What is Native advertising?

Native advertising is paid content that matches the visual design, format, and editorial tone of the platform where it appears, so it feels like a natural part of the user experience rather than a disruptive ad. Examples include sponsored articles on news sites, in-feed ads on social platforms, promoted listings on e-commerce marketplaces, and recommended content widgets. The defining characteristic of native ads is that they don't look or feel like traditional advertisements—they blend into the surrounding organic content. Native ads consistently outperform display ads in engagement and trust metrics because they respect the user's browsing context. The rise of UGC-style ads on social platforms is an extension of native advertising principles: the ad looks like content a real person would post.