How to effectively use native advertising to attract the target audience
How to effectively use native advertising to attract the target audience
Native advertising, or "nativka", has long ceased to be just a fashion trend and has become a powerful tool for traffic arbitrage. Unlike aggressive banners and pop-ups that cause users to become "banner blind," the network's native advertising fits seamlessly into the content of the platform on which it is hosted. It looks like a part of the site — an article, news, or recommendation — which significantly increases audience trust and, as a result, click-through rate (CTR). For an arbitrageur, this means cheaper and higher-quality traffic, which is easier to convert into leads and sales.
The effectiveness of this format is confirmed by statistics: users interact with native ads 20-60% more often than with traditional banners. Moreover, the intention to make a purchase after viewing native ads is 18% higher. The secret of success lies in the psychology of perception: a person does not feel that a product is being imposed on him. Instead, he receives useful or intriguing information that gently leads him to the offer. Properly configured native network advertising becomes a bridge between the user's interest and the advertiser's offer.
Understanding how native advertising works
In order to successfully transfer traffic from a native site, you need to understand its key features. The basis of the basics is mimicry for the content of the site. Your ad should not shout "Buy me!". His task is to interest, intrigue and arouse a desire to learn more. It consists of three main elements: a title, an image (creative) and a short description. Each of these components plays a crucial role in the success of the campaign.
The title is the first thing the user sees. It should be catchy, but not clickbait in a negative sense. A good headline promises a solution to a problem, reveals a mystery, or suggests an unexpected fact. For example, for a weight loss offer, instead of "Lose 10 kg in a week!" it is better to use "This morning ritual helps nutritionists stay in shape." This approach arouses curiosity, not skepticism. The image should support the title and look natural, as if it were an ordinary picture for an article, rather than an advertising banner. Bright, flashy creatives labeled "SALE" don't work here. It is better to use realistic photos of people or situations relevant to the topic of the offer. It is this kind of native network advertising that shows the best results.
Choosing the right native advertising network
The market offers dozens of native networks, and choosing the right one is half the success. Conventionally, they can be divided into two large groups: networks with premium traffic from major news and content sites (for example, Outbrain, Taboola) and networks focused on the mass market and entertainment venues that are more accessible to start (for example, Mgid, Revcontent).
The choice depends on your offer and budget. Premium networks are better suited for expensive goods or complex services (finance, real estate, education). Their audience is more mature and solvent, although the CPC is higher there. For mass-market goods (tovarka, nutra, adult, gambling), more budget-friendly networks are great. They provide huge amounts of traffic at a low cost, which allows you to conduct large-scale tests and find working bundles. When choosing a network, pay attention to the available GEO, moderation requirements, payment models (CPC, CPM), and targeting tools. Choosing the right site is the key to ensuring that your native network advertising will achieve its goal.
Creating effective creatives and headlines
As already mentioned, creativity and headline are the heart of your advertising campaign. There is no room for randomness, every element must be thought out. The main rule is to match your prelanding (laying). By clicking on an intriguing title, the user should be taken to a page that continues and develops the given topic. If the expectations are not met, he will immediately close the tab, and you will lose money.
When creating creatives for native advertising, adhere to the following principles:
Naturalness. Use images that look like regular photos, not studio shots. Before/after photos, realistic images of people using the product in everyday life, work great.
** Emotional response.** Creativity should evoke emotions: surprise, curiosity, empathy. An image of a happy person who has solved his problem (for example, getting rid of joint pain) works better than just a photo of the product packaging.
The headlines should be intriguing and consistent with the approach you use on prelanding. It can be a news approach ("Harvard scientists have made a discovery in the field of ..."), a personal story ("How a simple housewife from Samara discovered a way...") or a shocking fact ("Doctors have been hiding this remedy for years..."). Testing is the key to success. Always run a split test of several headline and creative options to determine the most conversion rate. It is the constant optimization that makes the tool called native network advertising truly profitable.
Targeting setup and campaign optimization
After the creatives are ready, the stage of setting up the campaign in the advertising network begins. Native networks offer a wide range of targeting settings that allow you to serve ads to exactly the audience that is most likely to be interested in your offer.
The main targeting parameters include:
GEO. The country, region, or even the city where you want to advertise.
Device. Mobile phones, desktops, tablets. For many offers, mobile traffic is converted better and costs less.
Operating system and browser. Important for mobile subscriptions or offers that require the installation of applications.
The interests and behavior of the audience. Some networks allow you to target users who were previously interested in certain topics.
Having launched a campaign, you should not let it go by itself. The first days and even weeks are a time of data collection and optimization. Analyze the statistics: which sites (publishing sites) bring high-quality traffic, and which simply add to the budget. Create blacklists (blacklists) of ineffective sites and whitelists (whitelists) of those that show a good envelope. Turn off creatives with low CTR and reallocate your budget to more successful ones. Constant analysis and optimization is a routine but necessary job that turns an ordinary campaign into a profitable bundle. High-quality native network advertising requires attention to detail.
The role of prelanding in the sales funnel
Prelanding, or "laying", is an intermediate page between your advertisement and the offer page. Its role in dealing with native traffic cannot be overestimated. A user clicks through from your ad, intrigued by a story or promise, and they're not ready to see the order form right away. He needs to "warm up".
Prelanding performs this function. It should be executed in the same style as your ad. If you used a news approach in the headline, the landing page should look like an article on a news portal. If it was a personal story, it was like a blog entry. The task of the installation is to dispel the user's doubts, provide social evidence (reviews, expert opinions) and smoothly bring him to the idea of the need for the product. Only after that, when the user is already motivated, you post the link.