Change is inevitable, and whether it’s for better or worse, there’s not much a mere mortal like you or me can do about it. People are very vocal about change, just by seeing the reaction to online streaming provider Netflix changing their logo, or by observing the outcry when Facebook decide to tweak their website, you can get an idea of people and their attempts to fight it. Personally, I see change as progression, and within the world of advertising and digital marketing there has been a real growth in what’s known as native advertising – a real change that has united publishers and advertisers.
Working together to push brands through this newfangled native advertising, this change that I speak of has polarised opinions, and what some people think is a fad is more than likely here to stay. Native advertising is essentially a marketing method in which an advertiser will attempt to gain attention by providing content within the context of the user’s or experience. It can come in many different guises, and could be compared to an editorial which have been placed in print publications for decades. We’ve all flipped through a magazine and began to read a paid placement which is designed to look like an article, whilst this has been going on for years, native advertising is taking things one step further and applies similar principles in a digital format.
A definition of native advertising
Again, I will reiterate: native advertising is a form of paid media where the ad experience follows the natural form and function of the user experience which it is placed. There are two essential components of a native ad, which are:
Form – Native ads will match the visual design of the experience you find them in, they are designed to look and feel like natural content.
Function – Native advertising needs to behave consistently with the native user experience and should function just like natural content.
To put it simply, it is a sub-segment of content marketing, with the practice of creating and using it to build trust and engagement with potential customers. The difference between content and native ads is that native content aspires to go viral, or to achieve more shares across social channels.
Still don’t get it?
With all these buzzwords flying around, it can become difficult to differentiate between content marketing, native content or branded content, and luckily, Felix Salmon has penned this handy blog for Reuters which looks to draw lines between the different areas of what he has coined the ‘native matrix’.
There is no doubting the fact that native advertising matters and is more than just a buzzword which will appear, before quickly disappearing from the digital landscape. Marketers, publishers and agencies are all looking to quickly adjust their core strategies to reflect this and many are currently experimenting with – and learning – new tactics. Formats for native advertising include promoted videos, images, articles, music and other media. Twitter’s promoted tweets are classed as native advertising, and this is because relevant ads will appear on the timelines or search results of users. Facebook’s promoted stories and Tumblr’s promoted posts could also be classed as native advertising, as again they are relevant stories which appeal to the user, in the form of a post or tweet.
In terms of on-site native advertising, see it as a progression from intrusive, blinking banner ads and as an experience that you might actually enjoy. Thats the plan for marketers and publishers who are working in cahoots to really create enjoyable, engaging and entertaining branded content which looks to address users interests and then drive social action.
Are marketers being deceptive?
There are a number of people who believe that we are essentially being duped by a bad form of advertising, and being targeted by sponsored content which is not clearly labelled as being associated advertising material. The cynics believe native ads might be harming users but in reality, native advertising looks to emphasise the interests of users.
The goals of both the advertiser and publisher are aligned to produce content which the user will find valuable, and this added value is sure to be appreciated by customers, they might even develop strong relationships with brands who knew exactly how to grab their attention before delivering them content which is worth watching, reading and then sharing.
In 2014, digital banners can be of little relevance whatsoever to the user and are not mindful of the page design and don’t appeal in an interactive manner, generally, users see them as a hindrance and that they are there just to get in the way.
Native Advertising Playbook
The IAB Native Advertising Playbook is another good guide to this new landscape, it covers all areas of the matrix and really goes some way to uncover the characteristics of effective native advertising, as well as the form, function, integration and measurement to which you can gauge the success of the ad and its placement.
Legislation
In an attempt to stop people becoming confused between what is actually native advertising and content marketing, the Advertising Watchdog has moved to ensure that native advertising is properly labelled on the web so that customers don’t become confused with whether their content is an editorial piece or a paid-for advertisement.
The legislation stems from a case in which a paid-for native advertisement appeared on the Independent’s website entitled ‘Keep your email private!’. There was a complaint over the advert questioning whether the link, and other links in the same part of the page were clearly identifiable as advertising.
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) noted that the ad appeared next to the logo of the company who created the ad and its content (Outbrain) but it wasn’t stated clearly that it was actually a marketing communication. The ASA then told Outbrain to make sure that any future advertising was clearly identifiable.
This case could have far reaching implications within marketing, with publishers and advertisers being concerned over the labelling of their content, which they believe could have a negative effect on how consumers engage with that content. Outbrain have suggested that they will continue to work with The Guardian, Twitter and Buzzfeed to establish the best practices moving forward with their paid-for content recommendations.
