Partner API
API Reference

Requesting product ads

Requesting ads

All product ad requests require the context's placement, and catalogId, as well as the maxNumberOfAds you would like to display to the customer. In addition, your request should include the context's customerId and sessionId.

Search placements

Search placements are typically the easiest to request. They require a searchTerm to be specified in the request, like the example below:

POST $BASE_URL/v1/ads/generate HTTP/1.1
accept: application/json
content-type: application/json
Authorization: Basic <API_KEY>
{
    "customerId": "wertg5432a",
    "sessionId": "ec9-4e07-881d-3e9",
    "dtmCookieId": "AAAF8xLBTA968AB6TOthAAAAAAE",
    "placement": "search",
    "catalogId": "628dbe95-2ec9-4e07-881d-3e9f92ab2e0b",
    "searchTerm": "chocolate",
    "options": {
   						 "filterMode": "AndOr"
 							 },
    "maxNumberOfAds": 3    
}

Category placements

Category placements require productFilters to be specified in the request. The example below shows where you would send the category filters:

POST $BASE_URL/v1/ads/generate HTTP/1.1
accept: application/json
content-type: application/json
Authorization: Basic <API_KEY>
{
    "customerId": "wertg5432a",
    "sessionId": "ec9-4e07-881d-3e9",
    "dtmCookieId": "AAAF8xLBTA968AB6TOthAAAAAAE",
    "placement": "category",
    "catalogId": "628dbe95-2ec9-4e07-881d-3e9f92ab2e0b",
    "productFilters": [
     	 ["category:Cupboard/Snacks"]
    ],
    "options": {
   							 "filterMode": "AndOr"
 							 },
    "maxNumberOfAds": 3
}

As additional categories are perused, you need to update your API call accordingly.

📘

Best practice

It is best practice to send the lowest level of category into your ad request to CitrusAd as customers browse into deeper categories.

Instead of specifying a chained request on level 3 of L1 + L2 + L3, you would only specify the L3 category.

Cross-sell category placements

Cross-sell category placements have a very similar request to category placements. You will want to specify the exact category you are requesting ads for. This is typically the page you are on. Specify the category in the productFilters of the request. The example below shows where you would send the category filters:

POST $BASE_URL/v1/ads/generate HTTP/1.1
accept: application/json
content-type: application/json
Authorization: Basic <API_KEY>
{
    "customerId": "wertg5432a",
    "sessionId": "ec9-4e07-881d-3e9",
    "dtmCookieId": "AAAF8xLBTA968AB6TOthAAAAAAE",
    "placement": "category-cross-sell",
    "catalogId": "628dbe95-2ec9-4e07-881d-3e9f92ab2e0b",
    "productFilters": [
     	 ["category:Cupboard/Snacks"]
    ],
    "options": {
   							 "filterMode": "AndOr"
 							 },
    "maxNumberOfAds": 3
}

As additional categories are perused, you need to update your API call accordingly.

📘

Merging organic and cross-sell category targeting?

If you're looking to merge an organic and cross-sell category ad request into a single placement, you will need to implement merging and delivery logic to your customers. This is the integator's responsibility, though CitrusAd are happy to be consulted.

In general, we advise that you show organic category ads, and position and category cross-sell advertisements after the organic placements.

Broad match placements

Broad placements such as home or checkout pages do not require any productFilters to be specified in the request. Any filters the retailer would like to specify (on offer, new, etc) can be specified in the productFilters to ensure CitrusAd only serve ads within the requirements.

POST $BASE_URL/v1/ads/generate HTTP/1.1
accept: application/json
content-type: application/json
Authorization: Basic <API_KEY>
{
    "customerId": "wertg5432a",
    "sessionId": "ec9-4e07-881d-3e9",
    "dtmCookieId": "AAAF8xLBTA968AB6TOthAAAAAAE",
    "placement": "home",
    "catalogId": "628dbe95-2ec9-4e07-881d-3e9f92ab2e0b",
    "productFilters": [
     	 []
    ],
    "options": {
   							 "filterMode": "AndOr"
 							 },
    "maxNumberOfAds": 3
}

Request enhancements

On search, category, and broad match placements, we advise you to consider the below enhancements to enhance your user experience.

Paginating requests

When generating product ads, you will receive a memoryToken that can be sent in subsequent requests to exclude previously served ads. You can then send this memoryToken in a subsequent ad request, and CitrusAd will exclude any previously served ad for the same context from our ad response.

Please review Pagination prior to implementing.

POST $BASE_URL/v1/ads/generate HTTP/1.1
accept: application/json
content-type: application/json
Authorization: Basic <API_KEY>
{
    "customerId": "wertg5432a",
    "sessionId": "ec9-4e07-881d-3e9",
    "dtmCookieId": "AAAF8xLBTA968AB6TOthAAAAAAE",
    "placement": "search",
    "catalogId": "628dbe95-2ec9-4e07-881d-3e9f92ab2e0b",
    "searchTerm": "chocolate",
    "memoryToken":"85ykKVv-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",
    "options": {
                         "filterMode": "AndOr"
                             },
    "maxNumberOfAds": 3    
}

Filtered searches

If your customer filters their search, you can extend your context to provide productFilters. Below is an example where the customer is filtering by the category "Cupboard" and the dietary restriction "Gluten-free". This same principle can be applied to any category or broad match placement.

