No one really likes ads, except perhaps the marketers and creatives responsible for making them. The fact is, ads are annoying, especially the interstitials, banners, and video ads that make it virtually impossible to read an article or watch a video that has been clicked on. This makes it no surprise that the adoption and use of ad blockers have skyrocketed recently.
Another step that Google has taken to help provide a more user-friendly experience is the recently announced “ad filter” that is available through Chrome. This means that the days of disruptive ads may be coming to a swift end. However, Google isn’t the only company making a stand; Amazon and other major companies are as well.
Due to these factors, many marketers have begun to turn to native advertising to reach target audiences. However, while native advertising is growing in popularity and use, up to 55 percent of marketers don’t fully understand it or what it has to offer.
Why is Native Advertising So Important?
Native advertising offers you the ideal way to reach customers without creating the annoying and disliked ads that most people actively avoid. When content is promoted in this manner, it may seem like it provides value; however, the main goal it has is to sell a service or a product.
Types of Native Ads
One of the first things to understand is the native advertising options available today.
1. In-Feed Ads
This is, perhaps, the most popular way native advertising is used. Platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, Twitter and others contain these native ads. These can take one of two forms – in-feed promotions or sponsored content.
Sponsored content takes the function and form of other content that looks “normal” in a person’s feet. Some of the best examples of sponsored content are seen on Gawker, Forbes, and BuzzFeed.
In-feed promotions will appear in a feed, but don’t behave like traditional content. This promotes links to content on the site in question. Both these forms of native advertising help to seamlessly present content – both sponsored and user-generated – in a manner that doesn’t negatively impact a person’s overall user experience.
2. Recommendation Widgets
You may have noticed on various sites suggestions for related content you are interested in. These types of recommendation widgets typically feature content that is considered contextually related to what is being read; however, the content is from other publishers and brands, rather from the site a person is visiting.
You can notice these recommendation widgets by phrases such as “recommended for you,” or “you may also like.” The goal is to get you to read more, but not feel forced.
3. Promoted Listings
Instead of pushing content, promoted listings typically feature services or products, but they still meet the rule established by native advertising that requires the information fit in the environment. Promoted listings are extremely relevant and targeted, and they are typically based on the person’s most recent behavior online.
4. Paid Search Ads
Most people are familiar with paid search ads. These are a direct-response ad that is promoted along with search results. These are native ads because they are seen in a layout and format that is similar to the organic search results. This is true, even though they are indicated as sponsored.
Why is Native Advertising Effective?
Advertisers and brands love to use native advertising. This is mainly because the click-through rates are usually much higher than what is seen with a traditional advertisement. If you get it right, your engagement can be significant. In fact, a recent study showed that consumers engaged with native ads approximately 53 percent more often than more traditional display ads.
Native advertising is a viable way to increase engagement for your products or services while eliminating the annoying ads that most people don’t want to see. It is a good idea to utilize a native ads network to get the most out of the ads you create. If you want to create ads that are going to get engagement and provide a significant ROI, then native advertising is something you should consider.
