{"id":141315,"date":"2020-06-15T15:18:19","date_gmt":"2020-06-15T15:18:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.searchenginewatch.com\/?p=141315"},"modified":"2020-06-15T15:18:19","modified_gmt":"2020-06-15T15:18:19","slug":"the-ongoing-race-between-ad-blockers-and-ad-tech-whos-winning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/2020\/06\/15\/the-ongoing-race-between-ad-blockers-and-ad-tech-whos-winning\/","title":{"rendered":"The ongoing race between ad blockers and ad tech: Who\u2019s winning?"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"well\">\n<h3>30-second summary:<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">During the past seven years, ad blocking increased from 15,7% to 26,4% and this rate continues to grow.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">APAC countries block the most &#8211; 50% of ads, second-leading is MEA region with 49%.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The greatest share of ad blockers is seen on desktops. <\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Google starts its own ad-blocking initiatives to restrict annoying ads.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In-game, native ad formats coupled with personalization may be potentially useful for the ad block problem resolution.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Online advertising brings profits to a large number of digital businesses, but it also supports informational resources, sponsoring them, and enabling users to access media content for free. At the same time, users are not always satisfied with a web experience continuously interrupted by ads. Today, in the U.S ad blocking penetration rate has grown from<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.statista.com\/statistics\/804008\/ad-blocking-reach-usage-us\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> 15,7% to 26,4%<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> over the past seven years.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201c<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/2015\/03\/26\/ad-blocking-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ad blocking<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> is killing advertising\u201d, that is the first thought that may pop into your mind now. Indeed, everything is a bit more complicated, and the rise of ad blocking appears to be quite a fair response to a poorly thought out brand-user communication. So, how do advertisers and publishers come to terms with ad-blocking? Most importantly, what conclusions should they drive from this confrontation in order to safeguard revenues and ensure that their audiences stay happy?<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>Three main reasons why users embrace ad blocking<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">According to a study held by<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.digitalinformationworld.com\/2019\/04\/global-ad-blocking-behaviors-infographic.html?m=1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> GlobalWebIndex in 2019<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, there are three main reasons why users block ads:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u00a0 \u00a0 They are overwhelming (48%)<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u00a0 \u00a0 They are annoying (47%)<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u00a0 \u00a0 They are intrusive (44%)<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The worst situation unfolds in APAC, where the percentage of users who use ad blockers<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.digitalinformationworld.com\/2019\/04\/global-ad-blocking-behaviors-infographic.html?m=1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> accounts for 50%<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. MEA region follows with 49%, North America accounts for 45% of blockages and Latin America for 44%. The smallest percentage of ad blockings is in Europe, where it steadily accounts for 40%.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-141317\" src=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/1.png\" alt=\"Reasons for not liking ads and using ad blockers\" width=\"611\" height=\"659\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/1.png 611w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/1-278x300.png 278w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 611px) 100vw, 611px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Device sharing among ad blockers shows that 60% of ad blocking happens on PCs and laptops (desktop environment), while only 43% happens on mobile (due to specifics of an in-app environment, which is not based on apps but instead on browsers). When it comes to content, APAC is a region that purchased 77% in 2019, followed by NORTHAM 65%, LATAM 63%, MEA 55%, and EUROPE 55%. Music streaming services and movie\/TV streaming services represented the top two mediums where digital content was purchased most often.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Such data makes one thing obvious: ad blockers have not emerged out of the blue. The demand for them is formed by users who do not want to interact with annoying ad messages. Meanwhile, media giants like Google invent their own ways of managing intrusive ads.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-141318\" src=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/2.png\" alt=\"Device sharing among ad blockers\" width=\"757\" height=\"230\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/2.png 757w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/2-300x91.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 757px) 100vw, 757px\" \/><\/p>\n<h2><b>How Google joins ad blocking movement<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Recently, Google<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnet.com\/news\/chrome-will-block-intrusive-ads-globally-starting-july-9\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> has introduced<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> its own methodology that will prevent the annoying ad formats from appearing on web pages. As well, Google started cooperation with the Coalition for Better Ads that developed best advertising standards based on user experience research spanning<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.betterads.org\/standards\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> 45 000 people<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> from eight different countries.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Starting from August 5, 2020, Google will start blocking ads that aren&#8217;t compliant to<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.betterads.org\/standards\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> standards created<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> by the Coalition for Better Ads. In total, the document includes 12 types of ads that users find annoying. Thus, publishers are encouraged to stop serving them on web sources before the standards are officially enacted.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-141319\" src=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/3-1.png\" alt=\"Google on the ad blocker movement\" width=\"991\" height=\"413\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/3-1.png 991w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/3-1-300x125.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 991px) 100vw, 991px\" \/><\/p>\n<h2><b>Pro tips for advertisers: Think about your target audiences<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Before launching an ad campaign, ask yourself whether the creative can engage your potential customers. When crafting an advertising message, consider every detail that can add information to the target audience portrait: media channels, age, and geolocation &#8211; then use this information to choose the right format.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>Use likable, unintrusive or interactive formats<\/b><\/h2>\n<h3><b>1. Try before you buy: Playable format<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">According to the data aggregated by SmartyAds, playable videos can generate ~10,5% CTR and ~9,600 installs per month. The playable ad is a short version of a mobile game that simulates the gameplay of an advertised app. After interaction with such ads, users are accustomed to advertising products (the game); thus, they are highly engaged and motivated for installation.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-141320\" src=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/4.png\" alt=\"Ad format suggestion: Playable format\" width=\"850\" height=\"512\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/4.png 850w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/4-300x181.png 300w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/4-768x463.