We often come across native ads and interact with them daily on the internet. However, chances are, that most people fail to notice or even realise this form of digital advertising.

In the last few years, native advertising has risen and grown in popularity, prompting the question; “why do you need to consider it for your business and marketing growth strategy?”. This article will shed some light on native advertising. Let’s dive in!

So, what is native advertising? 

Put simply, native advertising is paid advertising that seeks to match the look and feel of the media source you’re currently using. Also referred to as sponsored content, this form of marketing uses ads that align with the web page or platform on which they appear.

Unlike typical display or pop-up ads, native ads aren’t disruptive, and they carry useful information to their viewers/users, hence offering a good user experience. From articles, videos to infographics, native ads appear in different forms. Here are the three different types of native advertising:

• In-feed ads: These ads are seamlessly integrated into a website, blog content, or social platforms in a manner that aligns with the regular content. Since they blend with the platform’s content, they’re usually consumed naturally without being obstructive.
• Content-recommendation ads: Recommendation ads normally appear at the end or alongside the editorial content in the form of recommendation widgets.
• Paid search ads: These are sponsored search results that normally appear in an identical manner to the intended results on various search engines, like Google.

Pros and cons of using native advertising 

Before deciding to use native advertising, it is worth considering its benefits and limitations. Here are some pros:

1. Easier to grab the audience’s attention 

Time Inc found that up to 90% of younger internet users from Gen Z, millennials to Gen X, prefer custom content, such as native ads, over traditional advertising. Another study also found that consumers usually click and open native ads 53 percent more frequently than other forms of digital advertising. In other words, native ads are effective as they are better received by their audiences.

2. Native advertising removes ad fatigue 

Today, consumers are bombarded with marketing ads all over the internet, prompting ad fatigue. Thankfully, native ads are well received by their audiences since they align with their content. Consequently, they don’t tire users, but instead engage them.

3. Drives better performance 

Native advertising drives better campaign results than almost any other form of advertising, thanks to its high click-through rates (CTR), views, and conversions. Due to its highly engaging and meaningful content, it entices more and performs better.

While these are good reasons to use this type of digital marketing, there are challenges associated with it. Here are some of the cons:

1. Tracking and measuring results is complex

Measuring native campaign results is still a challenging task for most marketers due to the lack of unified measurement standards. From impressions, views, CTR, on-site time to the overall ROI, measuring the performance of native advertising can prove to be complex.

2. Time-consuming 

Producing native ads is complex since a lot goes into creating them. It, therefore, takes considerable time to craft effective native ads or campaigns and run A/B testing.

3. Thought to be deceptive 

Unfortunately, native ads are thought to be deceptive since they use the same format, look, and feel of the content on the page. Despite looking and performing similar to on-site content, native ads don’t intend to deceive or trick users into believing that they aren’t advertisements.

Consumers today are well aware that native advertising is a form of marketing; however, they tend to overlook them. In fact, despite enhancing purchasing, a study by Stanford University found that it tricks nobody anymore.

In other words, native advertising is an effective form of advertising, which uses content that blends with your audience and easily converts them. Outwardly, its pros seem to outweigh its cons. However, to determine if native advertising is a good fit for your company, contact us or book your FREE digital marketing strategy call today.

Want More Like This?

Why It’s Important to Measure Key Performance Metrics

The Difference Between Good and Great Content Marketing

What Is User Experience and Why Is It Important?

Actionable Tips On How To Protect Customer Data