It's easy to feel as though there is no hope, or way out of this catch-22. But, if we look around, there are examples of ethically-driven enterprises that are gathering momentum. Here at Good-Loop, our video advertising platform is not only delivering better ROI for advertisers, it's driving genuine social good that can be measured in pounds and pence. With companies like
Brave, users are getting a better web experience, and publishers are being rewarded through their referral program. Even
ad-blockers are stepping up to the mark, and factoring in white-listing - fair recognition that in reality, not all ads are bad, and in fact, are a vital component of the online ecosystem. The issue that many of these companies have, is scale.
As much as Good-Loop would love Unilever and P&G's entire video marketing budget (just saying!), we know that we are in no way ready to support the scale that these companies require. We simply couldn't deliver a level of success that would compete with Google or Facebook. Yet.
What we can do, is work with industry leaders in small stages. Within the AdTech space, there is a high level of innovation that if adopted and applied at scale could create significant change in digital advertising for good. As mentioned, to Goliath-type organisations such as Google and Facebook, Unilever's ad spend, it's a drop in the ocean. But sending just 1% of that €7.7bn spend to innovative fledgling companies can be the difference between scaling and failing. Solutions are out there, but just as advertisers must work in unison with publishers and viewers, so too must advertisers work with the ad-serving platforms that facilitate the conversations. Facebook and Google may have the scale, but it should not be assumed that they have the best technology for all components of the digital advertising landscape. Investing and experimenting with new technologies and approaches not only allows these organisations to see what is possible, it serves as the foothold for progress.