3 Strategies For Protecting Against Ad Blockers

Here are three things that publishers can do limit their exposure to ad blockers.

1. Leverage non-web publishing mediums

Most ad blockers only filter ads from websites. So publishers who want to minimize their exposure to ad blocking technology should consider diversifying their content delivery to other publishing mediums like mobile apps and email newsletters. Both of which are relatively unaffected by commercial ad blockers. Email newsletters, in particular, should not be overlooked as a viable option to increase advertiser value and generate additional revenue.

2. Make advertising more desirable (or at least less undesirable)

Another angle is to mitigate the reason for readers to want to block ads in the first place. If ad placements can be made less intrusive and the advertising messages are more relevant, users will be less likely to want to block ads. A shift away from intrusive placements is an obvious choice, but just one step. Publishers may want to limit advertisers to those that best fit the needs of their readers and are complimentary to the publication. They should also consider working closer with advertisers to craft messaging that offers more value and incentive to subscribers.

3. Make ads harder to distinguish from editorial content

All ad blockers rely on the ability to distinguish ads from editorial content. Popular ad networks are the easiest for blockers to target. The ads from ad networks have well defined patterns and URLs that are readily identified. On the other hand, systems that select ads at the point of page creation and use URLs that can not be distinguished from links to editorial content are much more difficult to block.

Moving ads away from popular ad networks and into systems that co-reside with content management systems can potentially eliminate nearly all ad blocking issues. However, publishers should be careful not to sacrifice ad tracking and reporting when making this shift.

If you are concerned about ad blocking, please feel free to contact us about any of the above suggestions.

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