Tasteful Ad Tactics for Social Media
Jan 21, 2009 by Patrick Winfield | Design, Social Media Marketing
Internet advertising can be tricky, especially when dealing with social media. How do you get users to see ads without being ignored or too in your face? While ads bring essential revenue to a website, they can also turn off social media visitors losing crucial social media votes in the process. So don’t waste your valuable linkbait by using tactics that will hinder results and follow these tips.
Bad Tactics
1. In-Text Advertising
This form of keyword advertising inserts a script into a page and double underlines any keywords. When the mouse is over the keyword an ad pops up that is associated with it. Social media users thoroughly dislike this method. Many times this form of advertising will garner comments like “I feel like I’m on a mine field when I move my cursor.†If you do use in-text advertising, simply turn it off until your story is popular so users can focus on your content, not your ads.
2. Excessive Contextual Ads
While contextual advertising can generate revenue, excessive amounts can leave a bad taste in your visitors mouths. Using contextual ads all over the page, in the middle of the page,and in the middle of paragraphs gets out of control and makes the site look like it is trying way too hard to maximize its income.
3. Pop-ups, Pop-unders and Floaters
These are ad’s that pop up or under the browser window you are on. They have been evolving in tactic and style. Whether it be “shooting the monkeys or whacking the mole†these deceptive dialog boxes can be highly irritating (especially the ones with sound).
4. Too Flashy/Noisy
You don’t want to induce a seizure in the user or visitor to your site. Creating banner ads that flash like crazy and give people headaches will hurt (literally) you more than help. Ads that play sounds or music add even more distraction to the mix. Visitors rarely stick around a website that plays music, especially when they are in the office, or already listening to music of their own. Intrusive advertising disturbs and disrupts the user so get rid of these immediately to maximize your social media exposure.
5. Too Many Pages
When a site gets greedy and wants to rack up the adviews they split the content up across multiple pages, it is an instant turnoff to social media users. While slide shows may be great your ad impressions, they can instantly lead to a social media ‘down vote’ and bring the haters out of the woodwork on the comments. If you have 12 items on a list try putting 4 items per page instead of one item every page, your visitors will thank you.
The Good Tactics
1. Consistency
It is true banner blindness is an issue, but instead of trying to combat where you place the ad and further annoy users and disrupt interaction, keep ads consistent. Place ads on the top or sides of the pages, rather than located directly in the text. Studies show that we are suckers for advertising, even if it isn’t embedded within the heart of the story. So ditch those ads that float across the screen, and start being consistent and the user may follow up willingly.
2. Honesty
If I click on your ad I want to know where I am going before I get there. Being honest establishes trust. Ads that speak plainly and are not deceptive seem more credible.  Using credible ad sources also make your site look more professional. Many times lower level ad networks feature poorly executed ads that can “cheapen†your site.
3. Fast Load Times
Social media users are out for information and instant gratification, they live in the moment. Slowing them down are disrupting this process is negative and will be avoided by them. Make sure ads relatively small in size and they won’t die before the graphic even loads.
Using good advertising tactics translates into more social media votes for your website. Good content is extremely valuable, so follow these tips to make sure that social media is talking about your content, not your ads.
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137 Responses to “Tasteful Ad Tactics for Social Media”
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I especially hate the in text ads and the floating pop-ups which always seem to cover what I am currently reading.
Thanks Patrick….liked this advice (especially what not to do) so much I’ve added it to our popular Superlist of What Not To Do in Social Media http://tinyurl.com/6rahtu
I think what we’ll start seeing is more “site sponsorships” ala Myspace – where multiple ads are bought within one page or even site backgrounds being converted into one big ad. Multiple impressions on one page pretty much guarantee that the viewer will see the add at least once!
I am the SEO and Social media director for a womens health website and you just confirmed what I’ve been thinking for a very long time. It’s rather disappointing that my company pretty much banks on every “bad topic” you list.
How do I tell a company, which drives most of their revenue through CPM ads and pageviews-per-click that they’re doing it all wrong?!!
Tough spot to be in when you tell someone their fundamental way of making money isn’t what the user likes.
Eric, I’ve noticed this trend coming up more as well. Pandora went to town with the concept – see the Energizer Bunny ad, complete with unique background image & color scheme. Here’s a short post talking about the change.
