What Is Native Advertising?
You probably already know about native advertising, just did not know what it was called, how to get started, or why you should do it. The best definition I have come across is:
“Native advertising is a form of online advertising that matches the form and function of the platform on which it appears.”
“Native advertising is a form of online advertising that matches the form and function of the platform on which it appears.” Click To TweetSo, for example, an advert on Facebook will look like a Facebook Post rather than a specific advertisement.
Types of Native Advertising
There are three different types of native advertising, which you’re probably familiar with.
1. Open – You place the content on your website and then promote it to other platforms, knowing it will send everyone back to your website.
2. Closed – Platforms like Twitter, Facebook and YouTube are all closed platforms that allow you to put your content on them and promote it. An example of these would be Promoted Tweets on Twitter or Sponsored Stories on Facebook.
3. Combination – Uses a combination of the above, usually by installing a private platform that permits bidding. Google Adwords, Facebook Adverts Manager, and Twitter Ads are all examples you’re likely to have seen.
There are three different types of native advertising: Open; Closed, and Combination Click To Tweet
Forms of Native Advertising
Fundamental to all these forms of advertising is choosing the right keywords. There are many different tools and services that offer to help you find the right ones for you. If you’re not sure about keywords, take a look at my post on LinkedIn: What are keywords and why are they important.
The different types of native advertising come in the form of:
Search Ads
These can work both on and off your website. Search on your website allows the user to find content on your website. It also introduces new content that your users can click on that will take them off your site or to a landing page. On your website, these will usually appear in the sidebar.
Contextual Ads
Using contextual ads a publisher can allow links to your information to appear. You can also allow the same on your own website if you want to earn extra money. However, this isn’t really recommended for exclusively business websites. Instead, you should be ensuring that your links appear on other peoples’ websites.
Content Dependent Ads
This is how all Google Ads work. They are dependent on the content that a publisher has on their site. If you bid on certain keywords and create display ads via Google Ads, then your information will show up on the right content across the web.
Promoted Content
When you write compelling content, you can promote it through various platforms, such as Facebook or Twitter promoted posts. If your content is a video you can pay to promote your post on YouTube for added viewers.
Sponsor Funded Content
Some websites need content and will allow for paid sponsored content to appear on their site. Sometimes this is as simple as a guest blog post with a bio that links to your sales page. Other times it’s a full-on paid sponsored post.
Why you should try it
All of these ways to use native advertising are activities that business owners should consider doing. Your information may not be seen as quickly without native advertising. This is because it works well as a way of driving traffic to your website.
SEO (search engine optimisation) works very well, but if you have a time-limited event and you really want to get a lot of visitors to sign up, then you’re going to do a lot better to pay for promotion strategically on social media.
Use a combination of native advertising and sound SEO practices to grow your business Click To TweetUsing a combination of native advertising, along with sound SEO practices, can take your business to a brand-new level. One that you won’t see without using native advertising practices.
Take a look at my post on the Pros and Cons of Native Advertising to find out what the advantages and disadvantages might be for you!
If you’ve used native advertising (even if you didn’t realise that was what it was called!), let me know your experience in the Comment section below.
