Study: Unclutter webpages for better ad ROI

Clutter fixers are the rage in cities, turning stuffed closets and garages into leaner showpieces. The same is true for online media, according to the SAY Media report. comScore research shows the average person spends 40 seconds on-site while more data indicates users see only about three-quarters on webpages filled with other ads, images and content.

The SAY/IPG report finds users saw 100% of ads on cleaner pages, based on eye tracking data.

"Clutter is killing digital media," said Troy Young, president, SAY Media. "Publishers keep adding more and more ads, because yield is becoming so low, and ads aren't in view long enough to really drive results, leading to incredibly cluttered Web pages. SAY is eliminating clutter with Clean layouts and premium ad environments that are working better for brands and offering a better experience for the consumer."

Other interesting findings include:

• Consumers see 'clean' sites a more useful and more trustworthy
• Clean websites have ad interaction times of 6.4 seconds, nearly double the time spent on cluttered sites
• Ad recall increased on clean websites
• Key Message Association and Purchase Intent metrics saw increases on clean websites

"In a fully mediated world, consumers have many more choices competing for their attention," said Brian Monahan, IPG Media Lab. "The amount of attention on a Web page is relatively fixed and Clean ads are garnering more attention than those on cluttered pages. Higher attention to ads is the gateway to better brand and engagement performance."

Researchers used eye-tracking as well as survey methods to come to their results.

Tags: ad metrics, clean webpages, clutter free ads, IPG Media Lab, online advertising, SAY Medai