Native advertising has become an increasingly popular form of advertising in recent years, thanks to its ability to seamlessly integrate with a user’s browsing experience. In contrast to traditional forms of advertising, such as banner ads or pop-ups, native ads are designed to look and feel like the content that surrounds them. This makes them less disruptive to the user and more likely to be clicked on and engaged with.
In this article, we’ll take a closer look at what native advertising is, how it works, and why businesses are increasingly turning to this form of advertising to reach their target audience.
What is Native Advertising?
Native advertising is a form of advertising that is designed to look and feel like the content that surrounds it. It blends in with the surrounding content, which makes it less intrusive and more engaging for the user. Native ads can take many forms, including sponsored content, in-feed ads, and recommendation widgets.
Sponsored content involves creating content that is designed to inform or entertain the user, rather than simply promoting a product or service. This content might take the form of a blog post, video, or infographic. In-feed ads are native ads that appear within a user’s social media feed, while recommendation widgets are ads that appear at the end of an article or webpage, recommending other content that the user may be interested in.
How Native Advertising Works
The goal of native advertising is to create ads that are less disruptive and more engaging for the user. This is achieved by matching the look and feel of the platform on which the ad appears. To create effective native ads, businesses need to work with publishers who understand their target audience and can help create ads that are relevant and engaging.
For example, if a business wants to promote a new product, they might create a piece of sponsored content that tells the story of how the product was developed, with the aim of informing and entertaining the user. This content might be placed on a website or social media platform that is popular with the target audience. By doing this, the business can increase the chances that the user will be interested in the content of the ad and engage with it.
Benefits of Native Advertising
Native advertising has become popular among businesses for several reasons. Here are some of the benefits of native advertising:
- Improved Engagement
Native ads are designed to blend in with the surrounding content, which makes them more engaging for the user. Users are more likely to interact with a native ad, whether that means clicking on a link, watching a video, or sharing the content with their friends. According to a study by Sharethrough and IPG Media Lab, native ads registered an 18% higher lift in purchase intent and a 9% lift for brand affinity compared to banner ads.
- Enhanced User Experience
Traditional ads can be annoying and disruptive to users, especially when they interrupt the user’s browsing experience. Native ads, on the other hand, are designed to be less intrusive, which improves the overall user experience. This can help build a positive association between the user and the brand that created the ad.
- Targeted Audience
One of the biggest advantages of native advertising is the ability to target specific audiences. Because native ads are designed to blend in with the surrounding content, they can be placed on websites and platforms that are already popular with the target audience. This increases the likelihood that the user will be interested in the content of the ad.
- Improved ROI
Because native ads tend to be more engaging and less disruptive than traditional ads, they can be more effective at driving conversions. This can lead to a higher return on investment (ROI) for businesses that use native advertising. According to the same Sharethrough and IPG Media Lab study mentioned earlier, native ads achieved an 82% brand lift compared to 54% for banner ads.
In conclusion, native advertising has become a popular form of advertising because of its ability to seamlessly integrate with a user’s browsing experience, making it less intrusive and more engaging for the user. By matching the look and feel of the platform on which the ad appears, native ads can target specific audiences and increase the likelihood that the user will be interested in the content of the ad. This can lead to improved engagement, a better user experience, and higher return on investment (ROI) for businesses that use native advertising.
To be effective, businesses need to work with publishers who understand their target audience and can help create ads that are relevant and engaging. They also need to follow best practices, such as creating content that is informative or entertaining rather than simply promoting a product or service, and using eye-catching visuals and headlines to grab the user’s attention.
As with any form of advertising, there are potential drawbacks to native advertising, such as the risk of appearing deceptive if the ad is not clearly labeled as sponsored content. It is important for businesses to be transparent about the fact that the content is an ad, so that users can make an informed decision about whether or not to engage with it.
Overall, native advertising offers businesses a way to reach their target audience in a more effective and engaging way than traditional forms of advertising. As the digital landscape continues to evolve, it is likely that native advertising will become an even more important part of the advertising mix for businesses of all sizes.
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by Thomas Theodoridis
source: Rapidhits