What is native advertising? Even if you’re unaware of the term, you’ll recognise it if you use any kind of social media app. Native ads are ubiquitous in the modern age, and they just so happen to be very useful indeed. But why is this?
As it so happens, this type of marketing is used to help counteract advertising fatigue en masse. Why? The art of native advertising is all about blending into the background. A genuinely great native ad will match the style, format and even content style of its platform.
Let’s consider a few reasons why this works so well in practice.
They Won’t Disrupt You
Unlike the painfully annoying pop-up ads of old, native advertising is designed to blend into a content stream. This means, effectively, you shouldn’t notice a native ad while scrolling. It’ll appear to be part of the content, and therefore, psychologically, you are uninterrupted.
This, on paper, suggests that people annoyed by intrusive ads are more likely to be receptive. Advertisers can still plug their products, and readers can still continue consuming content at their leisure. It is an intelligent and practical way to continue pitching without getting in the way (which drives people to ad blockers).
It’s Fully Justified
Many people browsing the internet will feel that advertising is intrusive and has no place. However, the sad reality is, many websites and apps need advertising to stay afloat. Otherwise, they would need to demand their readers pay money to access the content. This works in some avenues, but by and large, advertising pays dividends.
What’s more, native ads are justified in that they often pitch as ‘sponsored content’. Therefore, ads that effectively blend into content streams can assure the reader that such marketing is above board. Not only that, but the ‘sponsored content’ label effectively gives native advertising a get-out clause. It’s not an intrusive advertisement – it’s merely sponsored content.
This also further helps to align an ad with existing content. It uses the same label and the same pedestal – thus, it is just as valuable!
It’s Scalable Advertising in the Savvy Age
Ultimately, web users (that includes you and me) are getting savvier. We know when an advertising campaign is intrusive and how to block and/or avoid them. Therefore, native advertising provides a fantastic, scalable solution for the future.
There is a vicious circle in internet advertising. Marketers will feel the need, often, to make campaigns more intrusive to break through. However, to appeal to savvy readers and web users, further intrusion is hardly sustainable.
Native marketing provides a sustainable, non-intrusive model. Much in the way that Facebook advertising models have mastered this art, it’s sweeping into all kinds of content streams. The goal, ultimately, is for advertising to be seamless and perhaps even inconspicuous – yet still effective.
This ideal has made native marketing a controversial issue in recent times. However, for advertisers and consumers alike, it appears to be vastly preferred over annoying floating ads and pop-ups. Let’s see how far it goes!
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