Every year, new trends come and go as quickly as New Year’s resolutions. But one digital trend we are paying very close attention to is a strategy called ‘Native Advertising’.

According to Mashable.com, “Native advertising integrates high-quality content into the organic experience of a given platform.”  In other words, you advertise within the normal parameters of a social media platform, versus advertising on the right side of a page, where users typically avoid.  Not only is right-side advertising often ignored, it can be annoying to users, and can completely miss your target audience.

Some examples of Native Advertising include:
  • Sponsored Facebook Posts: This feature is integrated into your Facebook experience, making it organic – not forced advertising.  These ads are natural to your browsing experience, and the bonus is that they’re 53% more effective than normal ads.

  • Promoted Tweets: Most of the time, you won’t even know if a tweet is promoted or sponsored.  Users simply see the tweet as usual, so they don’t feel that they are receiving an advertisement.

We believe LinkedIn is currently trying to figure out how to use Native Advertising on their platform. The ‘news’ that you see at the top of your profile is a start in that direction. I’m sure companies will pay a pretty penny to be a part of that precious real estate at the top of LinkedIn. Watch for more of this type of advertising in the coming months.

Native Advertising strives to provide value and quality information through content on social media networks.  Relevant content is important here, since these ads are to come off as part of the user’s normal experience, not through an intrusive ad.

2013 will be the year of Native Advertising – will you use this for your business?

Photo Credit: facebook.com