Did you miss The Native Advertising Panel: A First Traffic Sources Summit with Taboola, Outbrain, MGID, MediaGo, Revcontent and Xevio at Affiliate Summit East?
This historic panel brought together experts from the leading native advertising platforms: Sofiia Zuieva (Director of Growth Advertiser Sales, EMEA at Taboola), Nadim Kuttab (CEO & Co-Founder of Xevio & Native Hub), Joe Addona (Head of Sales Global – Performance Advertisers). at Outbrain), Gino Aynaga (Head of Display and Native Sales at MediaGo), Katie Vazquez (Strategy Team Leader, Advertising at RevContent) and Madi Bachar (VP of Global Sales at MGID).
While we can’t capture the energy of the live event, you can still benefit from the expert knowledge shared. Learn how to optimize your native ad campaigns with these essential points.
Native ads: More than just another traffic source
Panelists unanimously agreed that native advertising should be part of every marketing mix.
“Not every user has a social app. Not everyone goes to Google to search for your product or service,” said Sofia. He explained that native ads give brands access to consumers with high purchasing power, drive direct conversions and increase ad performance on other channels, making it a win-win.
Nadim agreed, explaining that native ads are the backbone of acquisition for the brands Xevio works with and directly impact organic and paid results.
Katie added: “The people you’re targeting may not necessarily intend to buy your product or submit a lead generation form up front, but if a brand’s content and marketing funnel are strong enough, they may be able to convert users at a low CPI.”
This is not just anecdotal evidence. A recent Kantar study found that adding native video ads to a marketing mix improved brand awareness by 26%. Additionally, native video ads generated primary awareness for 33% of participants; when native video ads were combined with social platform video ads, top-of-mind awareness increased to 49%.
Native ads demand native thinking
What works in search or social won’t necessarily translate to successful native campaigns.
“Put yourself in the consumer’s shoes,” Sofia advised. “You need to make your ad assets native to the environment they’re served in… and keep testing.”
Madi reinforced this point, noting that people reading an article on a news site are in a different frame of mind than those browsing Facebook, so brands should adapt their creative and overall approach for this audience.
Nadim shared the challenges of finding the right approach, revealing that his team often tests dozens of content variations per product per month to optimize performance.
The ingredients for successful native campaigns
Panelists offered practical advice for advertisers looking to get the most out of native advertising.
Sofia emphasized the importance of understanding the audience on publisher websites. “They like to consume content, and it needs to be native to the environment. It’s all about adapting your creatives; it’s often about creating pre-landing pages with the editorial style as well. So show the problem and then fix it and only then bring users to your product or service page.”
Joe believes that success comes down to one thing: patience. He has seen many fail and lose money because they jump into it without receiving any expert advice. He mentioned, “People don’t have a long enough time horizon. But if you do it and invest in it, we see that it works.”
Katie emphasized the power of dynamic testing and data-driven decision making. “Try AB and let the numbers speak for themselves. Then refine and allocate your ad dollars to what really works,” he advised.
The future of native advertising
While no one has a crystal ball to see into the future, the panel of experts made some predictions.
Sofia mentioned that users increasingly expect content to be more relevant and personalized. “So maybe the formats will change, maybe the placements will change, maybe the layouts will change, but what won’t change are the expectations of the end user…I expect AI to drive that personalization and relevance when it comes to the your creativity, strategies and messages”.
Joe agreed on the importance of personalization, adding: “I think having a data strategy over the next couple of years is going to be the most important thing for how you’re going to achieve success across all platforms, not just creative . It’s solving personalization because you know exactly who you’re talking to.”
Gino believes that AI algorithms will continue to improve and that native ad platforms will be more “equipped to respond to the right ad, to the right person, at the right time.”
conclusion
The native advertising panel at Affiliate Summit East demonstrated that native advertising is no longer a niche tactic but a cornerstone of successful marketing strategies. Experts from the major platforms highlighted their ability to reach untapped audiences, drive conversions and improve overall campaign performance.
To thrive in this space, advertisers must adopt a native mindset, understanding that a one-size-fits-all approach will not suffice. By adapting creative assets, leveraging data and taking a long-term view, marketers can unlock the full potential of native advertising. As AI continues to evolve, the future is even more promising for personalized and effective campaigns.
The insights shared in this historical panel provide an invaluable guide for anyone looking to harness the power of native advertising. Ready to get started? Contact Taboola’s experts to discuss your goals and see how they can help you achieve exceptional results. Explore the possibilities of native advertising with Xevio’s training platform, Native Hub, a valuable resource for all things native.