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Online ads trusted less than those in traditional media

Online ads trusted less than those in traditional media

Despite online taking ever larger slices of advertising budgets, new findings from Nielsen and Statista reveal that digital ads still lag behind traditional media when it comes to consumer trust.

The US-based findings show that newspaper ads remain the most trusted form of advertising followed by magazine and TV ads. The most trusted form of online advertising is search advertising.

63% of the respondents in the global Nielsen survey among 29,000 consumers stated that they trust newspaper ads – just above magazine and TV ads, which are trusted by 62% and 61%.

Online, paid search is trusted by only 44%.

Despite the results, digital advertising has made improvements over the last few years with both search engine ads and online banner ads seeing double-digit increases in consumer trust since 2007.

Aside from paid media advertising, unpaid or earned advertising remains the most effective way to reach consumers: personal recommendations and online consumer reviews were considered trustworthy by 82% and 68% of the US respondents, respectively.

Chart1

Source: Statista

Martin Ash, Director - Research Design, Millward Brown, Millward Brown, on 13 Jan 2014
“Alongside this, Millward Brown's AdReaction studies have consistently shown over the years that online ads are less favoured and trusted than those in traditional media channels; but have also seen these differences in trust erode as the media matures. Good to see the industry lining up on the issue and recognizing there is some way to go for the medium to finally shake off the image of the 90s and early 00s prize draw pop-up ad that still haunts some consumers' impressions of online advertising.”

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