Victoria Shepherd’s Post

Instagram Tests 'Unskippable' Ads, risking user backlash. 😬 Instagram has confirmed it is testing a new ad format that forces users to watch entire ads before being able to continue browsing the app. ⏱️ The move would make Instagram more akin to the ad experience on YouTube's free tier, where viewers must sit through ads before and during videos. As Instagram has transitioned to become a video-heavy platform with Stories and Reels, the company likely sees an opportunity to boost ad revenue. 🚀 Many criticized Instagram for prioritizing advertiser revenue over user experience. After years of slowly ramping up ads on the platform, this test seems to cross a line by completely stripping users of the choice to skip promos they didn't choose to view. 😒 Instagram will have to weigh the potential ad revenue gains against the possibility of a user revolt. 📵 #socialmedia #creatoreconomy #advertising

In a move reminiscent of YouTube's approach to advertising, Instagram has started testing unskippable ads that force users to watch a countdown timer before continuing to browse. This change has sparked significant backlash across social media platforms. From a customer experience perspective, this development raises several concerns: 1. Interrupting User Flow 🛑: Instagram's strength lies in its seamless and engaging user experience. Introducing unskippable ads disrupts this flow, potentially frustrating users who are accustomed to swift navigation through their feeds. 2. Negative User Sentiment 😧: Early reactions have been predominantly negative, with users threatening to leave the platform if this feature is rolled out widely. This sentiment indicates a potential risk to Instagram's user base and overall engagement. 3. Perceived Value vs. Intrusion 💸: While advertisements are a necessary component of free digital services, there is a fine line between valuable content and intrusive interruptions. Users may perceive these unskippable ads as more of a hindrance than a benefit, impacting their overall perception of the platform. 4. User Retention Risks ❌: If Instagram prioritizes ad revenue over user satisfaction, it risks losing loyal users to competing platforms that offer a less interrupted experience. 5. Feedback Loop 🔄: It’s crucial for Instagram to actively listen to user feedback during this testing phase. Ignoring user sentiment can lead to long-term damage to the brand's reputation and user trust. As this test unfolds, it will be interesting to see if user feedback will influence Instagram's final decision. For now, the digital community watches closely, hoping that user experience remains a top priority. #CustomerExperience #UserEngagement #DigitalMarketing #SocialMediaStrategy #InstagramUpdates #SaaS

#onStrategy Instagram confirms test of ‘unskippable’ ads This shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone. I have five takes on this: 1/ Instagram is testing unskippable ads to explore new ways to drive value for advertisers and increase ad revenue, following a similar approach to YouTube's ad model. The platform has evolved significantly, focusing more on video content through features like Stories and Reels. This shift makes unskippable ads a logical next step to capitalize on users' engagement with video content. 2/ Meta, Instagram's parent company, aims to enhance the effectiveness of advertisements by ensuring users view them entirely, which could make advertising on Instagram more attractive to brands. The test reflects Meta's strategy of experimenting with the user experience to balance user satisfaction and monetization. 3/ However, this move has sparked negative reactions from users, many of whom are frustrated by the interruption and have threatened to stop using the app if unskippable ads become a permanent feature. This feedback highlights the risk Instagram faces in potentially alienating its user base while attempting to increase ad engagement. For now, Instagram is gathering data from this test to decide if unskippable ads will become a regular part of the platform. 4/ The introduction of unskippable ads on Instagram signals a broader industry trend where social media platforms increasingly prioritize monetization over the traditionally ad-free user experience. As these platforms mature, the pressure to generate higher revenues grows, pushing them to explore more aggressive advertising strategies. This shift suggests that the era of entirely free social media experiences is waning, with users potentially facing more frequent and intrusive ads unless they opt for premium, ad-free subscriptions. 5/ As social media platforms implement more unskippable ads, the user experience may suffer, leading to a fundamental change in how users interact with these apps. The balance between maintaining user engagement and maximizing ad revenue is delicate. While these platforms need to monetize, excessive or intrusive ads could drive users away or force them to consider paid options, effectively ending the "free" nature of these services. This trend could redefine the social media landscape, where access to an uninterrupted experience might come at a cost. Source: https://lnkd.in/dd7eKb_Z 📸  Solen Feyissa / Unsplash

Instagram is testing non-skippable ads. As an advertiser here's what I want to know: 1. Is my ad being shown for non-skippable placements? How are my view-rates impacted by this? 2. What placements ARE non-skippable? 3. What percentage of ads are non-skippable? I know we never get the full breakdown from platforms when these new Betas roll out, but something like this could artificially inflate metrics on video ads and make them appear to be performing better than anticipated. It's important to view placement reports for your campaigns and keep an eye on overall performance to ensure you're not wasting dollars in places that don't deliver performance and this new Beta and lack of transparency around it prevents that from happening. 😠 What other questions do you have for Meta around this roll out? LMK in the comments below 👇 Read more here: https://lnkd.in/esptaM-N #MetaAds #InstagramAds #Digital

