Study Shows Americans Ignore Online Ads: Here are 3 Ways to Improve Them

online advertising
82% of people ignore online ads. Here are some tips to make your ads the ones people pay attention to, so you boost your audience engagement.

Most Americans ignore ads, at least that’s what a study from Goo Technologies has shown. Around 82% of people ignore online ads, while 37% ignore those on the TV. It’s important to be intriguing, unique and exciting in any ads that you place to get people to click and want to find out more. But how do you do that?

Here are three ways to improve your ads. Make them more effective and well worth your money by boosting your audience engagement.

Use Eye-Catching and Strong Graphics

What will you place there to make it catchy and compelling?
What will you place there to make it catchy and compelling?

A picture says a thousand words. This is especially true on the internet. That image is going to draw more people in than the 1000 word article you have on the screen. Graphics are easier to look at and often have eye-catching detail that draws the attention to it. With it comes to content, people skim it to find the more interesting and relevant pieces.

SEE ALSO: Augmented Reality Advertising for Publishers: Coolest Ad Format Ever?

Whenever you create an add, make sure there is a graphic on there. You can use a bit of text, but keep the graphic strong, interesting and engaging. This will also encourage people to share it on their own social media pages!

Add Some Humor

You’ll be surprised at the way humor draws people in. Add it to your content and you’ll get more people reading it. But how do you do that with a small online ad?

The trick is to use one phrase that gets people laughing. It could be a play on words, or you may just have one joke that introduces your business. If you entertain people, they’re more likely to click your ad and see what you have to offer. The ads will also become more memorable for all the right reasons.

Only 18% of people are paying attention to online ads. How will you become one of those ads?
Only 18% of people are paying attention to online ads. How will you become one of those ads?

Think about the type of ads you pay more attention to. They’ve entertained you in some way, and usually through making you laugh. Those ads stand out from all the rest, and you want to be one of those ads.

List-Style Article Approach

List articles are among the most popular reads on the internet, and boost audience engagement considerably. They’re entertaining and people know when they will end (when they get down to one or up to the number stated in the title). You can incorporate list-style articles in your ad approach.

Start off by telling people there are X amount of points to your piece. On the small online ad, just give them the first one of those. For the rest, they have to click the link and read on. Within that, you can do some more promoting of your job board. They’re already in the list, so they’re more likely to go further within your job board and do the one thing that you want them to do.

Remember that only 18% of people are paying attention to those online ads. It means you need to really play with them and create effective ones. Play to humor and interest. Graphics are a great way to start to improve your audience engagement, as long as they are strong and make people want to learn more.

Subscribe to Our
Newsletter

Stay in the loop on recruitment industry trends, news, tips and tricks.

Job advertising
made easy

Ready to try our AI Recruiting Platform?