Restrictions on native advertising need to be increased

Ben Lindner

benjamincharleslindner@gmail.com

Native advertising has received some restrictions. The current restrictions require posts to be clearly labeled, allow comments and also have "what's this" bars that provide more information. However, these restrictions are not enough.

Native advertising is still hard for most consumers to identify. There are so many different ways and places in which native ads can appear that they can look just like regular editorial stories. While native ads aren't inherently bad, making it indistinguishable for a regular story is. These ads have to do more to make it clear to readers what kind of content they are looking at.

A lack of ability to identify native ads is a big problem. It could lead to many readers being influenced by ads they may not have otherwise been influenced by, simply because it took the form of an ad style they were not used to. This could, in turn, lead to an increased distrust for media outlets that use native advertising. There is already a great deal of distrust in media, and confusion around native ads would only add to such distrust.

If native advertising is potentially harmful, it begs the question: What can be done about it? One way to limit the danger of native ads is to require specific verbiage when it comes to identifying native advertising. Currently, sites use phrases such as "in partnership with" or "sponsored" or by simply putting a logo. This needs to be standardized so readers can identify native ads. One suggestion for this standardization is that the site be required to use the word "advertisement," making it abundantly clear what it is. 

This Buzzfeed ad from Samsung is labeled as a "Buzzfeed partner" - Picture source: neilpatel.com

Another way to make native advertising a lot easier to recognize is by making a change in formatting. One way to do this would be to use different fonts or colors. Another, even easier way to make this clear is to take a page out of the playbook of Quartz. They feature a prominent disclosure at the end of the article identifying it as an advertisement. It is not acceptable to simply have a small bit of text at the beginning of the article. With multiple prominent displays, these ads will be more easily identified.

Native advertisements aren't going anywhere. They are extremely beneficial to both the advertiser and the site they are advertising on. This is clear from the huge amounts of money that is being spent on native advertising. With that being the case, it is important that consumers of media are aware of native advertisements and the potential dangers they represent. By tightening the restrictions on native ads, this distinction will be much easier for everyone.