Ad Blocking

Overview

Ad blockers are programs that identify ads on a website and prevent them from appearing. It's worth knowing whether ad blockers are preventing impressions on your site and diminishing your potential revenue.

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We also recommend reading the Desktop Ad Blocking Guide and Mobile Ad Blocking Guide.

How Do Ad Blockers Block?

Ad blockers can identify ads in several ways, but the most common is to analyze the page and catalog the 3rd party tags and code on it. Those codes are then compared against a database of known 'ad companies' such as AdSense and OpenX. If there's a match, the blocker assumes it's an ad and blocks it.

How Common are Ad Blockers?

EMARKETER reports that 45% of US consumers have installed or used an ad blocker on a browser or mobile device, rising to 52% across 48 global markets. Routine use is lower: GWI puts it at 21% of consumers who block ads regularly, plus another 11% who do so occasionally.

Published rates vary widely depending on what is being measured, such as ever-installed versus blocks-regularly, or browser versus in-app, so treat any single figure as directional. Blocking also remains harder on mobile, where most activity happens inside apps rather than in a browser, though browsers with blocking built in are narrowing that gap.

Are Native Ads Blocked by Blockers?

Yes and no. There are three main scenarios:

• You display native ads from programmatic sources, such as Facebook Audience Network or AdSense. These ads will be quickly identified and blocked.

• You create your own native ad platform and are large enough that the ad blockers will figure out work-arounds to block your ads. This is the cat-and-mouse situation that Facebook is in.

• You create your own native ad platform but aren't on the ad blockers' radar.

Are Clicks Blocked - Or Just Impressions?

If an impression is blocked, the click is naturally blocked too.

However, if an impression does appear, perhaps because you are tracking server-to-server, the ad blocker may still block the click. The user is then taken to a page saying the link is blocked, and is usually given the choice to proceed or go back (in the example below, by clicking 'Temporarily' or 'Permanently').

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In this scenario, Kevel still records a click. However, if you are using 3rd party tracking, that system would NOT see a click.

Are Kevel Ads Affected by Blockers?

• For JavaScript ads: Yes.

• For API ads: Because you aren't using JavaScript to display the ad, the ad itself will not be blocked. However, the Kevel impression pixel may fail to fire if it's placed directly on the page and the user has ad blocking enabled. The ad will still appear, but the impression may not show up in reporting.

See below for ways to reduce these reporting issues.

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To repeat: for Decision API ads, the ad itself will NOT be blocked. The users will see it. However, the Kevel impression pixel, if placed directly on the page, may fail to fire, which will cause reporting discrepancies.

Reducing Impact of Ad Blocking

1. Proxying events through your own server: Replace the impression URL on the ad with a URL hosted by you, so the blockers won't recognize Kevel's domain. Your backend then makes a GET request to Kevel's server.

2. Acceptable Ads Program: Some ad blockers run allow-list programs that won't block your ads if you meet certain criteria.