When you hear about interruption advertising, it’s usually in a negative light. This is not without reason; people inherently dislike being pulled away from their content, particularly when they’re not given a choice. Unfortunately for you as the marketer, you also have little choice but to adhere to the advertising format of the most popular social media sites. Instead, your goal should be to minimize the annoyance factor while maximizing interest.
To use interruption advertising responsibly, you need insight into your consumers. This starts with creating good customer profiles and segments (if you need help with this, consider reading my previous blog on the buyer persona) If you’re advertising on YouTube, you should be aware that your consumer is either about to watch or currently watching a video that interests them. Modern technology can be a great aid here, with browser cookies and AI algorithms allowing for precise, individualized targeting of those most likely to engage with your marketing efforts. It’s possible to show ads relevant not only to your customer’s preferences, but even related to their current viewing. Higher levels of specificity can be achieved than ever before, and companies that embrace the long-tail of marketing will find they can market even highly niche products on mainstream media thanks to browser cookies.
Note there is another pitfall to avoid here, engagement. Most algorithms prioritize metrics such as view time, likelihood to skip or close, and especially actual clicks or comments. However, these forms of engagement aren’t necessarily a result of customers liking what they’re seeing. On the contrary, angry, emotionally charged consumers tend to be some of the most engaged on any social media site. If you put a fake X in a pop-up ad and people open your website while trying to close it, you should know that the resulting increase in site traffic and engagement is not a sign your campaign was successful.
With the above in mind, one model to be wary of is ads that reference the fact that the viewing experience has been interrupted or that otherwise highlight the fact that they’re ads. These meta-ads saw some success when the idea was more novel, and they can definitely lead to high engagement from how attention-grabbing they are. Unfortunately, this attention is often bad, and leaves your would-be customer frustrated that you’re wasting their time by pulling them away from their intended experience while reminding them that you’ve done so. It doubles down on what makes interruption advertising infuriating, which can have the opposite of the intended effect. Furthermore, these ads exacerbate the issue of repetition. The first time someone encounters an ad telling them not to hit skip, they might be tempted to watch a few more seconds and see what was so important. The tenth time they’re encountering it, even consumers who were initially receptive are sure to be annoyed. It goes without saying that paying for more advertising space only to harm goodwill with potential consumers is not an efficient investment.
We’ve covered what not to do, so what should you do? First, try to make your ad interesting. Do this in as genuine a manner as possible, including by faithfully engaging with a specific interest that is being targeted. Ads for movies will often tease stimulating action shots that are actually taken from the upcoming film, whereas a tax service might feature a presumed customer explaining how his tax problems were effortlessly solved. Neither case requires an immediate action from the customer, providing the added benefit of making the ads (and thus the company behind them) appear unselfish. In this manner, these “in-your-face” ads don’t have to be so jarring and unpleasant. Remember that getting a positive reaction is enough, and you don’t need to turn every interaction into a purchasing decision. One of my personal favorite commercials is by Twix, and features an absurd split between ‘left Twix’ and ‘right Twix’ into competing factories with identical products. The ad is funny, reminds me of the brand, and even features a catchy slogan: “Try both and pick a side”. This commercial came out over a decade ago and I’m still talking about it, and you can guarantee it’s resulted in me purchasing Twix more often as a result. I’d absolutely call that a success, especially when you consider that they weren’t able to target me in the same way you can speak directly to your consumers today.
Now it’s time for direct application. Consider your current marketing efforts, and put yourself in the shoes of the end consumer. If you were watching your favorite YouTuber and your ad came up, how would you react to it? Be honest. If it’s a fun diversion or a helpful solution to a problem, you’ve done well. If it’s a jarring demand for a purchase or an info dump, consider re-evaluating what you want potential consumers impression of your brand to be.
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