Online ads annoy more than appeal

Most web users don’t find online ads impactful or appealing, according to new research.

A study by Connect Insight found just 17% of users find online ads impactful and appealing, and most defined them as intrusive, repetitive, unappealing and cheap.

Younger users are more likely to engage with online ads, with 24% of 16-34-year-olds finding them impactful and appealing. But 50% of over-55-year-olds actively avoid environments where ads interrupt their online activities.

Connect Insight attributed the difference in opinion between younger and older users to younger people not having experienced intrusive advertising from the early years of the web.

Younger people are also more likely to follow brands on social media sites, with over 50% saying they’d do so, whereas two-thirds of over-55s said they wouldn’t.

Faye Weeks, director of Connect Insight, said, “These headline figures only tell part of the story. The internet is a highly fragmented environment that users personalise based on their own needs and interests. It illustrates the need for advertisers to understand their target audiences, their online behaviour, mindset and attitude to advertising, in order to deliver impactful online communications.”

This story first appeared on newmediaage.co.uk