Research conducted in early 2016 has confirmed what many may have intuitively suspected ‒ that people don’t always buy from the websites they get their information from, and that the word-of-mouth nature of social networks makes them an important part of decision-making when we shop.

With 79% of Brits rarely or never clicking online ads, brands are wasting huge sums of money on ineffective advertising. So how can companies entice consumers to voluntarily eyeball their content? Canvas8 sat down with 15 British men and women to find out what they think about online ads.

Word of mouth recommendations can heavily influence consumer purchasing decisions – especially women. New research suggests around 96% of women seek out the advice of others before they buy or try, with 91% looking beyond family and friends for an outside opinion.

Native advertising has exploded over the internet in recent years. But for many consumers, figuring out what’s been paid for and what’s strictly editorial can be confusing. Nathaniel Evans, who studies the phenomenon, explains to Canvas8 why people often don’t recognise sponsored content.