{"id":5133,"date":"2022-01-18T18:09:29","date_gmt":"2022-01-18T12:24:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/brandlock.io\/blog\/\/"},"modified":"2022-01-19T12:22:35","modified_gmt":"2022-01-19T06:37:35","slug":"ad-injections-a-primer-for-ecommerce-merchants","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brandlock.io\/staging\/blog\/ad-injections-a-primer-for-ecommerce-merchants\/","title":{"rendered":"Ad Injections: A Primer for Ecommerce Merchants"},"content":{"rendered":"

Many eCommerce companies do not realize that a significant portion of shoppers that visit their website experience distractions from unsolicited ads and pop-up coupons. These ads redirect shoppers to competitor websites, display unwanted content, and fraudulently tag conversions to collect affiliate fees.<\/span><\/p>\n

The miscreant: Ad injections.<\/span><\/p>\n

What are Ad Injections?<\/span><\/h1>\n

Ad injections are unauthorized software injected into your customers\u2019 browsers without their permission.<\/span><\/p>\n

These ad injections are installed when customers download browser extensions, apps or access unsecured public Wi-Fi networks.<\/span><\/p>\n

The process is based on adware – where ad injections disguise themselves as legitimate software or piggyback on other software to mislead website visitors into installing it on their desktop, tablet, or mobile device<\/b>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Once ad injections hijack the customer browsers,<\/span> they can generate revenue for traffic hijackers by serving ads and stealing ad impressions from other websites. In eCommerce, price comparison ads are used to distract customers’ attention from making a purchase. Competitor ads are also displayed to steal customers away.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"screenshot
Figure 1 – Malicious ads displayed on an eCommerce webpage<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

How do Ad Injections work?<\/span><\/h2>\n

Once installed, unauthorized ads start to appear on all the pages of your website. Customers fall prey to these ads and are redirected to other websites. This phenomenon is also referred to as Customer Journey Hijacking.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAny company selling online that relies on steady traffic in order to sell products should care about journey hijacking.\u201d\u00a0<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

– Gartner<\/b><\/p>\n

When a browsing session is affected by ad injections, a completely different online experience emerges. The website is overrun with unwanted product ads, pop-ups, banners, and in-text redirects.<\/span><\/p>\n

These sophisticated ads even mimic the look-and-feel of the website, tricking customers into clicking, and luring them to competitor websites.<\/span><\/p>\n

In addition to interrupting customers from completing their purchases, visitors also believe that the eCommerce merchant is at fault, significantly downgrading the brand reputation.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

This growing problem is invisible to eCommerce merchants because the ad-injections entirely run on the customer\u2019s browser or device.<\/span><\/p>\n

In other words, these ads bypass a website\u2019s server-side visibility, leaving eCommerce websites in the dark and unaware that their website is being targeted.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"ad
Figure 2 – Ad injections & Customer Journey Hijacking<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

Ad Injections Damaging Your Ecommerce Business<\/span><\/h2>\n

Ad injections are a perennial problem for eCommerce businesses. A study conducted by Google<\/span>*<\/span><\/a> found that millions of users accessing Google websites included some form of injected ads.<\/span><\/p>\n

The study also observed that ad injections also victimized and stole revenue from retailers such as Sears, Walmart, Target, eBay, and many others.<\/span><\/p>\n

Our estimates suggest that 4 to 6 percent of eCommerce website users are impacted by unwanted browser extensions and ad injections. They hijack the online customer journey and damage conversion rates, online revenue, and brand reputation.<\/b><\/p>\n

The number spikes upwards by 15 to 20 percent during Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and the winter holiday season.<\/span><\/p>\n