Traditional display ads are in decline and marketers are struggling to justify their effectiveness. At the same time, approximately 42% of global internet users now employ ad blockers, making traditional formats even less viable. Native advertising emerged as a promising alternative: ads designed to blend seamlessly with content, providing value with disruption. But in practice, most native ads haven’t lived up to the hype.
The problem isn’t with the concept — it’s with the execution. Client-side implementations try to imitate platform aesthetics but remain fundamentally disconnected from the core user experience. Server-side integration, a technical approach that gained significant momentum in 2023, represents the next stage in the evolution of native advertising. Done well, it creates seamless, high-performing experiences that benefit both users and advertisers.
Native advertising was built on an ambitious vision: promotional content that matches the look, feel, and function of the platform it appears on. Ideally, users would encounter sponsored content that feels like a natural extension of their browsing, reading or shopping experience.
In reality, implementations may disappoint:
As the Native Advertising Institute emphasizes, “Native advertising is not meant to be deceptive…it’s meant to provide something of value.” But value is impossible if the execution breaks the user experience instead of enhancing it.
The shortcomings of native ads largely stem from technical limitations. Most rely on JavaScript tags or SDKs that run outside a platform’s primary content delivery pipeline. This approach creates several challenges.
Third-party JavaScript adds significant overhead, slowing down page loads, and becoming a substantial roadblock in a world where milliseconds matter. In fact, a study of 100 million page views across 20 B2B and B2C websites over the course of a month found that fast-loading web pages have as much as a 2.5x to 3.0x higher conversion rate than slower-loading pages.
Client-side ads are typically constrained by templated cont trainers that can only approximate platform design, forcing compromises in visual integration. Typography, spacing, and interactions never fully align, creating an “uncanny valley” effect that signals to users: this is an ad.
Without access to deep contextual signals, client-side ads can’t fully adapt to user behavior, device types, or content semantics. The result is static creative that feels bolted on, not woven in.
Server-side ad serving fundamentally reimagines how native advertising works. Instead of relying on client-side scripts that execute after the page loads, server-side integrations process ad requests via secure backend channels — before or during content rendering. This shift creates seamless, consistent, and high-performing user experiences that feel completely native to the platform and improve:
Transitioning to server-side ad serving will require some careful planning and collaboration. Follow these steps to ensure a smooth and successful rollout:
Bring Revenue, Product, and Engineering teams together from the start. Define shared goals and KPIs that balance monetization with user experience, so every stakeholder is working toward the same outcome: ads that perform well and feel natural.
Map out the user journey first. Partner with your UX and design teams to identify where native ads can add value rather than interrupt the experience. Sponsored placements should use the same design system, components, and interaction patterns as organic content.
A strong technical framework is essential. Focus on:
Implement a continuous testing process to evaluate performance and make data-driven improvements. Track metrics like page load speed, engagement and retention rates, revenue per session, long-term user loyalty, and more.
The future belongs to platforms that own their user experience, data flow, and monetization strategy. Server-side native advertising is more than a technical upgrade — it’s the foundation for sustainable, privacy-conscious digital businesses that prioritize user trust.
Platforms that embrace this model create win-win-win outcomes: users get better experiences, advertisers see better results, and publishers drive more revenue.
Ready to transform your ad strategy? Learn how Kevel’s Retail Media Cloud® powers server-side native experiences that boost engagement and revenue. Talk to an expert today.
