At this time last year, native advertising was still a somewhat controversial topic. However, at this point in time, native has not only grown to be a staple of digital marketing—but it is taking over the digital marketing arena as we know it.
In a recent AdWeek interview with the head of brand initiatives at the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), Peter Minnium, the topic of native advertising was discussed.
Currently, the demand for branded content is so high that many publishers have launched their own in-house native agencies. The ads often fall into one of three categories—concept ads, commerce ads, and content ads. Native advertising falls into the content ad category and is the fastest growing of the three categories.
While native advertising continues to grow and evolve, ethics and integrity must still be top of mind for publishers and advertisers alike.
The IAB says it’s working hard to ensure that protocols are put in place to ensure that any reasonable reader will be able to determine who has created the content. That being said, many consumers are less interested in who created the content and more concerned about the quality, relevance, and value of the content.
