Online consumers are becoming ever more annoyed by tacky, poorly designed ads popping up everywhere, disturbing them from browsing peacefully. Nonetheless, it would be wrong to assume that consumers hate all advertising. Proof: everybody remembers at least one funny commercial. However, research shows that native advertising is gaining traction. It’s been reported that users looked more at so called “native advertisements” than at editorial content.

Adblocking – worst case scenario

Consumers don’t hate all advertised content, but rather the horrible way it is most often prepared and served to them. In the attempt to attract customers, brands’ ads are often flashing and intrusive, which in turn has a completely opposite effect on potential buyers.

Also, a lot of times consumers are shown offers completely unrelated to the content they are reading. They have already trained their brains to ignore ads, or, worst case scenario – have blocked ads all together.

A date gone well

In with native advertising. By definition, native ads are content based ads integrated within the editorial feed and matching the design style of the page they are on. Because these adverts look just like editorial content related to what consumers wanted to read about in the first place, they are more likely to look at them and, ideally, decide to convert.

An average native ad should contain some 70% content integrated with 30% of product advertising. Native ads are a complete opposite to usual banner ads – they do not impose on readers, but rather modestly sneak up our brains.

If native advertising is done with care, readers might not even realize that the content is on a secret mission to seduce. Like a date gone well, it will linger in their mind until it calls them to action. See for yourself whether you can differentiate between an editorial article and a native ad in the quiz below!

Stairway to smarter marketing

In fact, some research suggests that native ads have 9% higher brand affinity and as much as 18% higher possibility of creating purchase intent in consumers than common banner ads. Think about it – if you are browsing a website you love and trust, reading an intriguing native ad might be the stimulus you need to buy the product advertised.

The above mentioned scenario could play out differently, too. Some users might consider serving native ads a credibility buster: recommended without actual satisfaction with product advertised. That is why many popular and respectable websites choose to emphasize sponsored content at the beginning of articles, rather than disappoint the trust of their users with fine print at the end.

This is not a sponsored post

As native adverts generally rate well, we will assume the former attitude. When viewing a native ad in the environment they are comfortable in, online users have a 21% higher rate of identifying with advertiser brand personally. They will probably share interesting ones with friends and family as well.

Some experts even believe that well thought out, effective native ads will benefit the whole marketing industry and pave the way towards smarter marketing. Consequently, users will not fight against it, but surrender to and enjoy, and maybe even retell over a glass of wine.