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Inbound RTB Buyer Guide: Buying Calls via Real-Time Bidding

How to configure and troubleshoot inbound RTB buying in Moja, from publisher requests through routing, bidding, reporting, no-bids, and timeouts.

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Written by Eric Gardona

Location: Campaigns → Inbound RTB; Reporting → RTB Requests → Inbound Use case: Buy inbound calls from publishers and sellers through Moja’s real-time bidding flow.

Overview

Inbound RTB lets you buy calls from publishers and sellers through a real-time routing and bidding flow.

In a typical inbound RTB flow:

  1. A publisher or seller has a caller available.

  2. The publisher sends an inbound RTB request to Moja.

  3. Moja evaluates the request and eligible routes.

  4. Eligible routes may include static targets, RTBs, or RTB groups.

  5. If RTB or RTB group routing is used, downstream buyers can bid and the winning route receives the call.

  6. Moja tracks the request, bid result, call, payout, and reporting outcome.

Use this guide if you are configuring Moja as the platform that receives inbound RTB traffic from publishers and routes calls to buyers.

Related guides:

Why this matters

Inbound RTB helps you buy calls dynamically instead of relying only on fixed routing or static publisher agreements.

With inbound RTB, you can:

  • Receive call opportunities from publishers and sellers

  • Evaluate call metadata before routing

  • Route calls based on buyer availability, bid logic, targeting, and caps

  • Track ping volume, bid responses, wins, no-bids, and call outcomes

  • Diagnose where traffic is failing before it becomes a missed call opportunity

The goal is simple: make sure qualified inbound call opportunities reach the right buyer fast enough to win and connect.

What’s included

Area

What it does

Inbound RTB campaign

Receives publisher/seller call opportunities through Moja

Publisher request URL

Gives publishers the endpoint they use to send inbound RTB requests to Moja

Caller ID parsing

Reads caller identifiers from documented request parameters

Tags and request parameters

Captures configured request data for reporting, pass-through, and advanced filtering

Routing logic

Determines which target, RTB, RTB group, or buyer route should receive the opportunity

Timeout handling

Prevents slow responses from holding the auction open too long

Reporting

Shows inbound RTB request volume, bid outcomes, ratios, and errors

Troubleshooting

Helps identify no-bids, timeouts, missing parameters, and routing failures

Inbound vs outbound RTB

Inbound and outbound RTB are easy to mix up, so use this distinction:

Flow

Who sends the request?

What Moja does

Inbound RTB

A publisher or seller sends a call opportunity to Moja

Moja receives the request, evaluates it, and routes the call to a buyer

Outbound RTB

Moja sends a bid request to an external buyer endpoint

The external buyer responds with whether they want the call

This article focuses on Inbound RTB: buying calls through Moja from publishers and sellers.

If you are configuring an external buyer endpoint that receives requests from Moja, use the outbound/buyer integration documentation instead.

How inbound RTB works

  1. Publisher sends a request to Moja. The publisher or seller sends an inbound RTB request to the Moja inbound RTB URL for the campaign.

  2. Moja reads request data. Moja reads caller ID, geography, campaign, publisher, and any configured custom parameters.

  3. Moja enriches or normalizes data when available. For example, Moja may use caller ID and available request data to support geographic or routing decisions.

  4. Moja evaluates routing. Moja checks campaign settings, static targets, RTBs, RTB groups, caps, filters, schedules, and buyer availability.

  5. Moja selects the route. Moja evaluates eligible routes, which may include static targets, RTBs, or RTB groups. If RTB or RTB group routing is used, downstream buyers can bid and the winning route receives the call.

  6. Moja records the result. Reporting shows the inbound request, outcome, bid/no-bid status, call result, and available metadata.

Setting up inbound RTB buying

1. Create or confirm the inbound RTB campaign

Start with the campaign that will receive publisher or seller traffic.

Confirm:

  • The campaign is active

  • The campaign is intended for inbound RTB traffic

  • The publisher or seller has the correct inbound RTB request URL

  • Any required request parameters are documented for the publisher

  • The destination buyer, target, RTB, or RTB group is configured

2. Share the inbound RTB request details with the publisher

Publishers need the correct Moja inbound RTB endpoint and parameter expectations.

At minimum, confirm:

  • The request URL they should send traffic to

  • Required caller ID parameter format

  • Any required campaign, vertical, state, ZIP, or custom parameters

  • Expected HTTP method and response expectations

  • Whether test traffic should be clearly marked

GET with query-string parameters is the recommended default because it is easiest to inspect, share, and troubleshoot. Moja can also accept POST requests, including JSON payloads, when a publisher integration requires it.

For publisher-facing setup details, use:

Integrating Publishers & Sellers With Your Moja Inbound RTB Campaign

3. Confirm caller ID handling

Moja’s standard caller ID parameter is CALLER_ID. CID is also supported.

Use one of those consistently unless your Moja team confirms another alias for your campaign. Other aliases may be supported in specific configurations, but CALLER_ID and CID are the safe documented choices.

Caller ID should be sent in a clean phone-number format. E.164 format is preferred when available.

4. Confirm tags and request parameters

Inbound RTB request parameters can be captured as tags and used for reporting, pass-through, and advanced filtering.

