Could the writing be on the wall for “native advertising”?
The style blends with the house style, the design blends with the house design, and the copy reads like it comes from an unbiased source. Such is the genius of so-called “native advertising” that you really wouldn’t know it was advertising at all.
It’s not a new concept by any means. Native advertising, the practice of dressing up advertorial as real content, has long since been banned from print media. Conscious that such content would damage credibility, magazines, and newspapers have at least made sure there are subtle differences in the style or even go as far as to place the word “advertorial” in a strategic position.
Not so the folks on the internet. It seems that native advertising has made a comeback online, with popular website Buzzfeed recently carrying pieces such as “13 dogs who get an A for effort,” sponsored by the pet food brand Purina Pro Plan, and “15 Creative Snowmen That Will Blow Your Mind,” sponsored by Columbia Sportswear.
Legislation time?
It’s a bit naughty, for sure. But now the Federal Trade Commission is reportedly looking into the issue with a view to banning the practice.
This won’t make advertisers happy at all. With content marketing on the rise and the race among marketeers to find the best way to leverage content online, native advertising is a pretty neat addition to the mix.
In reality, the FTC has only limited powers to create such regulation, and it would mean taking on some big corporations, which goes against the basic remit of bodies like the FTC in the first place.
That said, the FTC have already issued warnings to some companies, such a one running a fake news website to subliminally advertise its weight loss products. Some of the big search engines have also been approached, with a polite request that algorithms penalize companies using native advertising, and that such content is easily distinguishable from real news.
If a ban does happen, what will be the consequences? Will advertisers be forced to go back to the old methods, or think of even smarter ways to credibly present content while staying within the confines of the law?
Circumnavigation
The truth is that native advertising is only a small part of the wider marketing web. In any case, the nature of native advertising only need be altered slightly by flagging it up to the reader as such. Most people are quite happy to read content in the knowledge that it is sponsored, although admittedly this takes away the clever guise that it is, in fact, bona fide news content and therefore takes on a different air of authority.
Let’s not forget, too, that native advertising is basically lying, in much the same way as a door salesman might pretend he’s from a reputable company, with a very subtle misspelling, in order to get his foot in the door.
Whatever the FTC decides to do, advertisers will remain savvy and already be thinking of the next clever guise for advertising copy… whatever that may be.
