Ask a Centro Expert is a blog series from Centro where we break down the complicated tools, tech, and trends you've been hearing about in the trade pubs and around the office. We reach out to some of our in-house experts to ask the tough questions and turn them into bite-sized, palatable Q&As for your reading pleasure.

Last month, we explored ad fraud. This month's topic: Ad blocking. We talked to Ken Rood, Centro's Director of Technical Ad Operations, for the break down.

In the simplest terms, how would you describe what ad blocking is and what happens when an ad is blocked?
Ad blockers are generally user-installed plugins added to a browser. When a user loads a webpage, the plugin tells the browser to ignore anything and everything that looks like an ad. While plugins like AdBlockPlus are widely known and discussed, many desktop and mobile browsers also have built-in features to filter out specific ad formats as well. For example, most browsers have blocked pop-ups for years and years.

What's the purpose of ad blocking? What are the most common reasons people would block ads?
Consumers want to be safe and in control of their user experience.

According to PageFair, a company that helps publishers measure and recover revenue lost by ad blocking, more than 45% of blocking is because the ads are impeding a user's ability to get content (i.e. there are too many interruptions, or slow-loading ads are slowing down the page).

Another 36% cite security and privacy issues. In light of recent news about data breaches, malware and Flash security updates, users are rightfully sensitive to an increasing number of third party trackers using their data for targeting.

Who blocks ads? Is it specific to any particular group, area, browser, demographic, etc.?
Because ad blockers are designed to duck most tracking systems, hard numbers are difficult to gather. However, according to 2016 surveys from the IAB and C3 Research, consumers who use ad blocking tools skew younger and male. PageFair confirmed this research in a more recent 2017 study, but noted that ad blocker usage has now broadened across men and women of all age ranges.

Globally, ad blockers are most prevalent in India and parts of Asia – mostly on mobile devices while in the U.S. (for now) – though there are more users blocking on desktop.

How prevalent is the problem, and is this a desktop-only phenomenon or do people block ads in smartphones too?
Ad blockers exist for desktop, tablet, and mobile devices. In recent years, blocking on mobile devices has rocketed as new apps like AdBlock, Peace, Crystal, and others were introduced to the App stores in 2015.

In some cases, ad blocking companies – like Rainbow (formerly Shine) – are working directly with carriers to block ads that don't comply with industry standards, accelerating mobile adoption.

Below is a chart of mobile vs. desktop adoption in recent years:

Can you tell us a bit about Google Chrome's new ad blocker and Apple's Safari ad blocker?
Google announced in June that they'll be adding filters to their Chrome browser beginning in 2018. These filters will stop intrusive ads, such as full-page pop-ups, interstitials, and auto-play video or flashing/strobing ads on desktop and mobile.

Similarly, Apple announced they will be adding blocking features, such as Intelligent Tracking Prevention to their desktop browser Safari. These updates will stop auto-play video and curb certain types of user targeting/tracking.

Both are responses to consumers demanding better security and control over user experience – and they follow the industry trend toward better encryption and less intrusive formats.

Will these ad blockers increase the numbers in mobile ad blocking?
The Safari update will be focused on desktop-only, but Chrome's release will impact both mobile and desktop.

Is there any connection between ad blocking, viewability, and ad fraud?
Absolutely! It's important to consider all of these factors together to understand how it may be impacting reporting.

Humans block ads. Bots do not. Since blocked impressions are never counted, humans and bots can show up disproportionately in reports.

Will shifting to alternative formats like native, search, and social be the only solution for advertisers?
Some formats – like those on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc. – are less susceptible to browser-based ad blockers because their ads are in-app (outside of a browser). The key is focusing on creating relevant, engaging ads that don't interfere with the user experience. Avoid auto-playing ads, floating ads, or other ads that may disrupt site navigation. Use ads that give users full control and allow them to play and skip.

Can you provide 3 strategies or tips advertisers and publishers should take to tackle this issue?

Stay LEAN
The IAB and publishers introduced LEAN principles, an industry guideline that encourages:

• Lightweight ads: limiting creative file sizes with strict data call guidelines
• Encryption: assuring user security
• Ad Choices: supporting consumer privacy programs that allow users the ability to opt-out of targeting
• Non-invasive/non-disruptive formats: don't disrupt my user experience!

Designers should follow standard ad specifications and use secure (HTTPS) protocols wherever possible. Allow users the ability to opt out and focus on ad formats that support the user experience.

