Research Reveals Attitudes To Online Ads
New research into advertising using email, the internet and SMS has revealed a fine line between effectiveness and irritation. Certain types of internet advertising were identified as more irritating than others, promotional emails were found to be fairly acceptable, especially if the user had register with the source, but SMS ads are not a popular idea.
Thomson Intermedia’s findings showed that 70% of users thought the internet was an effective advertising medium, and most believed that it was more effective than direct mail. However, all forms of internet advertising were seen as irritating, with pop-ups regarded as the worst. Content of the site advertised and special offers or promotions were the biggest reason for users to click on ads. Brand recognition and ad design were less important in general, but was more of an influence among younger users.
Charles Ilsley, research director at Thomson Intermedia, commented: “It is not unexpected to find that users find most banners, pop-ups and interstitials to be irritating. We would expect similar responses had we asked what people thought of TV or direct mail ads. However, it is apparent that pop-ups have a major problem, as they are found irritating by 80% of users. This suggests that advertisers must be careful about exactly how they use more intrusive forms of advertising such as pop-ups, and to a less extent, interstitials.”
The study also looked at the way users responded to email advertising. It was found that over three quarters of respondents were happy to receive promotional emails if they had registered with a company. However, less than 20% were happy to receive emails from any source and 8% did not like receiving any promotional emails.
The effectiveness of the email also appears to be affected by whether or not the recipient registered to receive them. 60% of people said they read most of the emails they received from companies they’d registered with, but only 19% read emails from unregistered sources. The most popular interval for receiving these emails was weekly, favoured by 40% of respondents. Only 10% were happy to get them every few days.
The news was less good for SMS advertising. Despite the popularity of text messaging, two thirds of mobile phone users said they didn’t want to receive promotional messages. The concept was particularly unpopular amongst older age groups- 75% of the over 60s were against the idea, compared to only 46% of under 25s.
Thomson Intermedia: 020 7549 4343 www.thomson-intermedia.com
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