The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) and Edelman Berland conducted a study on how U.S. online news users feel about sponsored content and, importantly, what it takes for brands, publishers and agencies to get it right. The study focused on in-feed ads like sponsored stories that sit next to pure editorial. The key takeaway is that we found a direct link between how consumers already feel about the brand advertiser, the publisher and the potential success of the new format. Learn more: http://edl.mn/iabscstudy

1. Getting
In-Feed
Sponsored
Content
Right
What It Takes to Win
Be Relevant
Brands:
Match editorial in
style/quality.
Publishers:
Turn away advertisers
that don't fit.
Be Authoritative
Brands:
Share your expertise
vs sell.
Publishers:
Help advertisers adopt a
more editorial mindset.
Brands/Publishers:
Err on the side of
transparency.
Be Authentic
81%say brand
familiarity and trust
is important as well.
60%say
they are more open
to digital advertising
that focuses on telling
a story rather then
only selling a product.
82%say
subject matter
expertise is
also critical.
“Make sure it is relevant to me. If it
reflects the types of articles I am
reading then I will be more likely to
seek out those advertisers.”
-Research Respondent
“I think that when it is a brand that
hasagoodreputationandisputting
information together they can
back up, then it [is] more likely to be
taken seriously and be viewed as
trustworthy.”
“Make it contain articles that I
actually want to read that doesn’t
look like just advertising”
33%is the boost in
credibility that in-feed
sponsored content gets
when featured on
well-respected websites.
Be
Authentic
Be
Relevant
Tell a
Story
Partner
with Great
Websites
-Research Respondent
-Research Respondent
Be
Authoritative