Be Compelling
According to PageFair, 77% of consumers are willing to see some ads. Make sure you're properly targeting ads, and that you're delivering a message that is clear, timely, relevant, and engaging.

Stay informed
New consumer and industry updates to ad blocking are developing daily. Advertisers and agencies: Continue to work with your ad serving partners and publishers to understand formats that are working well. Similarly, publishers should follow updates from the IAB and other trade organizations on best practices.

Interested in other Centro resources that will help you understand ad blocking? Reach out to [email protected].

"Local media companies — including newspaper, television, and radio publishers — are getting a new way to scale their digital campaigns and more precisely target audience segments this morning, as the team at Frankly has announced the launch of an audience extension solution... The new platform was built with technology from Centro, which provides enterprise-class software for digital advertising organizations."

Read more in StreetFight.

It's our final ad tech analogy in the series: The Dinner Recipe Analogy, which explains how KPIs affect what programmatic tactics should be used.

Pretend you're throwing a dinner party with a friend. Your friend asks you to be in charge of buying all the groceries for the party, but they don't tell you which ingredients to buy at the store, what you'll be eating, or what any of the recipes require.

In that situation, it's almost impossible to know what to purchase at the store. You could pick out a bunch of items you like to eat, or ingredients you think taste good, but you might end up making a meal that's full of dishes and foods that don't work well together or sides that don't complement the main course. You'd likely be left with a table full of unhappy guests who have to eat a meal that isn't very good.

This is similar to building programmatic campaigns without deciding on goals and KPIs beforehand.

It's hard to put together a plan if you don't know the KPI, because evaluating campaign success and performance can only be accurately tracked if you're measuring against a specific KPI.

The various tactics at your disposal work better than others for different KPIs and objectives. For example: If you're trying to achieve brand awareness, you want to measure your campaign's success based on how many people you reach. Meaning the KPI is impressions.

In order to put together the best and highest-performing plan, know the KPI first.

Interested in other Centro resources that will help you dominate the digital media space? Reach out to [email protected].

Social media's unmatched reach has made it increasingly important to include on every media plan, but so many platforms, objectives, targeting, placement, and creative options have made paid social an overwhelming space to navigate.

We brushed you up on the basics of paid social back in April, and for our next 3Ton30 webinar, we're taking it to the next level. We'll explore how to add social to your media plans as part of overall campaign strategy – instead of adding for the sake of checking off a box on your digital checklist.

We'll showcase real-world business cases and discuss what social considerations make sense for each – to ensure you're taking a multi-faceted approach to social media, matching strategy to your business objectives, and, ultimately, crushing your campaign goals.

Join us and Centro's Associate Director of Social & Search, Vanessa Pence, on Wednesday, July 19, as she discusses:

• What to keep in mind when building a full-funnel social strategy
• How the consumer mindset and journey differs on each platform
• Social capabilities and best practices that make sense for your business objectives
• Key strategies and takeaways to maximize the power of each platform

Next up in our ad tech analogies series: The Rue La La Analogy, which explains how private marketplaces and private exchanges are not the same thing. Private marketplaces and private exchanges can frequently be confused – likely because they both have the word “private" in them – but they're two different concepts.

We explored private marketplaces in our Coupon Code Analogy two weeks ago, but in order to get to the heart of the difference between the two, let's use online shopping service Rue La La as an example.

Rue La La allows shoppers and clothing brands to buy and sell clothing and accessories. Once you are signed up and approved to buy or sell within Rue La La, you can buy as much or as little as you want – and whenever you want – for an indefinite amount of time.

That's similar to how private exchanges work, where all bidders and sellers must be approved before they are allowed to buy or sell, but once they are, there's no limit to activity.

But it's unlike how private marketplaces work, because private marketplaces operate much more like a “sale," where there's a defined period of activity and a time sensitive Deal ID required for access.

Next week we'll dive into our final ad tech analogy, The Dinner Recipe Analogy, which explains how KPIs affect what programmatic tactics we use.

Interested in other Centro resources that will help you dominate the digital media space? Reach out to [email protected].

At Centro, we know that keeping up with the trade pubs and latest trends can be tough and time consuming. To make that easier, we've compiled all the articles, reports, and other bits of awesomeness you may have missed, but should definitely read. Enjoy our latest list below!

The Meeker Report Is Not the Only Game in Town for Marketers
Now that you've had chance to dig through and collect your thoughts from Mary Meeker's annual Internet Trends report, make sure you spend some time reviewing the LUMA Partners State of Digital Media report, which is more concentrated on the world of digital marketing.

