Introduction

This year, native advertising spend in the U.S. is expected to top $97 billion and account for 6 out of every 10 dollars spent on display campaigns. There’s good reason these investments continue to grow year over year.

Native advertising is a form of digital advertising that matches the form and function of the content in which it appears. These types of ads are designed to blend in seamlessly with their surroundings, rather than standing out like traditional display ads. In addition, they typically feature and promote educational and entertaining content, versus serving as mere sales promotions, thereby delivering value to users instead of just sales pitches.

Overall, native ads are becoming an increasingly popular way to advertise because they can more effectively reach and engage consumers than traditional forms of advertising. This is especially the case as we enter a privacy-first era where legacy means of tracking users and following them around the internet go by the wayside. Native ads play a unique role within the mid-funnel of advertising, helping brands turn awareness into true consideration by giving audiences the resources they need to shape their decisions at the moments they’re most eager to engage with such information.

Because native advertising represents a blend of content marketing and advertising, the language surrounding it can be a little murky. Native ads and sponsored content are often used interchangeably, even though sponsored content can also exist outside of a native ad experiences. Meanwhile, the phrase “branded native ads” is somewhat redundant because all native advertising is usually branded in some fashion. For the purposes of this guide, we will use the terms “branded native ads” and “native ads” interchangeably. In addition, let’s dig into a few other nuances around native ads and branded content.

What Is Branded vs. Native Content?

Branded content is a type of marketing content that is created by a brand to promote its products or services, but it is not directly promotional. Instead, it is designed to be informative, entertaining, or inspiring, and to build relationships with consumers. Branded content can be created in a variety of formats, including blog posts, articles, videos, infographics, and social media posts.

Examples of branded content include:

• A blog post by a clothing company about the latest fashion trends
• A video by a car company about the best road trips to take in the U.S.
• An infographic by a software company about the benefits of using its product
• A social media post by a food company about a new recipe that uses its product

On the other hand, native content—pretty much another synonym for native advertising, but referring to the content itself rather than the format—is branded content in advertising form. It is sponsored by a brand, but it is presented in a way that makes it look like it is part of the publisher's regular content. Just like branded content, native content can be created and presented in a variety of formats, including articles, videos, and sponsored social media posts. While branded content is typically created by the brand itself, native content might sometimes be created by a publisher on behalf of a brand.

Examples of native content include:

• A sponsored article on a news website about the latest research on a health condition treated by the sponsoring company
• A promoted video on a social media platform about a brand’s new product
• A sponsored social media post from an airline touting a new travel destination

What Is an Example of a Native Ad?

Since native ads are designed to be non-intrusive, informative, and to blend in with the surrounding content, ​​they can be found on a variety of platforms, including websites, social media, and search engines. Some common examples of native ad formats include:

• In-feed ads: These ads appear in the same feed as organic content, in such places as social media platforms or news websites. They are typically labeled as "sponsored" or "promoted" to indicate that they are not regular content.
• Content recommendation ads: These ads are displayed at the bottom of articles or other pieces of content. They are typically based on the user's browsing history or interests.
• Search engine ads: These ads appear at the top of the search results page, but are designed to look like regular search results. They typically include a title, description, and link to the advertiser's website.

The above are common examples of how native advertising is infused into online media, but there’s really no limit to the industries that can make use of native advertising, nor the creative ways in which it can be used to get compelling content in front of targeted audiences.

What Is an Example of a Branded Content Ad?

“Branded content ads,” as mentioned earlier, is yet another one of many ways of referring to native advertising. What’s nice about this term is that it emphasizes the true superpower of native advertising: content. The bridge between creating brand awareness and driving conversion is paved with content, and that’s why native advertising is such a powerful means of helping advertisers get a handle on their mid-funnel marketing strategies.

Content is beautiful in its diversity, and the ways in which brands can create high-value native advertising experiences are endless. When deciding how to approach the creation of branded content ads, it can help to start with an understanding of your target audience. What is the type of content that’s most likely to resonate with them? And in what platforms are they most likely to consume that content? With these questions answered, brands can move forward on executing a strong native advertising campaign.

A Leading Beauty Retailer Amplifies LGBTQ+ Voices with Native Advertising

A leading beauty retailer recently partnered with Nativo to tackle the challenge of creating and leveraging LGBTQ+ content that not only engaged customers during Pride month with meaningful messaging and action but also carried that momentum beyond June. The beauty retailer leaned on Nativo's in-house creative specialists to craft custom content dedicated to celebrating the LGBTQ+ community, with goals including raising awareness, enhancing public perception, and featuring products from LGBTQ+ founded and owned businesses.

Extending their commitment beyond Pride Month, the beauty retailer saw over 102% higher time spent on their content and a 33% higher call-to-action rate compared to industry benchmarks.

A Luxury Resort Skyrockets Site Traffic by 124% with Branded Content

A luxury travel resort worked with Nativo to build a content strategy around driving awareness and consideration for the resort’s offerings on Maui, using Nativo’s Native Article format. Objectives included establishing thought leadership and focusing on specific offerings and amenities.

Results included a 10% lift in CTR for headlines that mentioned the hotel name and a 124% increase in site traffic from the Native Article page to the brand’s site, plus a 2:1 increase in revenue and CTR performance above benchmark.

Auto Brand Taps Native Advertising to Reach Adventurous, Influential Audience

Team One and Lexus approached Nativo to help reach an adventurous and influential audience for the IS 500. Nativo repurposed their video content into native experiences and amplified it across a premium publisher network, achieving 10.2 million viewable impressions, average time spent 90% above benchmark, and a CTR 37% above benchmark.

How Can Advertisers Get Started with Branded Native Ads?

To create a successful branded native ad campaign, start by setting clear goals, choosing the right platforms, and ensuring you create high-quality content that is informative, engaging, and relevant. Be transparent that content is sponsored and track results to optimize over time.

• Set clear and specific goals. Decide whether you want awareness, traffic, leads, or sales.
• Choose the right platforms. Place ads where your audience spends time (publisher sites, social platforms, search).
• Create high-quality content. Use strong visuals, clear headlines, and relevant body copy.
• Be transparent. Label content as sponsored to build trust.
• Track and optimize. Test formats, placements, and targeting for continuous improvement.

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