Your empty space is currency.
Spend it on someone else's.
AdExchange pairs two media owners into one swap: each books and pays for the other's space like a normal order. Both payments are held by the platform, and each side is paid out when its campaign's delivery is proven. No informal favours — two real orders, two real campaigns, two real proofs.
A radio station fills its unsold drive-time; a billboard owner hears itself on air. Each pays the other's listed price, both payments are held, and each payout is released as its campaign is proven.
How a swap works
Six steps — and from step four onward it is simply two normal orders.
- 1
Allow swaps on your listing
Your listing stays a normal listing — bookable for cash like any other. Allowing swaps simply adds an “Open to swaps” badge, so other media owners know a trade is on the table.
- 2
Send a swap proposal
See a space you want? Put one of your own listings up against it: “I’ll run your campaign if you run mine.” Pick the dates and duration for both sides. The proposal lands on AdExchange, where both of you can see the whole deal on one screen.
- 3
Negotiate until it balances
The other side accepts, declines, or counters — different dates, a different listing, a longer run. Both sides see the listed value of each half, so you both know exactly what is being traded for what.
- 4
Accept — both sides book and pay
On acceptance each side buys the other’s space exactly as a normal booking: two orders open, one in each direction, and each side pays the listed price of the space it is taking. Both payments are held by the platform, as on any Admarket order.
- 5
Both campaigns run like any other
Creative upload, owner approval, scheduling, going live — each order follows the standard campaign flow, independently. If one side’s artwork clears earlier, that campaign starts on its agreed date as usual.
- 6
Prove delivery, get paid
Dated, GPS-tagged proof photography for the billboard; transmission logs for the radio spots. When a campaign’s proof is approved, that side’s payout is released — each direction settles on its own delivery, and both campaigns count toward your ratings and history.
A swap is not a favour
It is two paid, enforceable bookings. That is what separates AdExchange from trading space over the phone.
Payment held on both sides
Both payments sit with the platform until delivery is proven, exactly as on a cash booking. Nobody runs a campaign hoping the other side keeps their word — the money is already there.
Unequal values settle themselves
Each side pays the listed price of the space it is taking. Swap a £4,800 radio package against a £5,100 billboard and the difference is simply in the two payments — no side deals, no IOUs.
One side fails, the other is protected
If one campaign never delivers, its order goes to dispute and refund like any undelivered booking. The side that delivered keeps its proof — and its payout.
Everything in one thread
The proposal, every counter, both orders, both payments and both proofs hang off a single conversation, so the whole trade is auditable end to end.
Who trades here
Any two listings can be swapped — these trades happen every week.
Airtime is perishable; unsold spots buy a month of street presence.
Pre-roll on 40 screens for bus sides that drive past those same cinemas.
A full page per issue for a two-week run on mall screens — print meets footfall.
Concourse banners during the season for the spots that fill the seats.
Questions owners ask
Does any money change hands?
Yes — a swap is two paid bookings. Each side pays the listed price of the space it is taking, the platform holds both payments, and each side receives its payout once its own campaign's delivery is proven. What a swap removes is the search for a cash advertiser, not the payment protections.
Do the two sides have to be worth exactly the same?
No. Each side pays the other listing's actual price, so a difference in value is settled in the payments themselves. If the gap feels too wide, counter with different dates, a longer run or a different listing until it balances.
Can I swap different media types?
Yes — that is the point. Radio for billboards, cinema for transit, print for digital screens. Any two listings on Admarket can be traded, whatever their format.
What happens to my calendar when a swap is accepted?
The booked dates block out on both listings, exactly as a cash booking would. Double-booking protection treats a swap order like any other order.
Can I still sell the space for cash while a swap is being discussed?
Yes, until a proposal is accepted the space stays on the open market. If the dates sell first, the proposal lapses for those dates and the other side is notified.
What if the other side never uploads creative?
Their order misses its deadline like any late booking: it goes through the standard dispute, cancellation and refund path, and your half is handled on its own merits. If you delivered, your proof stands and your payout is released.
When do I actually get paid?
When the campaign you hosted is proven. Your payout is released once the proof of delivery for the campaign running on your space is approved — independent of how the other half of the swap is progressing.
Your unsold inventory is already worth something.
Mark a listing as open to swaps and other owners will come to you — or browse what is on the table right now.