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px\" \/><\/p>\n<h3><b>2. In-game bonuses with rewarded videos<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The rewarded ad is also a highly-engaging, in-game format that helps users to earn in-game bonuses in exchange for watching ad commercials. It can work virtually for any type of app, not only games: apps of different categories can offer users freebies, like closed content, free music listening, profile customization, etc. This is one of the most engaging formats that is characterized by the eCPM of $13.75 &#8212; $12.01 and CTR of five to 10%.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-141321\" src=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/5.png\" alt=\"Ad format suggestion: In-game bonuses\" width=\"850\" height=\"457\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/5.png 850w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/5-300x161.png 300w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/5-768x413.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px\" \/><\/p>\n<h3><b>3. Go native for loyalty<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Native ad formats, like in-feed ads, mobile web native ads, content recommendation widgets, and custom-designed units generate 40% higher CTR in comparison to other formats. Ingeneral, native ads are actively reposted and shared, since they contain useful information. These ads look like a part of the web content and normally generate higher loyalty since they combine advertising materials with valuable information: recommendations, topic-related advice, and more. <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-141322 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/6.png\" alt=\"Native advertising for loyalty \" width=\"850\" height=\"512\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/6.png 850w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/6-300x181.png 300w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/6-768x463.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px\" \/><\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>4. Personalize based on data<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">According to the stats,<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/blog.hubspot.com\/marketing\/why-people-block-ads-and-what-it-means-for-marketers-and-advertisers\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> 83% of users<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> have nothing against acceptable forms of advertising. Furthermore, many ad blockers do not ban ad content that meets the criteria of acceptable ads. Personalization based on user data, coupled with the right ad formats, creates something that\u2019s called \u201cacceptable advertising.\u201d The user data (geo, location, behavior data, gadget, etc) is a key component that enacts targeting on a programmatic, demand-side platform. It helps advertisers reach target audiences at the right time, screen, and with a suitable message.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Although according to some reports, many people are worried about their data safety, most still favor an individual<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/smarterhq.com\/privacy-report\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> approach to advertising (72%)<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Some advertisers who want to save media costs, enter the market with <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/smartyads.com\/blog\/what-is-a-white-label-dsp\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">their own white-label DSP<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> solution. Others, meanwhile, create their own platforms in order to eliminate data risks and substantially extend targeting possibilities.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>Pro tips for publishers: Keep track of your website performance<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Sure,<\/span> <a href=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/2016\/03\/15\/seven-ways-publishers-have-reacted-to-ad-blockers\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">publishers are also concerned<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> about the growth of ad blockers as they pose a threat to their content monetization. As a publisher, you can make sure that ads on your website correspond to the advertising standards and don\u2019t annoy users. Try to stay balanced &#8211; don\u2019t overstuff web pages with ads sacrificing user experience for higher yields. If you place inventory for per-impression monetization on supply-side-platform, use publisher controls to choose what kinds of ad formats, sizes, and ad resolutions you allow to display on your website.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>Define formats that work for you<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Carefully monitor the effectiveness of monetization on your website if you serve different kinds of ad formats at the same time. This will help you to learn which ad formats generate the greatest profits and user engagement.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><b>Use Google advertising quality report<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you have doubts regarding the quality of advertising you are currently serving, Google recommends checking ads with an<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> advertising quality report<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. This tool automatically detects whether your site contains ads that violate standards.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-141323 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/7.png\" alt=\"Google report example\" width=\"1500\" height=\"807\" srcset=\"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/7.png 1500w, https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/7-300x162.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px\" \/><\/p>\n<h3><b>Launch content subscription<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Subscribers actively purchase music, movies, and premium content. Apply the \u201cno-ads\u201d subscription model for visitors who buy a paid subscription and show ads to those visitors who use your service for free.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>Takeaway<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It\u2019s understandable why people use ad blockers &#8211; they want to protect themselves from annoying advertising that interferes with site browsing, app gameplay, or content consumption. Sure, the industry is concerned about the rise of ad blocking, but the neglected user experience is a root of the problem, as practice shows. Use personalization, unintrusive formats, and meaningful, high-quality messages and your advertising will be effective and invincible to ad blockers.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><em>Ivan Guzenko is CEO of SmartyAds. He can be found on Twitter\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ivanguzenko\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">@ivanguzenko<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Even though ad blockers no longer dominate the headlines, if not handled properly, they still pose threats to publishers\u2019 and advertisers\u2019 revenues. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1092,"featured_media":141324,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,12,10],"tags":[1250,1120,27299],"content_type":[],"class_list":["post-141315","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-industry","category-mobile","category-ppc","tag-ad-blockers","tag-online-advertising","tag-paid-advertising"],"acf":{"tad_independentcommercial":false,"tad_content_format":false},"post_info":{"name":"idris.nagri@blenheimchalcot.com idris.nagri@blenheimchalcot.com","title":"","thumbnail_url":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/the-ongoing-race-between-ad-blockers-and-ad-tech-whos-winning.jpg","category":"Industry","timeago":"6y"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/141315","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1092"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=141315"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/141315\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/141324"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=141315"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=141315"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=141315"},{"taxonomy":"content_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/searchenginewatch.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/content_type?post=141315"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}