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Rethinking The Ad Delivery Experience Digital ads can be helpful when used properly, but skipping has become an undeniable habit, with many brands vying for attention.

By Zeina Estwany

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

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Idealz One

First things first: aren't we all annoyed with ads?

It may sound like an overgeneralization, but let's face it, most of us are guilty of skipping ads as soon as we see them.

However, this annoyance doesn't stem from a hatred of advertising itself. Instead, the overwhelming clutter of irrelevant ads floods our screens. Even the creativity of advertisers doesn't help as the entire ad-watching experience is intrusive when people just want to enjoy their journey on YouTube, Facebook, or any other online platform.

Let's be honest: the advertising formula is broken, and the impact of intrusive ads on both consumers and brands has been nothing but negative. Digital ads can be helpful when used properly, but skipping has become an undeniable habit, with many brands vying for attention.

According to recent studies, a staggering 90% of consumers skip pre-roll video ads, with 70% doing so out of habit. These numbers are alarming, and they only prove that big budgets spent on creativity are soon wasted with a simple skip button.

Our company, Idealz One, was born out of the desire to improve the ad delivery experience, and we have done so by simply putting ourselves in the shoes of our customers as they surf the online world. Our mission was to create a mobile application that offers a unique ad-watching experience, allowing users to enter this fun space on their own time, and get rewarded for their time. Indeed, the platform's innovative "press and hold" feature allows viewers to watch any ad from start to end, and ensures their undivided attention.

Idealz One also offers hyper-targeting capabilities, where brands can guarantee that consumers watch ads that are relevant to them. With a database of over one million registered users, marketers can target a relevant audience, and address them with any message they want. The exciting part of all this is the reward, the winning element for users, where they enter a draw to win a prize by simply watching an ad in full. This approach repositions the entire ad-watching experience to being inviting and rewarding, and it's important to highlight here that our draws are conducted live and are regulated by the Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism.

In addition, the Idealz One platform guarantees a 100% view-through rate for video ad campaigns, a metric that is unrivaled by any other digital channel. We also offer the flexibility to customize the ad space, and plug multiple call-to-action buttons to ensure that brands can engage with their desired target audience. Generally, we recommend short-form video ads knowing that they deliver the best results- in fact, videos up to 30 seconds have a 70% click-through rate, making them the most popular form of video content on social media.

In conclusion, ad-skipping and banner blindness have created a missed opportunity for brands to connect meaningfully with their target audience. It's time to embrace new solutions that address the challenges of the digital age, and deliver a better ad-watching experience for all.

Related: Inverting The Formula: Idealz Co-Founders Jad Toubayly And Easa Al Gurg Are Reinventing Online Shopping

Zeina Estwany

Co-founder, Idealz One

Having built a career working with the likes of Saatchi & Saatchi, M&C Saatchi, Joe Fish, and Product of the Year MENA, Zeina Estwany joined Idealz Holding in 2022, where she co-founded Idealz One, a groundbreaking mobile app revolutionizing the ad delivery experience.
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