SportsThread had already built its own advertising setup through its app, email, and SMS. It worked for owned channels, but it limited how far campaigns could go once advertisers wanted a broader reach.
"Switching to Epom allowed us to tell our advertisers that we can reach anybody, not just our user base. That was a tremendous help."
Before that shift, SportsThread had even tried building its own supply infrastructure. An internal SSP-style setup, assembled from scratch. It worked in theory. In practice, it consumed more bandwidth and sales capacity than the team could sustain. They shut it down.
What they needed instead was a system that could:
- Expand reach beyond owned channels to the open web.
- Centralize retargeting without stitching together separate pixel tools.
- Scale across 50+ clients without multiplying the manual workload.
- Stay stable and simple enough to train a new hire on quickly.
They needed a system with reach, repeatability, and control.
Why They Stopped Building Their Own Supply and Found Something That Already Worked
SportsThread had already tried the harder path. Before Epom, they built their own internal SSP-style network from scratch. The intent was right. The bandwidth was not. As Colin recalls:
"We had created our own SSP network before even really investigating a formal one. It was a great program. It just wasn't doing enough for us at our current capabilities."
When a referral from an existing Epom user in California led Colin to the platform, he saw it could do more than he needed. He did not look elsewhere. The decision came down to a simple question: why build what you can already use?
With a DSP in place, SportsThread could finally answer the question every advertiser asks first: How far can my message reach?
| Criteria | Building In-House | Epom DSP |
|---|---|---|
| Reach | Own app, email, SMS only | Open web across 50+ SSPs |
| Setup | Heavy dev and sales resources | Ready in days |
| Retargeting | Fragmented across Google and Meta pixels | Centralized in one platform |
| Scalability | Capped by team bandwidth | Grows with client count |
Managing Around 50 Client Campaigns with One CPC Playbook
For an advertising network managing clients from youth sports organizations to established fitness brands, consistency is everything. Every campaign had to perform predictably, regardless of budget size.
"I've gotten it down to a bit of a science. I know exactly what will win us a healthy amount of bids without oversaturating. The workload is about the same per client, regardless of budget." — Colin Yost, VP of Operations, SportsThread
Instead of rebuilding the process for each new client, Colin standardized it around a single metric: CPC. Any traffic source with a CPC above $1 is paused for a week. Any source running below $1 gets increased bids to push the rate down further. Once campaigns are live, the manual work is largely done.
| Criteria | Before Epom DSP | With Epom DSP |
|---|---|---|
| Reach | Own app, email, SMS only | Open web across 50+ SSPs |
| Retargeting | Fragmented across Google and Meta | Centralized in one platform |
| Optimization | Manual, source by source across tools | Single CPC rule applied platform-wide |
| Clients managed | Limited by process complexity | 50+ with consistent per-client effort |
| Campaign setup | Rebuilt from scratch each time | Repeatable workflow, same steps every time |
Easily Running Ad Ops Across 50 Client Campaigns with a Lean Team
Colin manages roughly 50 active clients. That means any platform he uses has to work the same way every time he logs in. Changing UIs and shifting workflows do not just slow things down. They make delegation nearly impossible.
"I've used Google Ads, I've used Meta. Both of those platforms are getting increasingly more difficult to use. You guys keep things more consistent."
Epom's stable interface and in-product change notifications meant Colin could onboard a team member without starting from scratch each time.
"That means I can train someone on how to use the DSP if necessary, and I can train them fairly quickly."
When asked to name the single biggest strength of the platform, Colin said usability. That answer alone tells you what running campaigns at scale actually requires.
Selling Reach as a Feature, Not Just a Promise
SportsThread's advertisers come from sports, fitness, events, and ticketing. They want results. They also want to know their message is going somewhere beyond the same closed app audience.
"They're among our most successful clients, people that are just trying to sell tickets to events."
With Epom DSP connected to 50+ SSPs, SportsThread could promise open-web reach and deliver it. The proof showed up fastest in ticket-selling campaigns, where precise audience targeting drove measurable action. Sports organizations, youth leagues, and event promoters all found their audience outside the app. Not just inside it.
How SportsThread Went from a Closed App Audience to the Open Web
Once the campaigns are live inside Epom DSP, the heavy lifting is done. That is not an accident. It is the result of a workflow Colin deliberately built around a platform that does not change for him.
"Once the campaigns are built and the ads are running, the manual part of things is pretty much done from that point on, short of changing a bid or turning off a traffic source, which is simple and not particularly time-consuming."
After months of consistent performance, no complaints, and a searchable creative library spanning 150 pages of content, SportsThread is expanding. Outbound sales for the advertising network are ramping back up. New verticals, including theaters and live events, are coming online.
The loop that once ran only inside SportsThread's own app now reaches the entire open web.