The Winners and Losers of the Rise of TV's 'Skinny Bundle'
Traditional TV subscriptions fell by 2.4% year-over-year, the largest percentage ever (or 99 million households if you're keeping score). So who wins and who loses in the current TV media landscape where new viewing packages are being offered? You might be surprised.

Amazon to Charge $2.8 Million for NFL Ad Packages
With Amazon winning the rights to all 10 Thursday Night Football games for $50 million, it appears they're hoping to charge nearly $100,000 per second to market to the estimated 50 million Amazon Prime users who will be receiving exclusive live streams to the games.

Snapchat is Becoming the Social Network it Never Wanted to Be
While it has pegged itself as a “camera company," recent updates hint at Snapchat's transformation better enabling smaller advertisers and brands to gain visibility of Snapchat's 166 million daily users.

What to Know About Visual Search
Could you point out the differences between Pinterest Lens and Google Lens? With 3 out of every 4 internet users regularly searching visual content before making a purchase, it's important to brush up on why visual search is impacting how and where we buy.

Amazon's Alexa Has Gained 14,000 Skills in the Last Year
15,000 skills and counting, and Daily Jeopardy is still my favorite.

The State of Mobile Advertising
Fast stats on the state of mobile advertising from Digiday reiterate the rise social video and the need for measurement on both device and advertising platforms.

A Sociology of the Smartphone
Smartphones have altered the texture of everyday life, digesting many longstanding spaces and rituals, and transforming others beyond recognition.

Long Before iPhones, This 19th-Century Gadget Made Everyone a Mobile Addict
Fresh from celebrating the 10^th anniversary of the iPhone, can you guess what “mobile device" people were so mesmerized by that they were walking into traffic and walls during the 1800s?

July's DIAL is also available as a PDF. Download here!

Next up in our ad tech analogies series: The Online Shopping Cart Analogy, which explains how programmatic direct buying works.

First things first: What's programmatic direct? It's a reserved (guaranteed) buy with fixed rates negotiated directly with the publisher and executed in programmatic environments using Deal IDs.

It becomes a little bit easier to understand if you think about the way you shop online. You go to a retailer's website, browse their inventory, and select what you want – sorting through different variations of items, like color, size, quantity, etc. You drop the items in your shopping cart, submit your payment information, and you're done. You didn't have to work with a sales person or a support person or anyone else to facilitate your purchase. And you know what you're getting is guaranteed to be shipped to you at exactly the specifications you set – otherwise you wouldn't have been able to buy it.

In this way, online shopping works very much like programmatic direct – which is essentially making direct ad inventory purchases from publishers without facilitating them manually, by syncing directly into their ad server.

Next week we'll dive into The Rue La La Analogy, which explains how private marketplaces and private exchanges are not the same thing.

Learn more about the programmatic advertising opportunity with Centro, here.

This year, 219 million Americans will be celebrating our 214 years of independence. And, while they're busy partying, they will spend about $7.1 billion on celebrations, travel, and BBQs -- a firecracker of an opportunity for retailers.

Download our infographic to read some Fourth of July fun facts and check out where Americans will be spending this Independence Day.

Next up in our ad tech analogies series: The Coupon Code Analogy, which explains how Deal IDs facilitate private marketplaces.

Before we dive into this analogy, let's quickly overview what private marketplaces (PMPs) are. Private marketplaces are customized marketplaces where publishers make their inventory available to select buyers. Usually a negotiation takes place between the buyer and seller to create and agree on a deal.

So, what are Deal IDs and how could they possibly relate to store coupons?

Think about how coupon codes are used. Every retailer offers and issues coupons at different times and for different reasons. A coupon code from a retailer can be unique to each individual (like a savings coupon for your birthday) or they can be universal and work for anyone who's got the coupon (like 20% off all store merchandise for anyone who comes into the store). They can be for specific items, or a general discount on all inventory. They can be valid for short, specific windows of time or valid for long, extended periods of use.

It's not unlike how Deal IDs are used to facilitate access to private marketplaces for buyers and sellers. Deal IDs act as a key to the private marketplace. While private marketplace transactions are still subject to an auction, the competition is limited to advertisers with the Deal ID. In simpler terms: You can't get 20% off all store merchandise if you never got the coupon or savings offer.

Next week we'll dive into The Online Shopping Cart Analogy, which explains how programmatic direct buying works.

Interested in other Centro resources that will help you dominate the digital media space? Reach out to [email protected].