Click Here: The State of Online Advertising

Marketers are missing a powerful opportunity to engage with consumers and deliver personalized experiences that drive brand affinity, according to research released today from Adobe Systems Incorporated (Nasdaq:ADBE).

The global study, Click Here: The State of Online Advertising, polled both consumers and marketers in seven countries across the United States, Asia-Pacific and Europe and exposes new global insights into the effectiveness of online marketing.

The research has been released in advance of the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, the largest gathering of advertising and marketing professionals held in Cannes, France, June 16-22.

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The study revealed that a significant portion of consumers and marketers feel online advertising is still not effective (consumers 32%; marketers 21%).

Marketers in the U.S. and Europe were the most dismissive of online advertising. Consumer and marketing respondents globally believe that banner ads do not work (49% consumers; 36% marketers).

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“Banners have brought much of the worst characteristics of advertising – being intrusive and manipulative, catching one’s eye with hyperbole, and using surreptitiously-captured information – into the digital space. Consumers realize they are now in control and won’t accept it,” said David C. Edelman, global co-leader, Digital Marketing and Sales Practice, McKinsey & Company.

Traditional media such as print and TV received higher scores for credibility and effectiveness among consumers and marketers in all regions (traditional media 94% consumers; 91% marketers; modern/digital sources 52% consumers; 68% marketers).

Respondents in Asia-Pacific were most likely to enjoy TV and print ads (42%), followed by European consumers (36%) and U.S. consumers (31%).

Interestingly, text message ads in Asia-Pacific (34% consumers; 24% marketers) are not considered annoying compared to the U.S. (62% consumers; 59% marketers) and Europe (62% consumers; 57% marketers).

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According to respondents, the marketing profession was consistently ranked as one of the least valuable to society, although the profession is viewed most positively by consumers (24%) and marketers (47%) in Asia-Pacific.

While marketers across the regions (U.S. 45%; Asia-Pacific 25%; Europe 28%) agree that marketing primarily helps inform consumers on brands, products and services, in Asia-Pacific, a significant percentage of marketers think it both educates (15%) and reflects and shapes cultures (14%).

Further, U.S. consumers “like” brands they regularly buy (53%) or that have promotions (46%), while consumers in Asia-Pacific (33%) and Europe (26%) are more driven to “like” by aspirations and brand personality (40%).

The data points referenced above come from a study commissioned by Adobe, produced by research firm Edelman Berland and conducted as an online survey among a nationally representative sample of the population of each country.

The study is based on interviews with 8,750 consumers and 1,750 professional marketers across the United States, Europe (United Kingdom, Germany, France) and Asia-Pacific (Japan, Australia, and South Korea).

The research expands on the study Adobe initially executed in the United States in October 2012, which surveyed 1,000 consumers and 250 professional marketers to now include seven additional countries.