With over 80% of content marketers planning on using native advertising as part of their online marketing strategies through the year, the importance of SEO could not be clearer.

Defined as advertising in the form of  content by the Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB), native advertising is also recognised by consumers as being more effective than display ads, with 70% wanting content to educate them prior to purchase.

The reason is simple, as well written online content delivers essential information about services, products or the brand that a consumer is interested in. Display ads just don’t do that.

Native ads are also effective in other ways, such as by generating reliable backlinks. The content is also more likely to be shared with users’ friends and families, which is something that display ads can often be lacking in.

At Pressroom, we feel that small businesses that have already developed online strategies in accordance with good search engine optimisation (SEO) are in a good place to benefit from native ads.

It is a great way to quickly develop and grow an already loyal audience. As people trust the content, embedding more SEO on a blog helps to reinforce the brand and get those backlink numbers up.

They also serve a purpose to have visitors stay around for longer and give them the opportunity to engage more with the brand; both very important aspects of an online strategy.

In a similar way, social promotions can also deliver a great number of benefits to small companies looking to accelerate their online presence.

There have been many short-lived trends in content marketing over recent years, for better and for worse, and for many native advertising could easily be conceived as such. However, with consumer acceptance at a high rate, content marketers’ interest rising and many industry experts believing it still has room to grow, it could be a trend that is with us for a while.

Steven Morris