Despite the apparent diversity, advertising on the Internet is rather monotonous. Standard banners, pop-ups, e-mail newsletters, advertising posts - all this is rather annoying for the user, so often an advertising message placed in this way does not cause a proper response from the target audience. It is quite difficult to find something really new and attractive on the Internet, so native advertising, which has been gaining momentum lately, seems to be a very promising area of Internet marketing.
What is Native advertising?
This type of advertising is almost indistinguishable from regular content, it does not catch the eye, does not cause irritation and rejection, like regular advertising. Rather, the user sees in it some useful information for himself, good advice, and already subconsciously wants to put it into practice. This could be a review article, a post, a non-advertising review, questionnaires or tests that raise current issues.
Native advertising format (from the word native - natural) should be stylistically similar to the site on which it is placed, and look like one of the resource materials. In this case, the plugin forblocking simply does not recognize it and will not cut it out of the display, which means that the information will reach the user.
According to research by AdBlock Plus (one of the most popular inappropriate content blocking extensions), native ads are among the last places to annoy users. Users most often pay attention to it, they unconsciously often share it with friends and relatives, of course, if the material read is really unique, useful and interesting.
All the advantages of native advertising
As already mentioned, the world experience of native advertising shows that it is the least annoying and causes negative emotions in the target audience, which increases brand loy alty. In addition, there are several other advantages of native advertising:
- it is always located where people want to read or see it;
- the more interesting the content, the higher the likelihood that the advertisement will “go to the people” – the effect of the so-called “word of mouth”;
- it is almost impossible to block it, which means that the advertising message will definitely reach the user;
- it can exist on almost any multimedia device.
A few shortcomings
Any, even the most effective advertising, is not complete without negative sides. The disadvantages of native advertising include the risks of losing trust if the user realizes that an interesting information resource has been paid for by sponsors. Anotherthe disadvantage is the complexity of creating and adapting content for a specific Internet site, as well as the high cost of these processes.
Native advertising on mobile web
Today advertising on the mobile Internet is especially important, because the average user spends many times more time on the phone than on the computer. Only “disguised” ads have a chance to be seen on a mobile phone, since their usual types (banners, pop-ups, etc.) are blocked in half of the cases, and in the other half they simply annoy the user, taking up most of the small screen.
The main difficulty lies in the fact that native advertising is of interest to the user, and for this the content provided must be of really high quality. To do this, experts go to the creation of new formats of advertising. For example, creating a viral video, a non-standard questionnaire or a mobile application with a disguised advertising message.
Native Ad on Instagram
The whole direction is the placement of advertising on social networks Instagram and Facebook. It is enough to place an original attractive photo using the advertised product, and do it on behalf of an ordinary user, not a company. The person who sees the image will perceive it not as a direct advertising message, but as “he has it, and here's what you can do with it (or here's how it will look)”. And, perhaps, he wants a thing for himself. These ads are often used by sellers.handmade, designer items, children's toys and clothes.
Let's talk about the successful use of native advertising in more detail.
Examples of “disguised advertising”
Native advertising is often used to promote the film industry. Here is a prime example of this. Netflix is sponsoring an article in The New York Times dedicated to the problems of imprisoned women, what they have to deal with in prison and what awaits them after their release. In the material, the journalist seeks expert opinion from the author of the memoir "Orange is the new black" Piper Kerman, who inspired Netflix to create the series of the same name. Thus, the advertisement sounded, and the company appeared in a favorable light for itself, as understanding and focusing on the topical problems of society.
Another example will explain the importance of audience feedback and entertainment. When Buzzfeed published another "How Would You Die in Game of Thrones?" poll, over 8 million viewers watched the final episode of the series.
The most effective advertising always speaks about the benefits for the consumer. For example, the Starbucks cafe chain sponsored an article about the benefits of coffee for mental activity.
The usefulness of the advertised product can be more effectively presented in a visual form. Design magazine Styling Home published an article on “The 10 Most Useful Things for the Kitchen” featuring 10 fantastically beautiful kitchens designed bycustomer-manufacturer of kitchen furniture.
Native Ad is gradually developing in the domestic advertising market. One of the successful projects is the “Second Half” series of materials, where the characters talk about interesting places in Kyiv and from time to time take pictures against the backdrop of a Volkswagen Polo.
Native advertising, examples of which were considered here, are only a small part of the most original approaches of the advertiser. Where else can you effectively place Native Ads?
Popular platforms
Where do you place your “invisible ad” to make it visible?
1) Promotional articles (kitchen example) - the consumer is given interesting material from which he can derive some tangible benefit for himself.
2) Blogs - Users perceive advertising through the advice of a famous person or popular blogger. The emphasis is not on the advertised product, but on the feeling of using it.
3) Reviews – several products are compared based on authoritative opinion and the sponsored brand is chosen as the best one.
4) Mobile applications are a device related to the mission of the company. For example, a series of workouts from Nike or playlists from Pandora.
5) Social networks - users share photos or posts about usefulness, beauty, uniqueness, etc. any brand.
6) Viral YouTube videos.
Instead of a conclusion
Native advertising can rightfully be considered a modern discovery of brand marketing promotion on the market. It is unique, useful and does not cause a negative reaction inbuyer. It is invisible, but it is everywhere - on our phone, on the computer, in a conversation with a friend, in our head. We perceive natural advertising on a subconscious level, and the product that it advertises as something we need, useful, important. In other words, Native Ad is the most effective way to influence a person without their consent.
At the same time, the creator of the advertisement must not forget that the message that the message carries must be heard by the user, otherwise the expensive project will not bring any results. Walk the fine line between aggressive advertising and recommendation based on authoritative opinion. Collect the opposite opinion, check if you are heard, only in this case you can get the desired effect from the advertising campaign.
