Zogby: Americans Value Ad-Funded Internet; Prefer Tailored Ads
Personalization/Targeted Ads
April 18, 2013 -- Americans place great value on the availability of free Internet content, a new poll finds. The survey, commissioned by the self-regulatory ad trade group Digital Advertising Alliance (DAA) also finds consumers prefer Internet ads targeted to their specific interests.
Key findings from the poll of 1,000 U.S. adults, conducted by independent research firm Zogby Analytics:
VAST MAJORITY AGREE: FREE INTERNET CONTENT VERY IMPORTANT
- More than 90% of Americans polled said that free content was important to the overall value of the Internet; 69% said it was "extremely" important.
THREE-QUARTERS APPROVE OF INTERNET ADS SUPPORTING FREE ACCESS
- Three-quarters (75%) of poll respondents said they prefer online content (e.g., news, blogs, entertainment) to remain free and supported by advertising compared to 8% who said they'd rather pay for ad-free content.
TAILORED ADS PREFERRED OVER GENERIC ADS
- Nearly 70% of respondents indicated that they'd like at least some ads tailored directly to their interests, compared to only 16% who preferred to only see generic ads for products and services.
THE EFFECTIVENESS OF INTERNET ADS
- Nearly six in 10 respondents (58.5%) agree that Internet ads had helped them find an offer or product that they had not known of prior.
- Only 42% of respondents say they have purchased a product or service because of seeing or clicking on an online advertisement.
- Just half of respondents say an online advertisement has helped save them money on a purchase or saved them time in finding the item.
HALF OF AMERICANS OPPOSE LAWS RESTRICTING HOW DATA IS USED FOR ONLINE BEHAVIORAL TARGETED ADS
- Nearly half (47 percent) would oppose a law that would restrict how data is used for Internet advertising but also potentially reduced free content availability, compared to only 22% that support such a law.
About: The Zogby poll, conducted on April 2-3, 2013, surveyed 1,000 U.S. adults and possessed a margin of error of +/- 3.2 percentage points.
Source: PR Newswire, Poll: Americans Want Free Internet Content, Value Interest-Based Advertising, April 18, 2013 and PDF of poll results, accessed April 19, 2013.
