New data out from Infolinks indicates that the bulk of American consumers are ‘blind’ to online banner advertising. Their researchers found that only 14% of those surveyed could recall the last display ad they saw online and the company/product advertised within the space. What’s more, less than 3% of those said the ad they saw was relevant to them.
- Other interesting findings include:
- 35% of those surveyed click on 5 or fewer display ads per month
- 50% never click display ads
- Of those who ‘see’ banner ads, 75% view via computer and 25% via mobile device
“The industry needs to take steps to make online advertising more impactful while not interrupting the user experience,” said Infolinks CEO Dave Zinman. “It’s well known that banner ads do not perform well and too much money is wasted on impressions that no one notices. Why are we satisfied with .1% clickthrough rates? No other industry would settle for that benchmark. We need to collaborate on a widespread solution.”
One of the biggest contributors to banner blindness is relevance. Some studies have shown that consumers recognized and ‘tune in’ only to ads of relevance, whether for a product or brand they often buy or a product linked to something recently purchased.
For publishers, researchers say fewer ads per page are part of the solution; by serving fewer ads the consumer won’t feel inundated and may engage. They also suggest using non-traditional locations for the ads.