Almost nine in 10 users of social networking sites believe the ads they see there either never or seldom line up with their specific interests and preferences, a new poll reveals.
Digital lead-generation agency Propectiv surveyed about 3,000 users of its Eversave.com Web community, asking if they also used social networks such as Facebook, MySpace, Friendster, or Hi5. Of those who did belong to those networks, 58% responded that “very few” of the ads they saw corresponded to their interests. More than a quarter of eligible respondents—28.7%—said that none of the ads targeted their preferences.
Asked if better-targeted ads would improve their online experience on those networks, a slim majority (56.4%) agreed, while 43.6% said more relevant ads would not make a difference.
Respondents were also not opposed to ads in a social network setting if they defrayed subscription costs.
About 85% said they would be likely to join a social networking site targeted to their interests that earned revenue from ads rather than subscriber fees. Only 15% said they would prefer a paid social networking site without commercial ads, offers or sponsorships of any kind.
Asked what kind of ads and offers they would be most likely to respond to within social networks, 62% said they would like to see one-off coupons and discount offers from brands and products they already buy. Twenty-four percent said they would favor e-newsletters featuring discounts, coupons and news about those preferred brands. And 13.8% said they would consider invitations to join e-mail groups, online forums, or other interactive networks.
“These poll results clarify that members of social networking sites are open to offers and promotions as long as they are targeted to their interests,” Jere Doyle, Prospectiv CEO said.
Prospectiv operates customer acquisition and e-mail marketing for consumer brands using its Web properties, including Eversave.com and Healthier.com.
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