A few days ago I visited a niche web site and heard the unmistakable sound of one of those saleabration voiceovers advertising a car from a leading manufacturer. Trouble was, there was no car ad on the page. As it droned on it really began to drive me crazy, first because of volume and second because I couldn't find the bloody thing.
The audio finished after 30 seconds. And then it started again! It made me insane. Thought perhaps regular readers of this blog will say insan-er.
But I digress. It finished a second time. And then it started again.
Finally I closed the page I was on in disgust. And what did I find? A video popunder. I didn't even know such a thing existed. An autorun popunder with non user initiated audio?
But it gets better. I think the server forgot to include the size parameters of the file so I got a smear of a car serpentine stretched from one edge of the screen to the other.
As it was nearing the end of the month, I wonder if the org that sold this to the very large auto manufacturer was low on imps and fielded these popunders to fill out the buy.
Whatever the reason, it was a dreadful, rude, hideous experience that ran me off the content I wanted to see.
But it brought to home more strongly how the world of video has been a Wild West for too long. Brands need to more closely scrutinize what they are getting for their preroll dollars.
I couldn't figure out who the vendor/server was, and I am not going to disclose the client because I don't do swoop and poop on this blog.
But next time you have video to buy, ask some questions about where, when, and how the buy will be fulfilled. Because three of your impressions for June may have been delivered to me in a video popunder smear.
Thanks for reading, and don't forget to write.
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