Over 61% of students and graduates use ad-blocking software while browsing online, according to new research by graduate-jobs.com. The implications are severe for employers who take advantage of display advertising for their recruitment.
The analysis of over 2,500 active graduate job seekers showed that, 61% use ad-blocking software, 19% use ad-blocking software on their mobile devices and 46% use ad-blocking software on their desktop computers. The combined 61% of users who use some form of ad-blocking software is much higher than the national average for British adults which currently stands at 22%. (March 2016, YouGov)
The rise in ad-blocking software amongst students and graduates poses challenges to employers. Companies have often used leaderboards, MPUs and skyscrapers to help promote their employer brand, however these may be not be displayed as the software removes elements of web pages it deems as advertising.
Product Manager at graduate-jobs.com, Ross Whistler, commented on the survey's findings:
Graduate employers are finding themselves in a tricky situation as ad-blockers become more common. They are finding traditional promotion options out of bounds and need to think creatively about how they can connect with potential applicants.
One option we are starting to see more often is "native advertising". Employers are opting for content and social media campaigns to reach students and graduates.
Publishers, like us at graduate-jobs.com, also need to be smarter with how they handle a client's display advertising. They need to be aware of what will display to the target demographic and what will be blocked by ad-blocking software.
Methodology
graduate-jobs.com surveyed over 2,500 recently registered users as part of an annual survey about their service.