Some bloggers have talked about having ’sponsored posts.’ Not sure how I feel about the pay for content concept in regards to blogs. Your thoughts?
Ya, I think you’re talking about gutter ads. The whole site becomes a themed page. I think they are effective in building brands but I’m not really sure about the click throughs.
The Forbes screenshot reminds me of the Forbes version of Richest People in America.
I have to press the “speed up” button so I don’t waste a lot of time per profile.
In blogosphere, we often see top 100 list all in one page. Perhaps Forbes could have divided the list into a few pages.
That makes a lot of readers happy, you’re right.
These tips are useful for general web publishing as well. Thanks for posting.
#5 is a big one, whether for advertising reasons or otherwise. I don’t know how many times I saw something interesting on Digg or elsewhere, only to find that I would have to multiclick to see each item. My next click has always been the “back” button.
Hi David- yes it makes me feel like I am on a mine field, cautiously avoiding the double underlined words.
Thank you for adding it to the Superlist Robin!
Thanks Eric. Yes, I see that happening with the Pandora radio- the whole screen is 'skin' for an add. I respond more to that than a brick work of ads.
Tough spot for sure, no easy way to give bad news
but it is important that they hear it from you!
not sure I like it
I love the plugin Chris. It rocks (but not as much as 10e20.com does)!
In text advertsing bugs me most, followed by multi pages of content for a single article or set of photos.
Thanks for reading Hendry!
Agree 100% David
Like what?
Thanks Dr. Mike
I would be interested in seeing those statistics. Thanks for commenting Jeff!
Hi Joseph, thanks for commenting. I feel that the Pandora ads work when they interact with the user, much like the article you linked stated, by suggesting stations or like the iPhone ad suggesting the application for the phone. Sponsored posts may be a bit 'skewed' depends on how it is approached and executed.
and then you try to click off of it, and accidentally click on it and go to the site where you immediately get lost and are so pissed off at this point that you wont go back. Yea … I hate em too!
exactly Matt!
I was just testing the the indents you didn't think i would write anything of any worth did you ..
while in test mode
[...] Tasteful Ad Tactics for Social Media, http://www.10e20.com [...]
Yeah, the intext ads are VERY annoying. I usually don't hang around on the website with those because invariably I will accidentally click on an ad. Plus if they are real close to a live link, then it is harder to click the link.
Of course not
I absolutely hate in text advertising. There is nothing worse than having your mouse scroll across an ad the comes up and dominates the screen.
Great article, consistency is the zest of the gods, that is for sure, same with transparency.
Thanks Adrian, I wholeheartedly agree
I hate the in-content advertising links with popups and pop-ups such as the hotmail ads which always cover what I am currently reading. They are just too distracting that I'm even thinking about not using that email account any more.
Lenen I am with you on that one. Thanks for commenting
You're right on page with in-text ads. Extremely difficult to navigate through those "mines". Really annoying.
Yeah, I HATE those. They ALWAYS seem to cover what I am reading. Why would anyone think that I would like something like that?
I prefer to try to blend.
I have my ads so there not to noisy, But they stick out as well.
I am using Wordpress and Adsense on a Post by Post basis.
I also hate intext advertising, It takes away from the value of a quality post.
[...] quality of a site is make-or-break in social media. If you are too salesy, business oriented or ad-focused you are setting yourself and your content up for  colossal failure.  Social media news users [...]
o really I appreciate this this is important thing and thanks for giving information.
Hi Matt. Yeah so annoying those in-text ads! Thanks for reading
Thanks for reading Shawn. I agree that a blend method can be beneficial.
Thanks for reading jame, glad you found it useful!
Thanks Patrick….liked this advice (especially what not to do) so much I've added it to our popular Superlist of What Not To Do in Social Media.
Thats a great one. Enjoyed reading it thanks.
Thank you asdqwe and thanks for adding it to your Superlist!
Thank you for commenting
I think it is important to have relevant and well blended ads. I don't have a problem with beautiful banners on sites I visit through Social Media..
I agree Jurk. thank you for commenting!
EXACTLY> I especially hate the in-text advertising. I tend to click on them too much and it spoils the reading.
I have submitted this and voted this useful information to reddit. Great Post Patrick!
Fully agree.
