Partner with a reseller that gives the publisher access to the reseller's own AdX and header bidding with a 15% or lower cut. Preferably a Google certified partner. A good reseller will work with the publisher to continually optimize/improve.
Independent approach:
Sign up for GAM, setup AdSense within GAM (via line items) so that other ad units can compete via dynamic allocation.
Setup header bidding (prebid.js) on their site. Contact all of the companies (Appnexus, Index Exchange, etc) and try to get partnerships. Requires technical competence, but they can hire someone to do this part if needed.
Header bidding will compete in real-time with AdSense and boost revenue. You can also supplement it with other non-display units (video, floating ad units, etc) from other companies specialized in those areas.
Once traffic is high enough, they should be invited to join AdX instead of AdSense.
Would strongly recommend beginning with the reseller approach, as there a lot of things you need to do properly to ensure you're not shooting yourself in the foot, and they can help you learn.
Reseller approach:
Partner with a reseller that gives the publisher access to the reseller's own AdX and header bidding with a 15% or lower cut. Preferably a Google certified partner. A good reseller will work with the publisher to continually optimize/improve.
Independent approach:
Sign up for GAM, setup AdSense within GAM (via line items) so that other ad units can compete via dynamic allocation.
Setup header bidding (prebid.js) on their site. Contact all of the companies (Appnexus, Index Exchange, etc) and try to get partnerships. Requires technical competence, but they can hire someone to do this part if needed.
Header bidding will compete in real-time with AdSense and boost revenue. You can also supplement it with other non-display units (video, floating ad units, etc) from other companies specialized in those areas.
Once traffic is high enough, they should be invited to join AdX instead of AdSense.
Would strongly recommend beginning with the reseller approach, as there a lot of things you need to do properly to ensure you're not shooting yourself in the foot, and they can help you learn.
A good resource is the /r/adops subreddit.