Like all groups of people, even ad-blocking users have differences among them. Generally speaking, they can be divided into two groups: scorched earthers and selective ad-blocking users. Let’s find out more about who these users are and how Acceptable Ads fits into the equation.
Scorched earth ad-blocking users
Scorched earthers like to watch the internet ecosystem burn. Alright, that is a little dramatic. However, it’s a great metaphor for their approach to ad-blocking. These users have ad-blocking software installed on their devices and tend to block all ads, taking no prisoners.
This approach doesn’t come as a surprise as user experience has been greatly compromised over the years due to the early growth of digital marketing and the prioritization of maximizing profit via advertising. If user experience is poor, the user will get frustrated and seek a solution. In this case, it’s installing an ad blocker.
This all further damages the internet ecosystem and the value exchange between publishers, users and advertisers. Publishers and content creators lose their ad revenue and may seek alternatives such as paywalls or anti-ad blocking messages, further hurting their website’s user experience, and potentially driving users away.
The scorched-earth approach to ad blocking is not only harmful, but it’s also an unnecessary consequence of publishers ignoring users. Many internet users understand the importance of supporting publishers, content creators and advertisers to keep a balanced online ecosystem, so long as their user experience remains pleasant.
Selective ad-blocking users
Selective ad blockers are users who have blocked ads in the past month but say they also discover brands or products via online ads, or have clicked on an online ad in the past month, according to GWI. And there are nearly 200 million of them. Now, this is great news for the survival of a balanced online ecosystem!
These users are open to seeing ads, and hundreds of millions of them actively accept viewing ads that do not harm their user experience. That is, ads that are not annoying, not intrusive and that do not compromise privacy.
Selective ad-blocking users are great at discovering brands and products; 59.7% of them find new brands on websites, according to GWI data. Also, 64.8% of selective ad-blocking users learn about new brands through online activity, including apps and websites. Both these numbers are twice that of scorched-earth users and non-ad-blocking users!
So there you have it. Selective ad-blocking users can view their favorite online content, discover new brands and support the free web through the promise of Acceptable Ads, a middle ground that allows publishers and advertisers to get paid, while also motivating them to practice more respectful advertising.
The more that acceptable forms of advertisement are encouraged, the more normalized they will become, leading to a thriving and balanced online ecosystem. And there is proof that this is already happening. Just look at our 200 million over users.
Click here to find out more about Acceptable Ads.