I always close the site when pop-ups or pop-unders start. It's a horrible heritage of the first adult sites that should be thrown away…
I hate these tactics. I've actually started skipping major sites like espn.com because they've started pound people with pop-ups!
I resent sites that use In-Text Advertising, Pop-ups, Pop-unders and Floaters. They seem like "forcing" me to click on their ads. In particular, any site that uses Pop-ups and Pop-unders doesn't look genuine to me.
Thanks for reading and commenting Vicky! I am on board with that.
It does seem like they are being aggressive. Thanks for commenting Mexabet!
And one more practical advise that really helps.
- Build your community. If people in your community trust you they also start to trust the ads that you're placing.
Of course it stands along with your idea to be honest.
I appreciate this this is important thing
acai berry
I am in e-business and sadly, those ad techniques work, and that's why they keep using them. I don't use them even I know they work, because I myself thing they are anoying!
HI Patric,
You are 100% right regarding social media marketing. Some people do not now how to design proper website for social media. But those who know they are successful. I want to say that after knowing all these things also people do not want to change their websites.
I agree with many of these points. They're seemingly common sense, yet so many websites are guilty of these crimes.
Linda,
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I really think that this is an important thing.
Thanks for reading and commenting RohitK. Change can and should be something that is thought of positively and constructively each day
I agree.
Linda, for sure! Thank you for commenting.
Some good tips on what to do. Unfortunately not enough webmasters are going to come across the post. Pop-ups have to be the worst.
~Jane
Canada, Trivia Questions
Thanks TriviaGirl. Pop-ups are so irritating!
yeah..good insights. ads that pay on per click basis like Adsense are usually the ones that fall under Excessive Contextual Ads. Too much advertising sucks but a good ad is one that doesn't look like an ad.
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In my opinion In-Text Advertising is the worst tactic. It is irritating. I agree to your idea "If I click on your ad I want to know where I am going before I get there". Honesty and Fast Load Times are really good tactics. Webmasters must follow these tips.
I totally agree with the suggestions. Stuffing the site with all kinds of ads, buttons, flash, only distracts people from what the site wants to get across.
Lydia, editor Gaba Supplements
[...] be quality content and, more importantly, it should give a good first impression. Sites that are plastered in ads or have content broken up across 10 pages don’t leave a good taste in a reader’s mouth. If [...]
This blog explains ads which are coming while opening the site…. This blog is useful to who are all giving advertising to know the feedback from users..
Bad news is also a news so we have to share it.
[...] aren’t annoying. Traditionally, ads that have appeared on Digg can play music when hovered over, pop-out or be too flashy (like the current Microsoft ad campaign on Digg). These new ads are clearly marked and look to be [...]
I would have to agree with all of them, but I'm especially annoyed by the excessive contextual ads. I certainly have never clicked on a "double underlined" link on purpose simply because it's obvious that it is a sponsored link. The few times I inadvertently clicked on them, I was redirected to a random site that was not relevant to the text that was underlined!
Regards,
Fred Trucking Insurance
I would have to agree with all of them, but I'm especially annoyed by the excessive contextual ads. I certainly have never clicked on a "double underlined" link on purpose simply because it's obvious that it is a sponsored link. The few times I inadvertently clicked on them, I was redirected to a random site that was not relevant to the text that was underlined!
Trucking Insurance
I would have to agree with all of them, but I'm especially annoyed by the excessive contextual ads. I certainly have never clicked on a "double underlined" link on purpose simply because it's obvious that it is a sponsored link. The few times I inadvertently clicked on them, I was redirected to a random site that was not relevant to the text that was underlined!
Trucking
Thanks for commenting Fred. I agree, contextual ads that direct you to another place altogether are lame
Your tips are very great, easy to understand and follow.
Thank you.
Pop text ads are really annoying and I think they destroy a lot of the trust you have with your visitors.
A very good informative one
Forbes get so many views from Yahoo that I don't think they care about their crappy slide show script. The content they display is usually just fluff stories… they only write them for the ads. My biggest dislike is the latest trend (Not mentioned above) to stuff ads at the start of every video story. Which leads me to a similar pet peeve – when the local TV New Stations say go to our website for more. If I wanted to get my news online I wouldn't be watching your newscast. It's circular moronic! And if I am so interested to go to their site, it's usually buried someplace I can't find it anyways. Yes that is my real name… hey mutual beneficially eclusive something other other right?
