Leading international trade associations and companies involved in online media are joining forces to improve consumers’ experience with online advertising. The Coalition for Better Ads will leverage consumer insights and cross-industry expertise to develop and implement new global standards for online advertising.
“Advertising funds the diversity of information, entertainment, and services on the free Internet, but that doesn’t give business a license to abuse the good will of consumers,” said Randall Rothenberg, President and CEO of the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), one of the Coalition members who announced the initiative at dmexco, the global conference for digital marketers. “It is essential that industry create standards to assure that consumers get safe, fast, secure delivery of the sites and services they love.”
“The breadth of this Coalition emphasizes our belief that a unified, industry-wide effort will drive the change consumers want,” said Oliver von Wersch, BVDW Germany and Managing Director at the digital division of Gruner+Jahr, a leading publishing house in Europe and a subsidiary company of Bertelsmann. “This collaborative effort reflects the commitment of the online advertising community to improve the advertising experience for Internet users worldwide.”
“Advertising has been the economic driver of the explosive growth of the Internet and mobile media. To assure that advertising fulfills this critical role, the digital marketplace needs continually to be strengthened. Leading brands develop a deep understanding of consumer needs and work to meet them,” said Bob Liodice, CEO of ANA. “The Coalition for Better Ads will utilize a similar approach that translates consumer insights into positive action.”
“Our members recognize that there is room for improvement with the current consumer online advertising experience, as indicated in part by the emergence of ad blocking,” said Nancy Hill, President and CEO, American Association of Advertising Agencies (4A’s). “Now is the time for advertising professionals and marketers to look at ourselves to understand why consumers are not responding to these types of ads, and figure out how we can correct the issue to better engage with the consumers we’re trying to reach.”
The Coalition will focus on several initiatives in the coming months:
- Create consumer-based, data-driven standards that companies in the online advertising industry can use to improve the consumer ad experience
- In conjunction with the IAB Tech Lab, develop and deploy technology to implement these standards
- Encourage awareness of the standards among consumers and businesses in order to ensure wide uptake and elicit feedback
The Coalition will draw upon consumer research in shaping the standards.
“The Coalition for Better Ads will work across the advertising industry with a goal to improve the advertising experience for users,” said Stu Ingis, an attorney at Venable who represents the Coalition. “The advertising industry’s commitment to the development and promotion of standards will benefit consumers through supporting quality content on the Internet for years to come.”
Founding members and supporters of the Coalition, in alphabetical order, include the American Association of Advertising Agencies (4A’s), Association of National Advertisers (ANA), BVDW Germany, DMA, European Publishers Council, Google, GroupM, IAB, IAB Europe, IAB Tech Lab, as well as additional national and regional IABs, Network Advertising Initiative (NAI), News Media Alliance, Procter & Gamble, Unilever, The Washington Post, and World Federation of Advertisers (WFA).
Companies and trade associations that wish to join the Coalition can learn more at www.betterads.org.
