In response, the Struq AD PAD provides meaningful controls for users to customise their online advertising experiences within the display ad, instilling user-confidence and creating positive brand experiences

The new ‘cookie regulations’, which come into force in the UK on 26 May 2011 are woefully ill-thought through, unenforceable until clarification is issued detailing how to comply with the law, and fundamentally fail to address the key issue on which they were founded – user control.  Research shows that users want control. 75% cite ‘more control’ as one of the key desires they have of online advertising* and 61% of those users opting-out of Struq ads, cite ‘lack of control’ as the reason*.  Whilst the OBA (Online Behavioural Advertising)  framework is crucial in providing a benchmark for conducting business and moving out of a potentially debilitating situation for users, advertisers and publishers alike, we should not look to the IAB to provide the long-term answer to meeting the needs of users. Instead, Struq has been innovating in this space to create an environment where users can control the content of their ads themselves, directly within the ad.

The Struq AD PAD is the industry’s first interactive banner ad widget that allows users to truly customise the content of their online ads and exercise control over their advertising preferences and privacy settings within the ad itself.  If a user sees an ad they don’t like, they can click on an icon in the corner of an ad, to access their AD PAD. Here they can delete specific products within their ads, delete single brands, access detailed information on what data is collected and how it is used – and opt out of interest-based advertising altogether within the ad. For users, this in-ad control delivers more relevant and useful advertising.  For advertisers this delivers a positive brand experience and deeper brand engagement. Through the Struq AD PAD, brands can be sure that their online advertising is creating the best possible brand experience with their audience.

By providing users with meaningful control over their data, Struq believes it will make having anonymous data tracked more attractive than opting out – as users will benefit from more relevant and useful advertising.  “Online advertising has been lagging far behind the user evolution of web behaviour”, says Sam BARNETT, CEO, Struq. “Take homepages as a prime example of this, where consumers can control their feeds, news and multimedia content. Clearly, customising the web is taken for granted as consumers online behaviour becomes increasingly sophisticated – so why should ads be any different? Cookies are fundamental to the way the modern open social web functions; customisation is intrinsic, making the web experience more relevant, more intuitive and more useful. When used in ads, users benefit from more a relevant online experience overall”.

“Instilling trust is key here”, adds BARNETT, “The future of this industry lies in delivering positive brand experiences through relevancy and user control. The Struq AD PAD is the next phase of delivering positive brand experiences for users, and driving innovation of the display ad format, and ultimately delivering continued unmatched performance for advertisers”.

Try the Struq AD PAD here

Struq was founded with the vision to deliver unmatched performance for advertisers and is now the industry’s most advanced targeting technology and optimisation platform. Struq’s clients achieve an average return of up to £19 in post-click sales for every £1 spent.

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* Yahoo! Digital Memories, 2009

** Struq Opt-Out data Jan- Mar 2011