What Are Native Video Ads?

A Native Ad walks into a bar and sees a Video Ad, and says “Hey there, video; you sure do make quite the impression!” Nine months later, we have the newest addition to our digital toolbox—Native Video ads!

When we at Vici Media talk about native ads, we explain that they match the look, feel, and visual context of whatever website or app and device they appear on. These ads don’t necessarily look like ads, allowing for a higher click-through rate, and bypassing some ad-blocking software that users may have installed on their web browsers. The best way to think of native ads is to compare them to a chameleon; they blend in with their surroundings and take on the natural environment of where they are being seen. 

How does adding video into the native format make it an even more effective form of advertising? Because video ads are more captivating than text ads:

• 80% of viewers can recall a video they’ve seen in the past 30 days (the highest of any type of digital advertising)
• 95% of viewers are more likely to remember a call to action after watching a video, compared to 10% when reading the CTA in text
• 90% of customers report that product videos help them make purchasing decisions
   

Native video ads (also referred to as branded video) match the unique look and feel of each publisher site on which they appear, and they drive higher brand awareness and engagement. They include a headline, a caption, a disclosure, and the name of the client or company. Ads are typically auto-start, meaning the video begins to play once it comes into view. The video will begin playing without sound, but viewers can click on the ads to activate sound, or the client has the option to include captions (good for improving accessibility).

Native Video ads are different from Outstream or Pre-Roll videos. Outstream videos are video ads embedded in the content, but there is no branding or matching to the format of the page, and no customization. This type of video ad can disrupt the user experience. Pre-Roll videos are ads users must watch before video content the user was interested in begins to play, and it also interrupts user attention. 

In an eye tracking study, it was found that less than half of users moved their eyes to a video ad on a website that contained an outstream video ad:

But when the video ad included was a native branded video, the number of people that saw the ad increased to 75%:

Digital ads have been around for over 20 years, and as consumers, we are conditioned to NOT click on ads because we don’t want those ads to follow us, or we prefer to not let it be known that we are engaging with an ad. Because native ads are more subtle, less invasive and look less like ads, they invite more engagement from consumers. 

When you add video to the native ad format, you get that one-two-three punch of higher engagement, higher click-through rates and higher recall from advertising calls-to-action.

For assistance with your digital marketing needs, contact preferred Second Wind digital partner, Vici Digital Media, Todd Schumacher: todd@vicimediainc.com. 

About Katie Pray: Katie is a Vici Media account director and trainer with 5+ years in creating all-inclusive marketing campaigns for clients utilizing traditional media, new media, and event marketing. 

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