The rise in ad blocking and ad filtering has been a blessing to users annoyed with intrusive and excessive advertising. Publishers and advertisers, however, lose out as they don’t earn enough revenue to pay for the free online content and face challenges in reaching consumers who aren’t seeing ads––even ads that could be useful to them.
At Acceptable Ads, we believe that there is a sustainable solution that benefits all in the ad tech ecosystem. That is why we advocate for ad filtering instead of total blocking of ads. Ad filtering enables publishers and advertisers to monetize content without sacrificing user experience. With most ad blockers adopting a form of ad filtering, our research shows that over 200 million ad-filtering users actually consent to see some ads. But, of course, those ads have to be nonintrusive, user-friendly and provide a positive browsing experience.
Providing an improved user experience
Let’s go back to the basics – why do people block ads? Most users have quoted various reasons for doing so, but it usually comes down to this: users constantly face online ads that intrude on their privacy and interrupt their browsing experience. For instance, 30% of users find website ads distracting and 32% find them excessive.
And although 27% of users block ads online, more than 90% of ad-filtering users don’t hate all ads.
In fact:
- 74% of users don’t mind advertisements, as long as it respects their privacy.
- 60% of users were not aware that some ad-blocking software has an ad-filtering feature
- 57% of polled online users in the US would happily filter ads instead of total blocking
- 70% of consumers are happy to have advertising in return for free content
Most advertisers and publishers are quick to ignore these users, however, thinking they’re unattainable and not worth the chase. But that could not be further from the truth.
More visibility for advertisers
Acceptable Ads provides advertisers with an edge. That’s because the very idea behind the Acceptable Ads ecosystem is to offer a sustainable middle ground between user choice and monetization.
What’s worth pointing out is that ad-filtering users are more ad-aware than typical users. They see fewer, noninvasive ads and indeed pay attention to the messaging. Ad-filtering users are 80% more likely to make purchases online and 76% more likely to post a service/product review, making them a crucial user base for advertisers.
Therefore, showing ads to ad-aware users increases an advertiser’s odds at getting the users to take action. Think of it this way: if an ad is not going to be one of the six ads on a page (on a page that’s blocked) but instead one of three (on a page with Acceptable Ads), this gives advertisers 50% more visibility. Acceptable Ads provides more ad exposure and maximum visibility for advertisers.
A revenue uplift for publishers
71% of US online users understand that publishers rely on advertising to keep their online content free and 63% of users are willing to accept nonintrusive advertising to support publishers. This is great news for publishers! With Acceptable Ads, publishers can advertise to over 200 million hard-to-reach ad-filtering users. The caveat is, of course, those ads have to align with a set of criteria that contribute toward a positive user experience.
Acceptable ads allows publishers to reciprocate and respect the user’s needs without losing revenue. They can monetize inventory that would otherwise be unsold.
With ad blocking shifting into ad filtering, it’s essential to recognize that there’s no need for either-ors––i.e. a side that benefits while the other suffers. When an ad is blocked, advertisers can’t connect with their customers and publishers earn less to support free content. On the other hand, users can no longer view ads that are potentially useful or relevant to them. In which case, nobody wins.
But a sustainable solution exists, and we’re here to remind everyone about it. Nonintrusive advertising and ad-filtering are the way forward, allowing advertisers and publishers to monetize content while respecting the user. The way we see it, this is a win-win for all. And it’s not at all impossible.
Learn more about Acceptable Ads today.
