According to Sharethrough and IPG Media Lab, native ads generate 53% more views than display ads. This research, which involved eye-tracking and surveys with thousands of consumers, highlights the higher visual engagement native ads receive compared to traditional display ads. Additionally, the Content Marketing Institute reports that 70% of consumers prefer learning about products through content rather than traditional advertisements. This preference for content-based learning underlines the effectiveness of native advertising in delivering promotional messages in a less intrusive and more engaging manner.
Native advertising is a growing revenue area that can provide an alternative avenue to engagement and is less intrusive than traditional ads. This was highlighted during Monetization Week when Ivo Bobal from Geozo presented on native advertising’s practical applications. Following the session, State of Digital Publishing (SODP) decided to catch up with Aliya Gallamo, the Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) at Geozo, to delve deeper.
Aliya has been pivotal in shaping the company’s trajectory since its inception. She discussed the advertising technology landscape and shared insights from her extensive AdTech experience. Aliya’s career began in marketing, where she successfully promoted a group of companies in the affiliate market. Her talent and professionalism quickly propelled her to the top, leading her to head the publisher acquisition department at Geozo.
What are Geozo’s core values and mission?
In a world of aggressive advertising, we offer our partners a user-friendly yet effective solution. Unobtrusive ads with appealing and helpful content are the future and a win-win for everyone. It is a matter of respect for every party involved: advertisers, website owners, and, last but not least, the audience.
Without content consumers, who are potential clients, there would be no publishers, advertisers, and, of course, no advertising platforms. Therefore, protecting users’ interests is of the utmost importance to us. We put this into practice by decreasing the chances of deceptive and misleading advertising content, careful moderation, and raising awareness of user-friendly advertising in general.
We aim to be the most flexible platform on the market. While other companies outsource client relations to machines in pursuit of optimization, we provide an individual approach and personal touch. Partners are welcome to negotiate conditions tailored to their needs and business goals. Our publishers can receive support and assistance in their native language. Thus, “native” in our advertising platform does not only refer to the ad format.
What led Geozo to specialize in native advertising as a product?
Geozo was founded by a group of true advertising technology enthusiasts with rich expertise in marketing, media buying, and website monetization. Why native ads? First of all, the high demand. Where there’s demand, there must be an offer. This ad format has numerous undeniable advantages compared to other ad formats. While being one of the most modest types of ads, it is able to generate impressive performance for both publishers and advertisers.
For example, thanks to the close collaboration between Geozo managers and the owners of the Ego.ro website, it was possible to optimize the display of the advertising widget on the site, resulting in a 24% increase in the publisher’s revenue. This case confirms that native advertising is a highly customizable tool that can yield results even with minor adjustments.
Furthermore, native ads allow brands to tell a story behind their product, supplemented with customer experience, and add reviews or expert feedback. In other words,it uses all the potential of content-related advertisements to engage the audience and create a positive user experience.
Where do European publishers sit with the revenue split from native ads compared to other channels? Can we expect it to be a leading approach in the upcoming years?
European publishers prefer not to reveal their revenue details from different channels. However, native ads are definitely one of the key sources of income for content websites. They can be easily combined with other ad formats, occupy unpopular website spots, and perfectly coexist with Google Ads. In Europe, it has already become a standard practice to use native ads and Google ads together—the perfect combination for maximizing website revenue.
We can certainly expect native ads to thrive further. Consumers increasingly seek authentic and relevant content, and polls show that they don’t mind promotional content if it provides useful and helpful information.
How does Geozo incorporate feedback into the product development process?
Not a single piece of feedback from our partners goes unnoticed. We review every suggestion and complaint, analyze it, and take action to improve our platform and services further. Of course, recommendations must be rational and fact-based to lead to product adjustments. Regarding our feedback strategy, our managers regularly brief partners. Geozo is also present on many listing and review websites, where every client is free to leave their honest opinion based on their experience with our platform. The increase in the number of reviews online reassures us that we are moving in the right direction.
How do publishers know they are getting the most out of their native AdTech stack?
It is a complex process comprising numerous factors, including seamless integration with marketing, analytics, and sales systems; robust website security; customer journey mapping; and system-wide transparency for real-time performance tracking. Additionally, collaborating with reputable ad networks and maintaining a feedback loop with advertisers are essential practices.
What were the key insights and takeaways from your ‘Monetization Week’ presentation?
Our presentation focused on myths around native ads; we presented facts about native ads’ performance, how to navigate this format for maximum profit, its compatibility with other advertising formats, its impact on SEO efforts and brand reputation, and much more. Did we reveal any hidden flaws in the native format? For those who missed it, you can access to Ivo’s presentation here.
About Aliya Gallamo
Aliya Gallamo is a Chief Commercial Officer at Geozo where she manages the commercial sales team and oversees the implementation of marketing strategies.
