More than three in five Americans (63%) say they ignore or disregard Internet adsaccording to a new Adweek Media/Harris Interactive poll. Internet banner ads are the most ignored (43%), followed by search engine ads (20%).

Smaller percentages of surveyed adults say they ignore TV ads (14%), radio ads (7%), and newspaper ads (6%).

Overall, more than four in five Americans (91%) say they ignore some ads.

Below, other findings from the Adweek Media/Harris Interactive Poll.

Few Differences by Gender

There is only a slight difference in those ads men and women tend to ignore: 42% of men and 45% of women say they ignore Internet banner ads the most, one in five say they ignore banner and search engine ads (20% and 21%, respectively), while somewhat fewer say so about TV ads (15% and 13%), radio ads (7% and 8%), and newspaper ads (6% and 5%).

Older Adults Ignore TV Ads Most

Fully one in five adults age 55+ (20%) say they ignore TV ads, compared with 14% of those age 45-54, 13% of those age 35-44, and 9% of those age 18-34. 

But the young are most likely to ignore radio ads the most: 11% of adults age 18-34 years do, compared with 6% of those age 55+.

Adults age 35-44 are most likely to ignore Internet banner ads most: 47% say they do, compared with between 42% and 43% of other age groups.


Looking for great digital marketing data? MarketingProfs reviewed hundreds of research sources to create our most recent Digital Marketing Factbook (May 2010), a 296-page compilation of data and 254 charts, covering email marketing, social media, search engine marketing, e-commerce, and mobile marketing. Also check out The State of Social Media Marketing, a 240-page original research report from MarketingProfs.


Educated Adults More Likely to Ignore Ads

Some 46% of both adults with some college and those with a graduate education say they ignore Internet banner ads, compared with 40% of those with a high school degree or less. 

Moreover, 23% of adults with a college degree say they ignore search engine ads, compared with 17% of those with high school education or less. Those with a high school or less education, however, are more likely than those with a college degree to ignore TV ads (17% vs. 12%).

About the data: Findings are from an Adweek Media/Harris Interactive survey of 2,098 US adults, Oct. 5-7, 2010.

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