The aim would be to offer a better clarity and outline the best tactics about how to display and measure branded content or native advertising.
Successful native advertising platforms
It wouldn’t be right at all to look at native advertising without providing you with a number of examples of native advertising campaigns and companies who specialise in native advertising who have seen success across the world. Our chosen examples sit at the top of the pile when it comes to native advertising; they have raised the bar and you’ll soon be aware of what we mean when we say high-quality videos and articles. Brands and publishers have crafted their content to appeal to their prospective customers and in doing so, have spawned innovative and inventive native ad campaigns.
Content Click
ContentClick is a native advertising specialist who work with publishers of all sizes, their sponsored links widget offers internet browsers relevant content and is offering click through rates (CTR) of 5%. Their success has come from the fact that readers get what they want whilst also being highly sharable across social media channels.
Facebook, Twitter and Instagram
If you use Facebook, you are most probably aware of the advertising which appears on your newsfeed. This is an example of native advertising which can, admittedly, seem a little overbearing. This is because the adverts you see are tailored to your browsing habits. This intrusion isn’t quite as bad on Instagram and can even offer you value if there is an image that you like for example.
The first ever sponsored post on Instagram was from Michael Kors, he managed to gain 34,000 followers in 18 hours as a result and the number of likes he received skyrocketed an astonishing 370%.
Spotify
Music streaming service Spotify is on course to break the $1 billion revenue mark by the end of 2014 and they have managed to do so with a little help from their own take on native advertising. Users of the service can access sponsored apps within the app and create playlists based on their recommendations. At the moment the brands who have made spotify a home include: Pitchfork, Rolling Stone, Domino Records, Last.fm and The Guardian.
The New York Times
The New York Times recently redesigned its website so that it caters towards native advertising. In contrast to the Outbrain native ads which we discussed before, the NYT have gone overboard and labelled the content links as ‘Paid for Content by Dell’ which may turn off some advertisers who might want their content to be more integrated – but the good thing is that they have approached native advertising with caution.
Buzzfeed
I don’t think I’ll ever get through a blog here at Neil Walker Digital in which I don’t mention the almighty Buzzfeed. They have consistently given users content that that they want, regardless of any sponsorship. Their highly clickable blog posts have titles which intrigue readers and act as click bait, whilst they intermittently show promoted posts which are clearly labeled as promoted ads.
Take a look at the Native Advertising Leaderboard which ranks campaigns in terms of views and social shares. You can keep an eye on the branded content world and discover videos, articles and any other native advertising campaigns from around the world. Its a useful website which will really outline what native advertising is, that’s if you didn’t know by now!
Native advertising principles
The industry is still getting to grips with the relatively new phenomenon of native advertising, publishers and advertisers are still in a state of experimentation and are attempting to try to find the best ways to create unobtrusive, yet more engaging formats. By what are the principles that they are adhering to?
Native advertising is now vital to economic stability
Transparency can actually improve effectiveness
Appropriate placement should not be understated
Relevancy is key to engagement
Following these principles can maintain trust between publishers and consumers. Trust is at the heart of the native advertising debate, with the aim being to provide readers, watchers or listeners with an engaging source of information that refrains from being overbearing and that doesn’t compromise user experience due the fact that it is paid for media.
Final thoughts
Native advertising is one of the fastest growing media channels in the world and the reasons for this are very well documented. Firstly there was the steep decline in the numbers of banner click throughs, secondly there was the severe reduction in print ad revenue and the circulation of print publications, and lastly theres the strong need to secure new forms of revenue. Native advertising has essentially been born out of necessity and it seems that users enjoy the fact that this channel of marketing is less intrusive than other ways of promotion.
When done correctly and with integrity, native advertising can become a very positive approach to marketing. It looks to set out and minimise consumer interruptions and simultaneously maximise their interest, the further the experiments go, the more brands will be able to communicate in a more interesting and engaging way.
If native advertising isn’t a fad, a tactic or an advertising product, what exactly is it? Well, it could be suggested that its the beginning of an essential stage of the industry becoming more mature. Agencies, marketers and publishers have quickly noticed this and have grabbed the baton before running with it, attempting to gain a competitive advantage. It was once a marketing channel which was considered to be much like spam, but the more experienced marketers get, the more relevant and more interesting their native advertising will become.
How do you feel about this seismic shift within online marketing? Join in the conversation on Twitter, let us know how you feel about native advertising – have you noticed its growth? are you for or against this new marketing platform?