Holly Leonard.

Business In The Community launches an interactive campaign that uses the ‘Skip Ad’ button to raise awareness about the reintegration of former prisoners This interactive advertising intelligently uses this functionality found on YouTube. The button appears at the start of each YouTube video and can be clicked on after a few seconds of the start in order to skip the rest of the advert.

This campaign delivers a strong message, effectively using a well known feature of the internet in a roundabout way.

This campaign features a former prisoner who wants to go for a job interview. At the start he explains that he has just come out of prison. A ‘Skip Ad’ button then appears in the bottom right hand corner of the video. The more the viewer clicks on the button the more stressed out and desperate the man becomes. Through this functionality the charitable organisation aims to encourage employers not to ‘stick a label’ on the former prisoner and instead offer him a second chance. By using the short format of the advertisement, the message is simple: listen to the full 30 seconds in order to realise their motivation.

Pepsi wanted to look for a more scientific way to study the correlation between TV viewing and second-screen usage during live programming. Using research methods such as biometrics, the brand looked at consumer behaviour during the MTV VMA’s last August—the top-rated entertainment program on TV among viewers aged this year. What emerged were some surprising differences in media usage among people. During moments of the show—like Miley Cyrus’ twerk-tastic duet with Robin Thicke — consumers immediately shifted from TV viewing to second screens. Meanwhile, those aged stayed with the telecast, waiting to engage in social conversations.

During the VMAs, Facebook was the most popular social media brand, accounting for 41 percent of consumer usage, followed by Twitter with 32 percent. And while Cyrus’ antics burned up Twitter, performances by Justin Timberlake and Katy Perry had fans taking to Facebook to discuss. Stubbs said he thinks there was a good balance between the brand’s TV and online investment during the VMAs. But he would consider devoting more resources to monitoring social activity. “We know live TV is a place we need to be—it’s still incredible appointment viewing, But it’s not enough for an advertiser to show up with a beautiful ad and wait for everyone to come to it.”

Facebook is now as much a marketing machine as it is a social destination. “There used to be some reservation about too many ads, and now there are none,” said an ad exchange exec, who added that users could start to tune out ads, rendering them less effective. A number of ad industry executives expressed similar sentiments—that Facebook may be nearing an ad threshold, threatening engagement—but declined to go on the record for fear of ruffling Facebook’s feathers. The overload could push marketers to less crowded social frontiers like Pinterest and Tumblr

Facebook declined to comment. But the company has said it tracks users’ attitudes towards ads. CEO Mark Zuckerberg said publicly that the company hasn’t ever measured a “meaningful drop in satisfaction.” Still, Facebook this quarter capped sponsored posts to 1 in 20 on average. Last quarter, ad revenue was up 66 percent year over year, and to satisfy Wall Street, it needs to continue growing. However, ad overload is seen as one factor driving teens away from Facebook. They’re interested in what friends are sharing,” an agency exec said. “They’re not interested in what brands are sharing.”

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