This is why users block online advertising
A global study conducted by Teads examines the reasons why users use ad blockers. Over 80 percent would choose not to use an ad blocker if they could skip or close the ads that appear.
Teads, the pioneer of native video advertising and a global monetization platform, released a comprehensive, global study on Wednesday that reveals why internet users actively block online ads. Unfortunately, Switzerland was not included in the study. According to the study, which was conducted in collaboration with Research Now, intrusive and forced ads are the main reason people install ad-blocking software. For three out of four Germans, disruptive advertising is the main reason for using an ad blocker. For 48 percent of those who have installed ad blockers, forced video ads are the most intrusive of all ad formats.
Additional results for Germany:
Pre-roll video: One in two Germans (52 percent) who have installed ad blockers describe pre-roll videos as the most intrusive of all advertising formats.
Inconsistent formats: 66 percent of respondents find intrusive ad formats the most annoying. For 80 percent of users, pop-up ads are the main reason for using ad-blocking software.
The Power of Choice: 57 percent would reconsider installing ad-blocking software if they could skip ads right from the start. 49 percent might not install ad blockers if they could close the ads.
Word-of-Mouth: 45 percent of users who have ad blockers installed on their cell phones, and 42 percent of those who use them on their desktops, learned about them through personal recommendations.
The browser makes all the difference: 59 percent of respondents who actively use ad blockers in Germany do so on the Firefox browser. On the Chrome browser, the figure is only 48 percent.
Mobile Ad Blockers: On cell phones, men and women use ad blockers in equal measure (50 percent each). 69 percent find mobile ads more intrusive than desktop ads.
«People around the world have spoken out against intrusive ad formats, and the global solution is to give users a choice,» says Rebecca Mahony, CMO at Teads. «The growing prevalence of ad blockers is a wake-up call for the advertising industry. We must take consumers» desire for advertising that respects their online experience seriously.« For the study, Teads surveyed more than 9,000 people worldwide across the following three groups: users with ad blockers on desktop/laptop computers, users with ad blockers on mobile devices (smartphones and tablets), and users who are familiar with ad blockers but have not yet installed them. The Teads study »Why People Block Ads” was conducted in the largest advertising markets, including the U.S., Latin America (Mexico, Brazil, Argentina), and Europe (the U.K., Germany, Spain, France, and Italy).
Extracts of the results at global level:
In Germany, where Adblock Plus is developed, the motivation to block intrusive ads is very high, at 72 percent of those surveyed. At the same time, 83 percent would not use ad blockers if ad formats allowed them to choose whether to view them.
Respondents in the USA expressed the strongest opposition to intrusive ad formats. 74 percent cited this as their main reason for blocking ads. In Italy, 60 percent agreed.
The largest group of respondents who would not block ads if they could choose whether or not to see them was found in Mexico and Spain at 89 percent each.
Argentine are most annoyed by pre-roll video ads. Fifty-seven percent of them rated pre-roll ads as very disruptive. Instead, they prefer native video ads within articles; only 13 percent found these to be very disruptive.
Teads« main advertising format, »inRead," places video ads within the editorial section of a website, where the video is visible and the user has the option to watch it or skip it.
The full Teads study, «Why People Block Ads,» can be here can be downloaded.
