CrowdEmotion Case Study: Banner vs Sticky Ads
Effective online advertising is vital for the flow of free online content. To keep their content flowing and their readership growing, content publishers are very keen to make their advertising as effective as possible.
With a well known international online newspaper we tested two methods of online advertisement: The traditional banner ad (an ad that stays at the top of the page), and a sticky ad (an ad that follows the reader at the side as the reader scrolls).
Method
We used eye tracking technology to isolate a reader’s focus within a page containing the banner and sticky ads. We then used our A.I. to analyse the reader’s empathy engagement to both layouts for later comparison.
Results
The sticky ad outperformed the banner significantly in the study. It received 9 times more clicks than the banner ad, and in real-time terms was looked at for 300% longer.
The sticky ad sustained viewership by causing a second spike in views when it changed halfway through the article.
The emotional data also revealed that the banner ad produced more fear, disgust and sadness than the sticky ad, while the sticky ad was more likely to be remembered and recommended.
Highlights
- Fresh and new approaches to article-side advertising to trigger greater engagement amongst readers and reduce rejection.
- Dynamic advertisements lead to much higher viewership than stand-still or banner-type ads.
- Innovative delivery of advertising will make readers more likely to remember and recommend content.
As consumers come to accept online advertising as payment for free content, it becomes more pressing to find effective methods to capture their attention. This partnership has provided a quantitative way to
measure and discover people’s emotional engagement and preferences for online advertising.
