Native advertisements. They were once a taboo subject for publishers. Critics charge that native ads often use deceptive practices – ones that blur the lines between ads and editorials. Native ads aren’t something new, they have been around long before the internet. However, they’re garnering significant traction with today’s publishers.
Native advertisements. They were once a taboo subject for publishers. Critics charge that native ads often use deceptive practices – ones that blur the lines between ads and editorials.
Native ads aren’t something new, they have been around long before the internet. However, they’re garnering significant traction with today’s publishers.
Sharethrough defines Native advertising as “a form of paid media where the ad experience follows the natural form and function of the user experience in which it is placed.”
Why Native Advertising
As ad revenue continues to decline, publishers look for innovative ways to deliver content to readers, for example, in the form of a sponsored tweet or blog. Now, publishers are evolving the fight for consumer attention.
Hence, today, it’s all too common to see leading publishers utilizing some form of native ads. Forbes, Buzzfeed, and AdAge have all adopted the practice and provide it to customers as an added feature.
“(It’s) the evolution of where we’ve come from and where we are in today’s world,” states Mark Howard, Forbes Media chief revenue officer.
To give more perspective, below are two mind-boggling native ad stats:
- purchase intent is 53% higher with native ads,
- people view native ads 53% more than banner ads.
Native Advertising Growth and Regulation
Within the social world, native advertisements are refining intimate touch points. SnapChat, Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter are empowering the average person to become a digital publisher. Each channel allows a social introspective layer into the land of storytelling.
Influencers leverage their ability to capture attention; and transform it into a wealth machine. For example, the Kardashians use a variety of posts to promote health products (as well as other products). Advertisers conveniently pay celebrities to post while adoring followers purchase a commodity “supposedly stamped & approved” by the celebrity.
This social influence has native ads critics calling foul; citing a lack of clear boundaries between everyday posts and advertising posts.
Thus, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has recently stepped in. In December 2015, the FTC published guidelines for native ads to help curtail deceptive advertising. The FTC requires native ads to be clearly defined. Some publishing suggestions are denoting the ad as sponsored, placing “advertising” within the URL, and/or providing some sort of disclosure.
Native Ads on the Go
It’s no secret that banner click-through rates are declining. Also, consumers are becoming increasingly annoyed with pop-up ads and video pre-rolls. Native advertising presents marketers with an unique alternative to reach a desired, hyper-targeted audience.
With the mobile internet still maturing, marketers are exploring new ways to become more inclusive.
Looking forward, will native advertising become the most efficient avenue to monetize the mobile landscape? We’ll have to wait and see.
Rob Black, Jr. is a marketer with over 15 years experience within property management. He currently operates a creative blog site (www.comizzzle.com) targeting millennials. Connect with him on LinkedIn here.
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