I personally find contextual ads very annoying. They prevent me from reading the content, and I will exit the page immediately that i see a pop up ad, out of principle.
I appreciate this, it is an important thing
I agree those pop ups are annoying and will significantly reduce the number of return visitors. Its so annoying when you have a thousand pop ups on your desktop!!
Think social media costs a lot more time than you first expect it to.
Thanks for sharing this; your input is appreciated and has made me change my opinion slightly. About the 3rd paragraph though, could you expand on that a little? I'm a bit confused about what you mean (so maybe others are too).
As bad as this may sound, there are tremendous results being had by pop unders and overs. yes we hate when it is done to us, but it works.
I agree with your points but several of the things that aren't cool actually work real well. It sickens me the amount of email I get from marketers-but they are making a killing doing it.
interstitial ads are the worst form of all kind of ads, way too intrusive and if you want to drive away your visitors, only then use them
Thnx for this great post and insights on online ad tactics.
I think advertising on a decent website has to be done tastefully, too much mixing of adds lowers the tone.
I like social media sites,it very helpful in making social networking.
Dazzle White
Great info but I hate pop ups, pop unders and floater they provide minimal exposure
It is very irritating when you are reading something and pop up is raised in front of you. Some people doing useless things when creating there websites like text ads etc.So don't do these extra things just make your website more informative.
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Well you absolutely right….there so many websites who have turned into an ad agency…lol..
Especially those floating ones I hate them the most….
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Ads are the most essential requirement for any thing to make it any popular . And now a days the web-sites are becoming the best way to make the product infront of any one .
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I also think that advertisement is a nice way to get the user for our products.
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Really nice post Patrick keep it up.
jame I dont think that you will found any reliable information
Thanks for the suggestion and telling us about the importance of honesty …..
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What do you guys think of video ads? Already I am hating them. I really hope that all video sites do not go this way
I hope in the future the "bad tactics" will start to lose, I mean people will protest and visit sites that are using the "good tactics" I personaly hate the bad sites and would like to see more quality and all in all good websites. I think my every day web experience would be much more comfortable if there were more likeable sites.
Once you pop, you may not be able to stop. Second sentence here.
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There's nothing worse than those in text ads that pop up while you are reading. The other ones are the floating ads that just show up and the x box to close them are so tiny you can't find …
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here is nothing worse than having your mouse scroll across an ad the comes up and dominates the screen.
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here is nothing worse than having your mouse scroll across an ad the comes up and dominates the screen.
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It's a horrible heritage of the first adult sites that should be thrown away…
Thanks for the post. You did a nice and concise tutorial as always. The pop-up ads would probably be the worst may of reaching out to the public, as it is waaay too invasive. Ads have to be very visible but it also has to reach the public with the user choosing to follow the ad link.
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Tasteful Ad Tactics is great tool.I like your post. You rpost is amazing and helpul.
To have an ad in the proper context is probably the most important criteria, as incredibly increase the chances of the user being curious and clicking on it rather than a spammy out-of-context ad.
Lily
I hate the in-text ads. I always get confused by them. I also agree that fast load times is good and many pages is terrible.
 Good content is extremely valuable, so always keep good and informative contents in your site then sure that social media is talking about your content.
I guess we should discuss more about good tactics than bad ones. Anyways your article consist of the both. That's why I must say that it is a very good article. Thanks you very much for sharing it with us.
In-text Ad is very annoying. When mouse cursor touch the link, my computer is slowing down for a while. I always avoid websites that use in-text Ad.
These tactics are nice and will be efficient to implement. Social media sites should load faster so that visitors wouldn't get turn off to wait a bit longer.
I have submitted this and voted this useful information to reddit. Great Post Patrick!
EXACTLY> I especially hate the in-text advertising. I tend to click on them too much and it spoils the reading.
I dont`t like pop ups or pop unders. They should not use that technique for advertising.
pop up’s totally suck, I think they do that exact opposite. When you see them, most people just click them closed.jdm
Thanks for sharing this post. It is very useful for me.
Pop-ups are so annoying! I hate that now they are even on the live web cam sites!
I detest text advertising. There is just nothing worse than having your mouse scroll across, and an ad pop ups and starts dominating your screen – while you're concentrating on your work
I find firefox closing most popups although some are sneaky. I agree, horrible for lack of a better word!