 → +$6

SubID Contains "premium" → ×1.25

Best Practices & Optimization#

Starting Configuration Strategy#

Week 1: Conservative Foundation#

Set conservative base bid (market average -10%)
Wide min/max bid spread (40-60% range)
Simple duration-based payout (90 seconds)
Start with 2-3 simple rules maximum
Focus on geographic or time-based rules first

Week 2-3: Source Priority Setup#

Configure source priorities based on known performance
Add buyer-based bid rules for key relationships
Implement basic custom tag filtering
Monitor rule hit rates and performance

Month 2+: Advanced Optimization#

Complex multi-tag rules with stacked conditions
Performance-based source prioritization
Dynamic margin management by tag combinations
Seasonal and event-based adjustments

Common Setup Mistakes to Avoid#

Rule Complexity Too Early#

Problem: Complex multi-condition rules before baseline
Solution: Start with simple single-tag rules
Impact: Easier troubleshooting and optimization

Ignoring Source Priorities#

Problem: Not configuring source priorities for duplicates
Solution: Set up priorities based on source quality
Impact: Better duplicate handling and revenue optimization

Tag Overload#

Problem: Too many custom tags without clear purpose
Solution: Focus on tags that drive bidding decisions
Impact: Cleaner data and more effective rules

Performance Monitoring & Analytics#

Key Performance Indicators#

Rule Performance Metrics#

Rule Hit Rate: Which rules activate most frequently
Rule Revenue Impact: Revenue attribution by rule
Tag Effectiveness: Which tags drive best performance
Source Priority Wins: Duplicate resolution success rate

Advanced Analytics#

Tag-Based Revenue: Revenue by tag combinations
Source Priority Performance: Win rates by priority tier
Rule Stacking Impact: Multiple rule interaction analysis
Custom Tag ROI: Return on investment by custom parameters

Optimization Signals#

Rule Adjustments Needed#

Low rule hit rate: Rules may be too restrictive
High rule conflicts: Priority order needs adjustment
Poor tag performance: Tag logic may need refinement
Source priority failures: Priority rankings need updates

Troubleshooting Advanced Features#

Advanced Bidding Rules Issues#

Rules Not Firing#

✓ Check tag spelling and case sensitivity ✓ Verify tag data is being captured
✓ Review rule priority and conflicts ✓ Test with simplified conditions first

Unexpected Rule Behavior#

✓ Review rule stacking and interactions ✓ Check for conflicting adjustment types ✓ Verify tag data types (string vs numeric) ✓ Test rules individually before combining

Source Priority Problems#

Duplicates Still Getting Through#

✓ Verify source priority configuration ✓ Check caller ID matching accuracy ✓ Review duplicate time window settings
✓ Confirm source identification is working

Wrong Sources Winning#

✓ Review priority rankings ✓ Check for source naming inconsistencies ✓ Verify priority logic is applied correctly ✓ Test with known duplicate scenarios

Advanced Call Bidding Strategies#

Dynamic Tag-Based Management#

Multi-Dimensional Optimization#

Combine geographic, source, buyer, and custom tags for sophisticated routing:

Rule: "Premium CA Google Preferred Buyer"

Condition: InboundStateCode="CA" AND SourceName Contains "Google" AND BuyerCategory="Preferred"

Adjustment: Base Bid +$3, Margin -2%

Performance Feedback Loop#

Use custom tags to capture conversion data and optimize bidding:

Rule: "High-Converting Source Bonus"

Condition: SourceConversionRate > 15%

Adjustment: Margin -5%

Use Case: Reward high-performing sources with better pricing

Centralized Campaign Architecture#

Instead of managing multiple campaigns, use one campaign with advanced rules:

Traditional Approach: 5 separate campaigns

Google Traffic Campaign
Facebook Traffic Campaign
Premium Buyer Campaign
West Coast Campaign
High-Value Lead Campaign

CallGrid Approach: 1 campaign with 5 bidding rules

All traffic centralized
All rules visible in one view
Easier management and optimization
Better performance tracking