I think we can all agree that the absolute best part of using Facebook is the ads. The ads are really what keeps everyone coming back for more of that wonderful, wonderful website – even better if they’re autoplaying video ads, which are barely even a price to pay to enjoy Facebook’s captivating content.
Well, you’ll be pleased to know that the boffins at Facebook HQ are coming up with compelling ways to make sure you see even more autoplaying video ads, and their next target is Messenger. Though you may have noticed that static image ads have appeared in Messenger over the past few months, the company is ready to make sure you’re seeing video ads too.
This is what the static image ads look like, in case you haven’t noticed. You’d think the Sydney Opera House seal wouldn’t need an ad budget but apparently it does and I am the target market.
Last year, Facebook admitted that they physically cannot cram many more ads into their main app without making the user experience significantly worse, so they’re investigating ways to get more eyeballs onto advertising in their peripheral products, like Instagram and WhatsApp.
The brainiac behind Messenger’s ad business, Stefanos Loukakos, tried to dismiss any concerns that seeing video ads in your message list would be really, really annoying in a chat with Recode:
Top priority for us is user experience. So we don’t know yet [if these will work]. However, signs until now, when we tested basic ads, didn’t show any changes with how people used the platform or how many messages they send. Video might be a bit different, but we don’t believe so.
So there you have it. More stuff for your eyeballs to fixate on while trying to navigate your messages. According to Loukakos, they’ve already started appearing for some users – so you probably won’t have long to wait!