Instagram Experimenting with 'Unskippable' Ads, Sparking User Backlash Instagram users may soon find themselves pausing their endless scroll through feeds as the platform tests out a new feature: unskippable ads. The move, confirmed by Instagram after screenshots surfaced on social media, could mark a significant shift in the app's advertising strategy. According to reports, these unskippable ad breaks will employ a countdown timer, preventing users from continuing their browsing until they view the ad. This model mirrors platforms like YouTube, where users are required to watch ads before accessing content fully. The transition aligns with Instagram's evolution from a photo-sharing platform to a hub for video content, with features like Stories and Reels dominating user engagement. A Meta company spokesperson stated, "We’re always testing formats that can drive value for advertisers," suggesting the move aims to enhance ad effectiveness. The revelation came to light when Instagram user Dan Levy shared a screenshot of the test, expressing disbelief at the enforced pause. While details remain scarce on the global rollout and creators' control over ad placement, initial reactions have been predominantly negative. Comments on Levy's post and subsequent Reddit threads indicate user frustration, with some threatening to abandon the platform entirely. Concerns have also been raised regarding the prioritization of ad revenue over user experience. Despite the backlash, Instagram has yet to disclose the exact placement of these ad breaks within the app or the extent of the test's reach. However, the move underscores Meta's willingness to experiment with fundamental user experiences in pursuit of increased ad revenues. As the platform navigates this potential paradigm shift, users await further updates on the fate of their uninterrupted browsing experience on Instagram.

Meta testing unskippable ads on IG 👀 Paid social usually comes under scrutiny by brand advertiser CMOs and managers because ads are skippable and thus likely to be ignored. Making ads unskippable could come with incremental brand $. Big risk is decreasing user engagement. A former Meta product manager told me that even a .05% decrease in engagement was too much to justify higher ad load/freq. Wonder what the delta will be for this test. https://lnkd.in/dH7RMQ6F

Last week I made a post about the average attention span on programmatic ads. Let's chat social! This is a great article where Instagram is testing a new video ad format that stops users from scrolling further in their feed until they've viewed the ad. These "ad breaks" present a six-second, unskippable ad, which users must watch to continue browsing. This feature, still in beta, has raised concerns about user experience and potential negative impacts on content creators, as frequent interruptions might reduce engagement and viewer satisfaction. How do we feel about this!??? 🤔 While this could benefit brands in terms of guaranteed exposure, it risks user discontent due to the forced viewing experience. IG has yet to provide more details on the test’s scope and future rollout plans. https://lnkd.in/gxKgXZKF #social #paidsocial #instagram #videoads

Unskippable ads Want a break from scrolling? How about if you don’t get the choice. Instagram is testing unskippable ads. These ad breaks appear with a countdown that stops you looking through more content until you’ve watched. You may have seen similar on YouTube - shorter ads that you can’t skip through. What are the pros? People have to watch your ad What are the cons? People have to watch your ad As an advertiser your ad should be working hard to stop the scroll and be worth the audience's attention anyway. Otherwise, you’re forcing them to see something and that’s not good for anyone. Let’s see how this plays out. Would you like this feature? #MetaAds #InstagramAds Source: TechCrunch https://lnkd.in/gf2Ha2u8

Instagram is currently testing a new feature called **"Ad Breaks"**, which involves showing **unskippable ads** to users as they scroll through their feeds. Here are the details: 1.What is Ad Breaks? - Ad Breaks are short but unskippable ads that appear while users are browsing their Instagram feeds. - These ads display a countdown timer, preventing users from continuing to browse until they view the ad. - The feature is similar to the free version of YouTube, where users must watch ads before and during video content. 2.Why is Instagram Testing Ad Breaks? - Instagram has evolved over the years, becoming more of a video-sharing network with features like Stories and Reels. - By introducing Ad Breaks, Instagram aims to provide value for advertisers and increase ad revenues. - The platform's shift toward video content makes this move understandable. 3.User Reactions:- - Some users have expressed negative reactions to the ad breaks. They threaten to close Instagram or stop using the app entirely if forced to view unskippable ads. - Concerns have been raised about the impact on the overall user experience. 4.Current Status - The feature is currently being tested with a small group of users. - Instagram has not specified whether creators will have control over the appearance of these ads. - As a test, it demonstrates Meta's willingness to experiment with the app's core user experience in favor of ad revenues⁴.

🚀 Instagram is Testing Unskippable Ads: What This Means for Users and Marketers Recently, there’s been a lot of buzz about Instagram's latest test feature: unskippable ads. The idea is simple: your feed will pause until you watch the ad block. Despite the criticism from both users and marketers, it's likely that this feature will soon roll out. Here's what we need to consider: 🔍 𝐔𝐬𝐞𝐫 𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞: Ordinary users have limited alternatives. TikTok isn’t used for photo sharing and faces potential bans in the US. Facebook offers a similar experience to Instagram, and Snapchat lacks the same level of popularity. If these unskippable ads don’t appear too frequently, they probably won’t significantly impact even the time users spend on the app. Initial complaints are expected, but they’ll likely taper off. 📈 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐈𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬: Some marketers express reluctance to use such ad placements due to their potential to annoy users. However, effective advertising hinges on results. If unskippable ads drive sales efficiently, marketers will prioritize results over potential annoyance. For display advertising, these placements are valuable because unskippable ads enhance passive recall and brand association. 🔒 𝐀𝐝 𝐁𝐥𝐨𝐜𝐤𝐞𝐫𝐬: What might actually happen is an increase in the share of users with ad blockers. They’ve been around for browsers for a long time, and similar blocks on YouTube are blocked by separate apps and settings on mobile devices. Apparently, the percentage of such users is significant enough that Google has started fighting these approaches. There is similar software for Instagram, but few people use it now. Considering that roughly every fourth post in the feed is an ad, this new feature might feel like an ad break from watching ads. What are your thoughts on unskippable ads? How do you think they will impact user engagement and marketing strategies? Let's discuss! 💬 #Instagram #DigitalMarketing #SocialMedia #Advertising #UserExperience