If you are working with video ads, you probably know what VAST is. VAST stands for Video Ad Serving Template, and it is a standard format for delivering video ads across different platforms and devices. VAST enables publishers and advertisers to use a common XML schema to serve video ads, and it supports various features such as ad tracking, interactivity, and companion ads.
But how do you test and validate your VAST tags? How do you make sure they work as expected on different players and devices? How do you optimize your video files for better performance and user experience? That’s where VAST tools come in handy.
VAST tools are online or offline applications that help you create, inspect, test, and debug your VAST tags. They can also help you optimize your video files for different formats and resolutions. In this post, we will introduce some of the most popular and useful VAST tools that you can use to improve your video ad campaigns.
VAST Tester
VAST Tester is a simple and free online tool that lets you test your VAST tags on various players and devices. You can enter your VAST tag URL or upload your XML file, and then choose from a list of supported players. You can also select the device type, such as desktop, mobile, or tablet, and the screen orientation, such as portrait or landscape. VAST Tester will then load your video ad on the selected player and device, and show you the results in real time. You can also see the ad events, such as impression, start, first quartile, etc., and the error codes, if any.
VAST Tag Tester
VAST Tag Tester is another free online tool that allows you to test your VAST tags on different players and devices. It is similar to VAST Tester, but it has some additional features, such as:
- You can enter multiple VAST tag URLs or upload multiple XML files at once, and compare the results side by side.
- You can choose from various players, and various devices, such as iPhone, iPad, Android phone, Android tablet, etc.
- You can adjust the player size and position on the screen.
- You can see the ad duration, bitrate, resolution, and file size of your video ad.
VAST Inspector
VAST Inspector is a free online tool that helps you inspect and debug your VAST tags. It is more advanced than VAST Tester and VAST Tag Tester, as it provides more information and options for testing your video ads. Some of the features of VAST Inspector are:
- You can enter your VAST tag URL or upload your XML file, or use one of the sample tags provided by the tool.
- You can choose from various players, and various devices, such as desktop browser (Chrome), mobile browser (Safari), mobile app (Android), etc.
- You can see the XML structure of your VAST tag, and expand or collapse each node to view the details.
- You can see the ad request URL and response XML for each ad in your VAST tag.
- You can see the media file URL and type for each ad in your VAST tag.
- You can see the tracking URLs for each ad event in your VAST tag.
- You can see the error codes and messages for each ad in your VAST tag.
- You can enable or disable features such as autoplay, mute/unmute, skip button, companion ads, etc.
VAST Player
VAST Player is a free online tool that lets you play your VAST tags on different players. It is similar to VAST Tester and VAST Tag Tester, but it has some extra features, such as:
- You can enter multiple VAST tag URLs or upload multiple XML files at once, and play them sequentially or randomly.
- You can adjust the player size, volume, and playback speed.
- You can see the ad events, such as impression, click, complete, etc., and the error codes, if any.
VAST Validator Online
VAST Validator Online is a free online tool that helps you validate your VAST tags against the official specifications. It supports all versions of VAST, from 1.0 to 4.2, and all types of ads, such as linear, non-linear, and wrapper. Some of the features of VAST Validator Online are:
- You can enter your VAST tag URL or upload your XML file, or use one of the sample tags provided by the tool.
- You can choose the VAST version and ad type that you want to validate your tag against.
- You can see the validation results in a table format, with the status, description,
and location of each error or warning. - You can see the XML structure of your VAST tag, and highlight the nodes that contain errors or warnings.
VAST 2.0 Video Size Optimization
VAST 2.0 Video Size Optimization is a free online tool that helps you optimize your video files for VAST 2.0. It allows you to reduce the file size and bitrate of your video files without compromising the quality. Some of the features of VAST 2.0 Video Size Optimization are:
- You can upload your video file or enter your video URL, or use one of the sample videos provided by the tool.
- You can choose the target file size and bitrate that you want to achieve for your video file.
- You can see the original and optimized video files side by side, and compare their quality and performance.
- You can download the optimized video file or get the optimized video URL.
VAST Multiple Video File
VAST Multiple Video File is a free online tool that helps you create a VAST tag with multiple video files. It allows you to add different video files for different formats and resolutions, such as MP4, WebM, OGG, etc., and 360p, 480p, 720p, etc. Some of the features of VAST Multiple Video File are:
- You can upload your video files or enter your video URLs, or use one of the sample videos provided by the tool.
- You can choose the format and resolution for each video file that you want to include in your VAST tag.
- You can see the preview of your VAST tag with multiple video files on a player.
- You can download the VAST tag XML file or get the VAST tag URL.
Create VAST Tag
Create VAST Tag is a free online tool that helps you create a VAST tag from scratch. It allows you to customize every aspect of your video ad, such as ad title, description, duration, click-through URL, tracking URLs, companion ads, etc. Some of the features of Create VAST Tag are:
- You can fill in the required and optional fields for your video ad, or use one of the sample ads provided by the tool.
- You can see the preview of your video ad on a player.
- You can see the XML structure of your VAST tag, and edit it if needed.
- You can download the VAST tag XML file or get the VAST tag URL.
Video Tag Tester
Video Tag Tester is a free online tool that helps you test your video tags on different players and devices. It supports not only VAST tags, but also other types of video tags, such as VPAID, MRAID, HTML5, etc. Some of the features of Video Tag Tester are:
- You can enter your video tag URL or upload your XML file, or use one of the sample tags provided by the tool.
- You can choose from various players, and various devices, such as desktop browser (Chrome), mobile browser (Safari), mobile app (Android), etc.
- You can see the ad request URL and response XML for each ad in your video tag.
- You can see the media file URL and type for each ad in your video tag.
- You can see the tracking URLs for each ad event in your video tag.
- You can see the error codes and messages for each ad in your video tag.
- You can enable or disable features such as autoplay, mute/unmute, skip button, companion ads, etc.
Conclusion
These are some of the most popular and useful VAST tools that you can use to create, inspect, test, and debug your VAST tags. They can also help you optimize your video files for different formats and resolutions. By using these tools, you can ensure that your video ads work as expected on different players and devices, and deliver a better user experience and performance.
We hope you found this blog post helpful and informative. If you have any questions or feedback, please feel free to contact us.