POST $BASE_URL/v1/ads/generate HTTP/1.1
accept: application/json
content-type: application/json
Authorization: Basic <API_KEY>
{
    "customerId": "wertg5432a",
    "sessionId": "ec9-4e07-881d-3e9",
    "dtmCookieId": "AAAF8xLBTA968AB6TOthAAAAAAE",
    "placement": "search",
    "catalogId": "628dbe95-2ec9-4e07-881d-3e9f92ab2e0b",
    "searchTerm": "chocolate",
    "productFilters": [
     	 ["category:Cupboard"],["dietary:Gluten-free"]
    ],
    "options": {
   							 "filterMode": "AndOr"
 							 },
    "maxNumberOfAds": 3
}

Filtering by location

If you are synchronising location filters in your catalog, you can extend your context to provide the customer's store location in the productFilters:

POST $BASE_URL/v1/ads/generate HTTP/1.1
accept: application/json
content-type: application/json
Authorization: Basic <API_KEY>
{
    "customerId": "wertg5432a",
    "sessionId": "ec9-4e07-881d-3e9",
    "dtmCookieId": "AAAF8xLBTA968AB6TOthAAAAAAE",
    "placement": "search",
    "catalogId": "628dbe95-2ec9-4e07-881d-3e9f92ab2e0b",
    "searchTerm": "chocolate",
    "productFilters": [
     	 ["category:Cupboard"],["dietary:Gluten-free"],["location:Westenbury"]
    ],
    "options": {
   							 "filterMode": "AndOr"
 							 },
    "maxNumberOfAds": 3
}

The product ad response

All product ad responses follow the same JSON format. Product ads are returned in the ads array, like the example below:

{
    "ads": [
        {
            "id": "display_QqHaKRrKlFm1Wxr9c_DXJN4HSE3NzMzNjM2",
            "gtin": "7733636",
            "discount": {
                "amount": 0,
                "minPrice": 0,
                "maxPerCustomer": 0
            },
            "expiry": "2021-05-12T04:17:50.400902957Z",
            "position": 1
        },
        {
            "id": "display_NzsHqP0_iQedlo9VnrO2vqkwi_k3NzMzNjI4",
            "gtin": "7733628",
            "discount": {
                "amount": 0,
                "minPrice": 0,
                "maxPerCustomer": 0
            },
            "expiry": "2021-05-12T04:17:50.400908257Z",
            "position": 2
        },
        {
            "id": "display_xNeShqidaMuEqiJ0zNdt-Gzygjs3NzE0MTA3",
            "gtin": "7714107",
            "discount": {
                "amount": 0,
                "minPrice": 0,
                "maxPerCustomer": 0
            },
            "expiry": "2021-05-12T04:17:50.400912929Z",
            "position": 3
        },
        {
            "id": "display_3rGiryPskhQusmsf43nghbQwnqo3NzMzNjU3",
            "gtin": "7733657",
            "discount": {
                "amount": 0,
                "minPrice": 0,
                "maxPerCustomer": 0
            },
            "expiry": "2021-05-12T04:17:50.400917769Z",
            "position": 4
        }
    ],
    "banners": [],
    "products": [],
    "memoryToken":"85ykKVv-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"
}

The id field is your ad ID used in impression and click reports. The position field defines the position in the CitrusAd payload. Please refer to the reference for more information on each string.

📘

You should read and honour the position field to ensure fixed tenancy placements appear correctly.

Marketplace sellerId

If onboarding marketplace sellers, you may see an additional sellerId per ad in the response. This will only appear if the team that owns the campaign being served has a seller ID configured in the UI. The example below shows one ad with a sellerId, one without.

{
    "ads": [
        {
            "id": "display_QqHaKRrKlFm1Wxr9c_DXJN4HSE3NzMzNjM2",
            "gtin": "7733636",
            "discount": {
                "amount": 0,
                "minPrice": 0,
                "maxPerCustomer": 0
            },
            "expiry": "2021-05-12T04:17:50.400902957Z",
            "position": 1
        },
        {
            "id": "display_NzsHqP0_iQedlo9VnrO2vqkwi_k3NzMzNjI4",
            "gtin": "7733628",
            "sellerId": "2834-ascre-2wcr4",
            "discount": {
                "amount": 0,
                "minPrice": 0,
                "maxPerCustomer": 0
            },
            "expiry": "2021-05-12T04:17:50.400908257Z",
            "position": 2
        }
    ],
    "banners": [],
    "products": [],
    "memoryToken":"85ykKVv-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"
}

📘

If you’re unsure about the strings in this section, please visit the Product ad reference page.