Native advertising has become more popular, in part, through the expansion of social media usage. These advertisements can appear on news sites as suggested articles or additional reading at the bottom of the page, and in some cases, as entire sponsored articles. In a nutshell, native ads are brand-sponsored content crafted specifically for their readers.
What is Native Advertising?
Native advertising is a type of digital marketing that, in most cases, utilizes in-feed ads that match the look and feel of editorial content on the web page or platform where they are published. Native ads are non-intrusive and blend more with site content, as opposed to the in-your-face popup and display ads. They take many forms and can be videos, infographics, and articles.
Why Is Native Advertising Important?
Native ads are distinctive in that they can benefit both the consumer and the business placing the ad. They provide readers with a natural way to read content that interests them while providing the business the ability to target and engage potential customers.
For the Consumer
Native advertisements are very well-received by Internet users. When native ads are integrated in a way that feels natural to readers, they become less disruptive to the reader than their traditional counterparts; banner and popup ads. They eliminate that annoying and cluttered feeling of seeing too many ads on a page.
Consumers are appreciative of this less disruptive approach to advertising. A variety of surveys have indicated that consumers view native ads more frequently than display ads and their browsing experience is not hindered by native ads. In actuality, the majority of survey respondents find links suggested at the ends of articles they have read helpful. In these instances, the consumers felt the sponsored content felt complimentary to the non-sponsored content.
For the Small Business
The benefits of native advertising are not limited to readers who do not want their browsing experience interrupted. By targeting ads to the right users and formatting them in a way that feels natural, businesses can greatly increase their advertising success. As mentioned above surveyed users said that they were more likely to click on a sponsored article than a banner ad. This increased click-through rate could be a huge source of profit for your small business.
The majority of the success of native advertising is derived from the ability to target specific audiences. The bottom line is, when content is relevant to a user, they are more likely to engage with it. In terms of your small business, you can spend less time and money on advertising to audiences that are not interested in your products or services. Allowing you to spend more of your resources on attracting people who could potentially be customers.
Getting Started with Native Advertising
Done right, native advertising can engage your audience in a way that doesn’t even feel like an advertisement. One of the keys to successful native advertising is knowing your audience, especially their social media choices. If you are just getting started with native advertising, start small. If you are targeting a demographic that uses Facebook heavily, start there. If your clientele tends to use Instagram, go there.
If your brand is already present on social media, using promoted posts can be a great way to reach a larger, targeted audience. This can also allow you to get a feel for native advertising and test its effectiveness.
You can start by sponsoring one or two of your posts and monitoring their reach and engagement to see how they perform. Then, compare them to your previous, organic posts. This will give you a sense of what native advertising can do for your small business.
Adopt Your Customer’s Mindset
When creating content for your native advertisement, put yourself in the mindset of your ideal customer. Browse the internet as a consumer. This will help you better determine the types of content your customer wants to see and if any of the content you have can be repurposed in native ads. In that case, where you have content that was previously popular with consumers, you could spruce it up with new photos, graphics, and any other non-advertising content to repurpose it for you next native ad.
Don’t mislead your readers! Be sure your content is easily understood to be sponsored content. By disclosing that content is paid for, readers have the choice to engage your brand further or not. This is not a disadvantage, on the contrary this can help refine your audience and limit those who are not truly interested in your products or services.
Need Help Getting Started with Native Advertising?
Native advertising can increase reach, user engagement, and brand awareness. But, if you don’t have the staff, or inclination to get started on your own you can always reach out to a digital marketing agency like IGM Creative Group, to help you get started. We can create and set up native advertising on your social media platforms, to help you convert more website visitors into leads and paying customers.
About IGM Creative Group
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