For example, a publisher might send:

  • state=CA

  • zip=90210

  • vertical=auto_insurance

  • sub_id=publisher_source_1

  • lead_type=auto

  • traffic_source=facebook

If you want to filter or route on publisher-supplied values such as sub_id, lead_type, traffic_source, vertical, or other custom fields, define them as Custom Tags in Moja first. Once defined, those tags can be used in Advanced Filtering on Targets and RTB endpoints.

Only rely on parameters that are intentionally configured and tested. If a routing rule depends on a parameter or Custom Tag, confirm the publisher is sending that value consistently.

5. Configure routing and buyer logic

Review the buyer-side setup that receives the inbound opportunity.

Depending on your configuration, this may include:

  • Targets

  • RTBs

  • RTB groups

  • Routing plans

  • Buyer schedules

  • Geographic filters

  • Caps and pacing rules

  • Minimum duration or payout rules

  • Buyer-specific acceptance criteria

If the request reaches Moja but does not produce a buyer route, the issue is usually in eligibility, targeting, caps, buyer availability, bid logic, or missing request data.

6. Test with controlled traffic

Before sending production volume, run test requests with known values.

Confirm:

  • The inbound RTB request appears in Reporting → RTB Requests → Inbound

  • Caller ID is parsed correctly

  • Key request parameters and Custom Tags appear as expected

  • Routing selects the intended target, RTB, or RTB group

  • No-bid reasons are understandable

  • The call connects when a buyer wins

  • Payout/revenue values match the expected setup

Timeout and speed expectations

Inbound RTB is time-sensitive. Slow responses can cause missed auctions, no-bids, or poor publisher performance.

A common timeout is 5 seconds, though actual configuration may vary. Aim to respond well under the timeout window, ideally under 2 seconds.

If a buyer or endpoint should not accept a call, it is better to return a fast no-bid or rejection than to let the request hang until timeout.

Reporting: where to review inbound RTB performance

Use Reporting → RTB Requests → Inbound to review inbound RTB request performance.

Useful signals include:

  • Request volume

  • Bid rate

  • Win rate

  • Ping-to-call ratio

  • No-bid count

  • Timeout count

  • Error responses

  • Buyer response timing

  • Call connection outcomes

  • Publisher/source/sub ID performance

Use recent reporting data when optimizing. If older historical reporting looks inconsistent with current behavior, compare it against current traffic before making bid or routing decisions.

Common issues and what to check

Requests are arriving but calls are not routing

Check:

  • Campaign status

  • Buyer or target status

  • Routing plan logic

  • RTB group membership

  • Caps and budgets

  • Buyer hours

  • Geographic filters

  • Missing state, ZIP, vertical, or custom tag values

  • No-bid reasons in RTB reporting

High no-bid rate

Check whether buyers are rejecting traffic because of:

  • Unsupported geography

  • Missing caller ID

  • Missing required parameters

  • Low bid/payout alignment

  • Schedule restrictions

  • Caps already reached

  • Buyer endpoint errors or timeouts

  • Duplicate or suppressed callers

Related guide: How to Troubleshoot No Bid Responses

High timeout rate

Check:

  • Buyer endpoint response time

  • Network latency

  • Timeout configuration

  • Third-party enrichment delays

  • Slow routing logic

  • Publisher request bursts

Fast failures are better than silent timeouts. If a buyer cannot accept a call, return a clear no-bid quickly.

Missing tags or request values

Check:

  • The publisher is sending the parameter

  • The parameter name matches what Moja expects

  • The value is not blank

  • The Custom Tag or routing field exists in Moja

  • Advanced Filtering references the correct Custom Tag or variable name

Wrong buyer receives the call

Check:

  • Routing plan priority

  • Target priority

  • RTB group rules

  • Buyer filters

  • Default/fallback routes

  • Caps and schedule interactions

  • Whether the request contained the expected state, ZIP, campaign, publisher, or sub ID values

Best practices

  • Keep publisher request requirements simple and documented.

  • Use consistent parameter names across publishers when possible.

  • Test with known caller IDs and known geography before production traffic.

  • Monitor no-bid and timeout rates during launch.

  • Review caps, schedules, and filters before assuming the publisher integration is broken.

  • Use RTB reporting to separate publisher-side issues from buyer-side routing issues.

  • Keep inbound RTB setup guides and buyer endpoint guides separate so teams do not mix up request direction.

Quick checklist before launch

Before going live, confirm:

  • Inbound RTB campaign is active

  • Publisher has the correct Moja inbound RTB request URL

  • Caller ID is sent and parsed correctly

  • Required parameters are documented and tested

  • Custom Tags used for routing or Advanced Filtering are defined in Moja and tested with sample publisher requests

  • Buyer targets, RTBs, or RTB groups are active

  • Caps, hours, and geographic filters are correct

  • Test requests appear in inbound RTB reporting

  • No-bid and timeout behavior has been reviewed

  • A rollback or pause plan exists if launch traffic behaves unexpectedly

Summary

Inbound RTB lets you buy calls from publishers and sellers through Moja’s real-time routing and bidding flow.

The most important things to verify are request direction, caller ID, required parameters, routing eligibility, buyer availability, and reporting outcomes.

If requests are reaching Moja but calls are not connecting, start with inbound RTB reporting, no-bid reasons, buyer eligibility, caps, schedules, and timeout behavior.

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