The 614 Group Unveils Groundbreaking Study of Native Advertising Vendor Technologies and Capabilities

Analysis of Nine Leading Providers in Digital Advertising Marketplace Designed to Guide Publisher Decision-Making, Drive Engagement & Higher CPMs

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The 614 Group

Aug 07, 2014, 10:00 ET

NEW YORK, Aug. 7, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Online publishers are at the crest of meeting a new wave of both challenges and opportunities posed by the emergence of native advertising, and to help stakeholders evaluate and understand the varied landscape and differentiate vendors, The 614 Group ( www.614group.com ) today released a new study, "The 614 Group Native Advertising Technology Vendor Study," that provides a practical "how-to" roadmap for assessing and selecting native advertising vendor technology products and expertise.

From April-June 2014, The 614 Group extensively engaged with nine recognized advertising technology companies to identify and answer nine core questions that digital advertising publishers should ask to ensure the solutions they implement meet revenue-generating criteria, as well as the advertising partners they serve. The vendors interviewed include:

Adaptly
AdsNative
Nativo
Outbrain
Polar
Sharethrough
Solve Media
Taboola
TripleLift

Among the timely native advertising issues addressed in the report are:

Engagement perspectives
Ad construction
Sharing revenue-driving responsibility
Types of native content used in ads
Scale of vendor offerings
mobile ad applications
Contextual, content-to-advertising matching vendor capabilities
Paid content disclosure vendor policies

In its overview of native advertising, the whitepaper draws specific attention to the tangible benefits of native ads within the context of viewability:

"[W]e believe that the tactic leads to higher engagement rates, which reward publishers. These creative executions can aide in bringing some non-viewable ads back in to view, and will certainly go a long way in combating banner blindness. As a result, publishers can monetize more impressions, and more consumers may engage with an ad, driving campaign performance and justifying higher CPMs."

"The big question this market is still facing is how to do native, but there is no longer any question that we should be doing native," said Rob Rasko, Founder, The 614 Group. "Our new report helps provide publishers – and the brand marketers and advertiser partners who work alongside them – with the foundational thinking they need in order to make informed decisions in the sensitive and critical process of selecting a native advertising provider vendor."

Furthermore, according to the research, native advertising as a measurability standard is in prime position to surpass the minimum standard set by viewability metrics – driving strong revenue possibilities for stakeholders:

"[N]ative advertising…formats drive very strong consumer engagement, as measured by multiple types of engagement rates and ultimately time spent on a page or site. For brand marketers, many of whom have stayed largely on the digital sidelines, this trend may begin to divert their television dollars to native advertising opportunities. This may prove to be a significant boon to publishers."

The paper also highlights key findings of a survey The 614 Group conducted with OneSpot, canvassing over digital industry 400 marketers about native advertising perspectives and planning. Their responses demonstrated significant interest in the native format, with 67% calling it "interesting and valuable" but almost half (47%) stating their dissatisfaction with the ability to get messages to targeted consumers – showing distribution remains a stumbling block.

"What is also interesting is many publishers, according to a July OPA study, said they are already engaged in native. That data, combined with what we found in our analysis, signals a disconnect between what marketers want and what publishers offer. As a result, we see a tremendous opportunity for those digital publishers who can get ahead of this divide, especially since our study reveals that content distribution will see the biggest increase in share-of-budget- over the coming 12 months. The native ad vendor directory we issued today can help jump-start the on-boarding process to get publishers started," added Rasko.

Today's paper is a follow-up to The 614 Group's January 2014 study on viewability technology partners – now in its third iteration – to be followed by a similar report later this year focusing on video opportunities.

To access "The 614 Group Native Advertising Technology Vendor Study", please visit here.

About The 614 Group 
The 614 Group is a consulting firm that leverages deep digital media know-how and an established network to drive revenue and results through real-world tactics and hands-on support. Founded in 2012, the firm services corporations, governments, and trade associations - working as a trusted client advisor and partner. With offices in New York, Seattle, London, and Berlin, The 614 Group delivers services in four distinct practice areas: Content Monetization and Revenue Strategy, Brand Safety and Education, Technology and Systems Integration, and Corporate Strategy. For more information, please visit www.614group.com.

Media Contact: 
Nicholas Graham, for The 614 Group
[email protected] 
571-291-2967

SOURCE The 614 Group