Native advertising is one of the hottest new trends in digital advertising. As mentioned in the main article for this month, native ads are embedded on a website to look like regular site content. They are designed to match the normal site content visually and function in the same way, creating a user experience that is no different. Although controversial, the effectiveness of native ads cannot be denied. Nielsen teamed up with software company Sharethrough to conduct a state-of-the-art study on native advertising that used eye-tracking and neuroscience to measure consumer’s subconscious reactions to native ads. Here are five important statistical findings that sum up why native advertising is an effective investment:
- Reach 25% More Consumers – One of the most overwhelming statistics in the Sharethrough-Nielsen study was that consumers are 25 percent more likely to look at native ads compared to standard banner ads. This means that native ads are simply reaching a larger audience than standard online ads, giving your brand more exposure.
- 52% More Frequency – The study also showed that consumers viewed in-feed native ads 52 percent more frequently than your typical in-feed banner ads. On average, they looked at native ads 4.1 times per session, compared to 2.7 times for banner ads. This shows that native ads are being seen more times, giving them a higher frequency. In terms of media placement, this number is huge.
- In-Depth Storytelling – Another important finding from the study was that there was a clear correlation between longer headlines and consumer engagement rate. Headlines with 15-30 characters had the lowest engagement rate below one percent, while headlines with 61 or more characters had the highest level of consumer engagement. Longer headlines are more effective in native advertising. This allows your brand to have a more complete, descriptive message without fear of losing consumer interest.
- Higher Brand Affinity and Purchase Intent – Sharethrough and Nielsen report that native ads registered a 9 percent higher lift for brand affinity than standard online ads. This means that consumers have better feelings towards a brand when they see a native ad for that brand versus when they see a standard banner ad for the brand. More importantly, there was an 18 percent lift in purchase intent, meaning consumers are more likely to take action and make a purchase from seeing a native ad versus a traditional banner ad.
- On Par with Actual Content – Incredibly, the study showed that native advertisements were nearly on par with actual editorial content in terms of consumer attention. Believe it or not, the study showed that consumers actually looked at native ads 2 percent more than the actual site content and spent nearly the same amount of time viewing them.
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