Meet Walt Dublin, VP Publisher Development, Enterprise

What do you like most about your role at Raptive? 

There are two things, actually. First, just getting to work with such an amazing team. At every company I’ve worked at—and I’ve worked at some pretty cool companies—there’s always a moment where you think okay, these things are great. But there’s one thing that makes it not so great. Since I’ve been at Raptive, I haven’t found that yet. Everything’s been incredible, which is pretty rare. 

Second, I get to work with such interesting people every day. I’ve learned so much by talking shop and strategy with everyone from senior leaders at global media organizations to the incredibly smart people on our internal teams. It’s really helped me in my career. 

What does a typical day look like for you—does that even exist? 

There definitely is no such thing as a typical day in our world. I’m responsible for putting together strategies to attract and support our Enterprise publishers here at Raptive. My focus is on helping them achieve sustainable growth and maximize their revenue potential. This includes consulting with prospective clients, negotiating partnership terms, leading strategic planning sessions, and collaborating with internal teams.

My team is out there every day, meeting with some of the world’s biggest media companies and looking for ways to align Raptive solutions with their priorities. 

What’s the difference between Enterprise publishers and independent creators? 

In general, Enterprise publishers function like media corporations, often employing extensive in-house teams of specialists across editorial, revenue, marketing, site performance, legal, analytics, and more. Independent creators, on the other hand, tend to run entrepreneurial  businesses—whether solo or with small teams—managing content creation, audience engagement, and business operations firsthand.

Many Enterprise publishers run their own ad stack in-house—why would they decide to work with an external partner like Raptive? 

When we talk about digital monetization, most publishers we speak with are operating from a place of comfortable familiarity. Their current setup generates revenue, integrates smoothly with their site, and seems to be doing its job. But “doing its job” and “maximizing potential” are two fundamentally different concepts. The more questions we ask, the more we uncover opportunities where substantial revenue and potential cost savings are being left on the table.

We know introducing a new partner can feel risky. But staying with a “good enough” solution means missing out on significant revenue—each month with a suboptimal setup is lost opportunity. Most publishers don’t just need a technology solution, they need a partner who understands their unique challenges.

Our publishers consistently report not just financial gains, but a sense of strategic partnership they’ve never experienced before.

As they explore ways to push their business forward, they can lean on us for answers and avoid making costly mistakes upfront.

Our network’s scale creates a powerful multiplier effect: when one publisher succeeds with a new optimization strategy, all of our partners benefit from those insights—something impossible to replicate in-house. While many organizations maintain strong internal teams, staying competitive requires increasingly significant resources; that is where we can support.

What’s top of mind for Enterprise publishers right now? 

Publishers face significant challenges from AI regarding content rights, fair compensation, and traffic generation. In response, they’re actively pursuing traffic diversification strategies and working to recover audience reach in the wake of Google’s search algorithm changes.

Our team is doing a lot of work to advocate for publishers as AI grows, from pushing for fair practices to helping them increase their traffic. 

Why do Enterprise publishers choose to work with Raptive?

We are the industry leader for driving revenue performance. We work with publishers in every vertical, including finance, food, gaming, sports, entertainment, lifestyle, and more; we do phenomenal work in all of those categories. In almost every instance I’ve seen, we’ve generated a significant RPM lift for publishers who’ve come to Raptive from any competitor or after managing in-house.

It’s very refreshing to be able to over-deliver, which is rare in our industry.

At well over 95%, our retention rate speaks for itself. Publishers who switch to us are so pleased they see no reason to leave. 

What kind of feedback do you hear from publishers after joining Raptive? 

Oh, they love it. We often hear a level of skepticism from publishers before they join, because our forecasted numbers appear very ambitious at first glance. When they go live with us and see that performance, that skepticism quickly turns to enthusiasm. 

Our reputation in the market is that we do what we say we’re going to do, which goes a long way. Integrity is extremely important to me. 

What motivates you when it comes to work? 

Before switching to business, I was a journalism major in college. I’ve always been very passionate about writing, and I still write a lot today. What’s really fulfilling about my role at Raptive is how it lets me support independent journalism in a different way. By helping media companies maximize their revenue, we’re making it possible for them to keep talented writers doing what they do best.

Throughout my career in ad tech, I’ve had the privilege of working with countless publishers, and honestly, nothing excites me more than helping them thrive. There’s something incredibly rewarding about knowing our work helps put food on the table for the people who produce the content we get to enjoy every day.