Did you know that the fortune cookie doesn't actually come from China? It was introduced to the United States by the Japanese! The truth is that they are rarely found in China. But that's often the case with old wives tales and received wisdom: they often take their own lives before anyone can find out if they're true. The same could be said for users who block ads. Many would have you believe that the reason someone downloads an ad blocker is because they hate all forms of advertising. Well, that's not really the case, and it's important for the advertising and publishing communities to understand. Last year, we conducted research to understand online user attitudes toward advertising and the use of ad blocking. For those who have not seen our results, the results may surprise you. Nearly three quarters of ad blockers say the main reason for downloading an ad blocker is that they don't want to see invasive forms of advertising during their online experience. Interesting huh? What else do they have to say? Well, and probably less surprisingly, privacy is a major concern.
Confidentiality issues
We now live in a post-Cambridge Analytica world, and users are acutely aware of how ads track their behavior online, using their information to display ads that are deemed more relevant to them. Not surprisingly, therefore, our research shows that almost half of ad-blocker users now install an ad-blocker due to security or privacy concerns, suggesting that there is a perceived threat to digital advertising and that users recognize ad blocking as a partial solution. . Additionally, more than 70% of UK and US adblocker users said that if a website disabled their adblocker without permission, they probably wouldn't return to that site. Regardless of your position, the prospect of losing more than two-thirds of your audience in a single action is not something an organization wants to entertain. Finally, one-third of ad-blocking users reported using an ad-blocker to speed up their Internet connection, suggesting that users see a speed boost when using ad-blocking software and/or perceive that some ads they slow down your experience. Advertisers ignore these important ad block audience findings at their own risk. Since it's clear that users who block ads don't hate ads, they just have a lower tolerance for intrusive ad formats. Online users are smarter than we think. They recognize that maintaining free advertising on the Internet is part of good business. And for this reason, we've seen a migration from the inflexible total ad blocking models of the early 2000s to solutions and apps that promote a better balance between publisher, advertiser, and user.
Users who block ads understand the importance of ads
Perhaps the main finding of the report that advertisers should be aware of is that four-fifths of ad-blocker users said they understand the importance of ads and marketing in maintaining a free Internet ecosystem. Bottom line: ad blockers respect the digital ecosystem, but at the same time they don't want ad formats that interrupt your browsing experience. However, they recognize the importance of free Internet advertising and are willing to engage in a fairer exchange of value with advertisers and publishers. Basically, they get better forms of advertising that are much more relevant to them. Online users download an ad blocker because they feel like they want to take control of their online experience. Simply because consumers have been force-fed poor-quality and intrusive ads for far too long, ad blocking provides them with a way to see the content they want without the compromise between boring and irrelevant and intrusive advertising on their smartphones, laptops and computers.
targeted ads
Advertisers and publishers should take the time to understand this key figure above. I repeat: four out of five UK internet users recognize the importance of free internet advertising. By understanding the above key factors for ad blocking adoption, publishing and advertising communities will be much better equipped in the future to successfully deliver better ads that their target audiences will engage with. truly. We are already seeing a number of successful initiatives that strike the right balance for users who demand control over their Internet experience, while also wanting to help share value with publishers. While users balk at technologies that might disable an ad blocker, "consent-based" forms of advertising already work on at least half of the world's top websites. And as the industry has adapted to ad blocking, today we are closer than ever to a solution that can work for everyone. There is still a lot of work to be done, but the key is to find standards and solutions that everyone in the industry is committed to.