The Taboolaization of Native Advertising

I recently had a good talk with a friend of mine who works in the publishing industry. The talk centered around Native Advertising, its purpose, form, what it has become and perhaps more importantly what it should be.

This is my narrative.

Native advertising, when used correctly, is the most engaging and trust building digital marketing channel in the digital sphere!

Is that an exaggeration??

Maybe a little bit, but it is definitely up there at the top…

The reason?

In short, simply because the format in a sincere and humble way embrace pull marketing at its finest and because it is so closely related to Content Marketing.

The longer answer…

Content Marketing should be an integral part of ANY digital marketing campaign. The fact that some brands completely or partially neglect content marketing these days is beyond me.

Customers and potential customers are increasingly looking for brands who have a story to tell. A purpose. Brands who are willing to inform, to take a stand, and to stand out. And brands who voluntarily engage in relevant ‘conversation’ with them.

That is content marketing.

More specifically, costumers are looking for brands with experience, for brands who has expertise in the relevant area, for brands who show they are an authority in their field, and finally for brands who come across as a trustworthy.

Content marketing is the tool to achieve all of that.

And yes… there might be a slight hint to Google’s search quality rater guidelines (E-E-A-T), because even Google and their bots have understood what customers are really looking for.

So where does Native Advertising fit in in this equation?

Native advertising is the premier channel for distributing this content. Paid channel.

And it is not just me who says that. Here is a short collection of findings from various sources:

·??????70% of users would rather learn about products through content than through traditional ad methods

·??????75% of consumers trust the content of native ads. By contrast, only 54% of consumers demonstrate the same trust in conventional ads they encounter in social media posts

·??????Native ad units drive 20% to 60% higher engagement rates than traditional banners

·??????25% more consumers were measured to look at in-feed native ad placements (the most common editorial native ad format) than display ad units

·??????Native ads??generate an?18% higher lift in purchase intent?than display ads

That is probably why Native Advertising spend is expected to rise to $27 billion in the UK by 2025 – from $6 billion currently

The above statements are all indicative of a truly Premium Quality Product…

So, what went wrong?

We just established that Native Advertising is a quality product.

OK I did, but you get the point.

Then, why is it that native Advertising for most parts is being treated as a ‘Quantity product’ when it in reality should be (and is) a ‘Quality product’?

Or maybe I should phrase this as a question to leave it up to the reader to ponder a while:?

Should Native Advertising be a ‘quality product’ rather than a ‘quantity product’?

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Insert pause for pondering…

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The answer is obvious. And you know it.

But it seems as if the market somewhere down the road took a wrong turn, a turn that has steered Native Adverting in a diluted direction, towards a destination that it truly doesn’t deserve in the digital marketing landscape.

The Taboolaization of Native Advertising

Sorry Taboola, I mean no disrespect. It could just as well have been the Outbrainization, RevContentization or similar, but Taboolaization just sounds better…

What do I mean by Taboolaization?

This is what I mean (examples):

And this

I think we can all agree that the majority of these ads are at best dubious - if we are being honest.

And while we are being honest – is it really considered Native Advertising, when the ads are built into widgets of considerable size on fixed placements?

Of course not…

Another word for the current Taboolaization of native advertising could be ‘Placeholder-for-multiple-ads-packed-in-a-confined-and-specified-area Advertising’.?

Who are we fooling here??

The readers??

I think not.?

Soon they will be just as blind to ‘Placeholder-for-multiple-ads-packed-in-a-confined-and-specified-area Advertising’ as they are to banners.

Are we fooling the advertisers?

Well, sometimes I think that is actually the case. This is sold as Native Advertising.

Nothing can be further from the truth

This is a low quality, cheap click volume product.?

That is what it is…

And that is exactly the diluted turn native advertising took somewhere down the road. This is exactly what we don’t want Native Adverting to be.

The culprit(s)?

In this crime (to Native Advertising) there are 3 defendants. The Advertisers, the Publishers, and the Platforms…

But pointing fingers at a specific reason or a specific culprit may not be fair nor possible.

For the advertisers this has been about being opportunistic, taking advantage of a digital marketing outlet that was easy and cheap – perhaps just being a bit lazy as we humans?inherently?are and not pushing back on the quality of the product.

For the publishers there is of course an element of not having set the bar high enough and not pushed back before it was too late. But we all get that it is hard to say no to a (substantial) monthly financial fix – even if we know that it is not good for us in the long run.?

And for the platforms. I am sure the initial intentions have been good (I hope), but the downward spiral from good intentions toward destructive interdependency is nevertheless a reality that the different platforms also should acknowledge and take responsibility for.

Can it be fixed?

Of course it can. The astronauts of the Apollo 13 flight were able to fix a space shuttle in space with duct tape and spare parts, so of course the Taboolaization of native advertising is fixable.

There are 3 ingredients needed to succeed:

1st?ingredient: Native ad placements

We need better and naturally integrated native ad placements on the publisher’s websites. In other words, we need to make the native ad placements… native! Let’s steer away from ‘Placeholder-for-multiple-ads-packed-in-a-confined-and-specified-area Advertising’.

It is as simple as that.

Project owners?

The publishers and the platforms.?

For the publishers this might hurt for a short while when the bandage is ripped off, but in the long run this will have a massive positive effect on their Native Advertising revenue.

For the platforms it is a matter of developing better ways of integrating on their publisher’s websites and of course the ability to yield these placements

2nd?ingredient: Better native ads

We obviously need to develop better native ads.?

Relevant and engaging native ads that are not just hack jobs and fast replicas of display banners. Find out how you can communicate in a relevant and interesting way with your target group. Native advertising should be about inviting your target group to engage with your brand on your owned platforms – and welcome those who accept the invitation in a meaningful way.?

With the better integrated ad placements these enhanced native ads will drive a far higher CTR, which you will learn is important when you read about the 3rd?ingredient.

Project owners??

Ultimately the advertisers. But just as important the creative agencies, media agencies, content agencies etc. Invest the time and resources that are needed to be creative, to be relevant, and to communicate to your target group.

3rd?ingredient: Dynamic pricing

We need to make the pricing dynamic, so that good and relevant native ads are rewarded through cheaper executed prices than those advertisers who continue to treat native advertising as a gateway to quick and cheap traffic volumes.?

It is math and relevancy in perfect harmony! (A CTR of 1% and a CPC of €0,40 is far better than a CTR of 0,2% and a CPC of €1,00…)

Project owners?

The platforms and indirectly the publishers.?

For the platforms it is about building a platform that rewards good content and good native ads. Those buyers who understand their target groups and understand how their target group wishes to engage with their brand should ultimately be the winners in this game.

For the publishers? Well, they could push this agenda simply by demanding minimum bid prices on their websites. That action alone will prompt platforms to develop dynamic pricing and advertisers to create better ads…

Should we give it a try?