Web users want fewer annoying ads

Wednesday, December 16, 2015 - 09:39 by Simon Crisp

A new study of the online advertising industry has revealed that while consumers are not entirely opposed to promotional postings appearing on websites, there are some types of ads that are entirely disruptive to their browsing experiences.

The survey, which was commissioned by ad filtering software firm, Adblock Plus, revealed that people are most put off by pop-ups and auto-playing video content, both of which are quite common at the moment.

Banner ads were also criticised, especially if they include animated elements, because they distract from the content of the page that visitors are actually trying to access.

Not all banner ad types are deemed to be undesirable by consumers, with basic images and text-based promotions being seen as a better alternative to the main culprits. People are also generally untroubled by the presence of ads presented to them by search engines, with paid-for listings not being seen as anywhere near as intrusive as other types of online advertising.

Sites which offer safe shopping online need to find ways of increasing visitor numbers and boosting sales, which is why e-commerce ads exist in the first place. And sites which host ads need the revenue generated by their placement to survive.

This means that even with the rise of programs like Adblock, which let users prevent any ads from appearing in their browsers, they are not going to go away entirely. And the online ad industry is continuing to grow year by year as companies invest more heavily in it.

The best ads are those which people do not even recognise as such; both the paid search ads and the on-site links to other products that retailer provide fall into this category. And, ideally, ads should streamline the process of carrying out safe shopping online, as long as they do not intrude on the experience and annoy customers.