Interactive advertising facts for kids
Interactive advertising is a way for companies to talk to you and promote their products, brands, or ideas using media that lets you respond. Think of it as a two-way conversation, not just a one-way message. This type of advertising often happens online, like on websites or apps, where you can click, type, or choose what you see next.
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What is Interactive Advertising?
Interactive advertising is all about getting you involved. Instead of just watching a TV commercial or seeing a billboard, interactive ads let you do something. For example, you might click on an ad to learn more, play a mini-game, or answer a quick poll. This "mutual action" means both the company and you are part of the advertising experience.
In the early 2000s, experts like Li and Leckenby described interactive advertising as a way for companies to present and promote things, whether they paid for it or not, through media where consumers and producers interact. Today, the internet is the main place where you'll find these kinds of ads. Special tools called ad servers help deliver many different types of interactive ads to your screen.
Why Do Companies Use Interactive Ads?
The main reason companies use interactive advertising is the same as any other ad: they want to sell a product, service, or idea. However, interactive ads have some special powers that make them even more effective.
- Better Engagement: These ads can grab your attention more because they ask you to do something.
- Clearer Messages: By making ads interactive, companies can often explain their message better and avoid confusion.
- New Product Help: When a new product comes out, interactive ads can help people understand it faster and get excited about it.
- Saving Money: Interactive ads can help companies avoid wasting money on ads that don't work well, because they can see what people respond to.
What's Good About Interactive Advertising?
Interactive advertising offers several cool benefits, especially for you, the consumer!
- Your Unique View: You get to understand and react to ads in your own way. This shows how important your opinion is in today's marketing world.
- Active Participation: These ads encourage you to get involved. You can give feedback, skip parts you don't like, and focus on what interests you most.
- Building Connections: As more people buy things and social interactions become more important, interactive advertising helps create stronger relationships between you and the companies you buy from. It makes you feel more connected.
Are There Any Downsides?
Even with all its benefits, interactive advertising also has some challenges.
- Hard to Create: Making interactive ads can be difficult, expensive, and take a lot of time. This is especially true if a company isn't sure exactly who they want to reach with their ad.
- Too Much Creativity: Sometimes, if an ad is too creative or complicated, it can actually confuse people instead of helping them understand the message. In some markets, simple and clear is better than fancy.
How Do Interactive Ads Work?
Interactive advertising uses many different methods and tools to get its message across. Companies use various techniques to make their campaigns more impactful. According to a researcher named Thorson (1996), most ads fit into one of five basic types:
- Product/Service Ads: These promote specific items or services.
- Public Service Announcements (PSAs): These share important messages for the public good (like "don't text and drive").
- Issue Ads: These focus on a specific topic or cause.
- Corporate Ads: These promote the company itself, not just one product.
- Political Ads: These are used by political groups or candidates.
The type of ad and your reasons for interacting with it both affect how you respond. This is why interactive advertising is so important for persuading people.
Who Controls Interactive Ads?
When you're online, it might seem like companies control everything you see. But with interactive ads, both you and the advertiser have some control!
Your Role: User Control
Many experts believe that people using the internet have more control than advertisers. You decide what to click, what to watch, and what to ignore. You can choose to engage with an ad or simply move past it. Companies try to understand what motivates you online so they can create ads that you'll actually want to interact with. They often try to "step into your shoes" to see the internet from your point of view.
Company's Role: Advertiser Control
Even though you have control, advertisers still design and place the ads. They control many parts of how an interactive ad looks and works. These include things like:
- Ad Types: What kind of ad it is (e.g., a banner ad, a video ad).
- Formats: How the ad is laid out.
- Features: What interactive elements it has (like buttons or forms).
Examples of advertiser-controlled interactive ads include display ads (like banner ads on websites), companion ads (ads that appear next to a video), sponsored posts (content that looks like a regular post but is paid for), and hyperlinks that take you to a company's website.
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