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Original poster

Top bar advertising

488 replies

TalkinBoutWhat · 23/10/2017 13:17

MN, PLEASE fix this advertising bar at the top of the computer screen.

It is so large, that I can't actually click on any of the MN links that are at the top of the page. (eg, active, I'm on, etc).

Right now, on Site Stuff, I can't even click 'Site Stuff' to get other threads in this section. It's hidden by the ad, which is NOT scrolling up and away the way I've seen others do. It's just sitting there. The ONLY threads I can get onto are the active ones on the right hand side of the screen, and only the ones lower down the list as the top ones are hidden by the Ad. (Experian and Marks and Spencers, are the two so far....)

You did this before, we all complained, you apologised and said it shouldn't have been loaded on as you were testing something new. I really hope this was a mistake, because it is IMPOSSIBLE to navigate the site.

OP posts:
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PollyHasAKettle · 24/10/2017 19:18

I quite enjoy sitting there with my eyes closed whilst having a laugh at the advertisers. Its the same on Words With Friends.

ToadTheVampireThreadKiller · 24/10/2017 19:42

I have turned the adblocker off and am now getting the stupid begging notice which I have to wait to complete and then a huge bloody ad afterwards, followed by another one at the side. This is ridiculous. If I didn't need the distraction due to absolute shit in my life I wouldn't bother with it. Actually I think I will bugger off because I am getting irrationally annoyed by the whole pathetic situation. Two days of this crap is too many.

Saucery · 24/10/2017 19:45

So has membership stagnated? If advertisers are getting snippy about the proportion of ad blockers/unseen ads?
It would a shame if the advertising Tail was wagging the talkboards Dog.

DrMadelineMaxwell · 24/10/2017 19:53

FFS - I came back on today expecting it not to still be a problem as things like this are usually fixed straight away.

Nope. I still have ads popping down to cover half of my laptop screen every time I go to a new page. It's getting very boring having to wait for them to go.

DrMadelineMaxwell · 24/10/2017 20:03

I appreciate that the advertisments are a revenue source.
And that advertiser want their adverts to be on screen for a certain amount of time.

But why they have to dominate the screen for that time instead of just being there I don't understand.

I've never used an ad blocker. But I've got one now as the whitelist message pops up but then doesn't hide half of my screen and cut down the part of the screen I can see. I'll get rid of it when the ads stop being so irritating.

C8H10N4O2 · 24/10/2017 20:04

I don't think the ads do slow the site at all now we've implementing the dual loading

Brutally - you think wrong. And if your official tests tell you otherwise then your testing service needs rebuilding to better simulate real workloads. This is a common problem when testing web services and websites.

I whitelist the Telegraph, Guardian, Independent and several other news outlets because I am very aware that good journalism costs money. I whitelist a number of self help type sites for the same reason.

I don't whitelist mumsnet because unlike those above your ads are intrusive, slow and annoying. You are not alone in this. I don't whitelist some others with equally badly implemented advertising. I occasionally unblock sites which I would like to support. So far results here have been disappointing each time.

It doesn't actually matter if you are using the identical product stack to the publications whose ad model you aim to replicate. It is how you have implemented and configured the model, the CDN, the data management and all the layers around it which is the problem.

You have many real users here telling you that the advertising causes them problems. You can tell us we must be wrong or you can look at the implementation and testing models.

Sallystyle · 24/10/2017 20:17

This isn't really good enough is it? You're going to end up losing members. Other websites with ads like this are ones that I tend to close pretty darn quickly and not go back on unless I really need to. I spend a lot of time on MN and it is taking away the fun.

Taking up half the screen every time you load a page is intrusive and really boring. I don't want to have to wait for the ad to disappear before I can actually read anything.

brasty · 24/10/2017 20:27

I don't think you can compare yourself to sites like The Guardian. If I read them, it is for articles written by journalists. This is a forum with user generated content. And a fairly basic one at that.

All the ads I have ever clicked whilst being on MN, has been inadvertently.

brasty · 24/10/2017 20:37

I just went on The Guardian site, and the banner advert does NOT scroll down the page with you. The Guardian has much less intrusive adverts.

PhilODox · 24/10/2017 20:43

I don't have a problem with the speed- it's the sheer amount of bloatware that is being loaded and wasting all my data allowance. As Lilith said- I'm paying to be advertised at!

Well, I know which brands won't be receiving any orders from me in the near future...

I hear Reddit has a good MN board...

ginteresting · 24/10/2017 20:47

Use the mumsnet talk app, you don't get adverts at all, just sponsored posts at the top of each topic easily scrolled past

brasty · 24/10/2017 20:53

Banner ad is too annoying. Hope you fix it MN, but it is still on every page. And on a talk board, you inevitably click on different pages extremely regularly. So this makes it extra annoying.

monkeywithacowface · 24/10/2017 20:54

It seems worse tonight than it was yesterday. 16 seconds is the longest count I have had of the advert covering half the page before scrolling away.

LineysRun · 24/10/2017 20:59

I have three lines of text visible at the moment between adverts.

Three lines.

reflexfaith · 24/10/2017 21:30

Wait, what, the people who work for free for Mumsnet creating the content we are now free riders??? what the fuck

OlennasWimple · 24/10/2017 21:35

Yup, reflex, that's right Hmm

reflexfaith · 24/10/2017 21:36

I didn't actually say freeloading, I said free-riding - which is a slightly different well known economic dilemma
Christ you couldn't make it up!
Condescend to the people who create the value for your website
who work for free to make you money
how to Win Friends and Influence People
not

brasty · 24/10/2017 21:42

I know free rider is an economics term. But no one here really is a free rider as our data is collected and sold. And users generate content. Users with ad blockers are opting out of one of the ways you make money out of users. And some of them have said they only decided to do so because the ads on here are more intrusive than other sites.

reflexfaith · 24/10/2017 21:44

We are all part of an ecosystem
Mumsnet HQ may be the top predator and we may be just pond life to you but you are extracting value from our conversations our idle chat, however inane and crass you find us to be without us you are toast

OlennasWimple · 24/10/2017 22:03

brasty - I don't even have ad blocker on, I just dont' click on the ads. Apparently that means I'm just along for the ride and I should somehow feel a bit guilty about it

brasty · 24/10/2017 22:09

I missed that. I don't have adblocker on either, but considering it. And why should you click on the ads? Ad sales are made based on a small percentage of people who see them actually being interested in them. Can't remember the average sale rate for the industry I work in, but I know it is small. Because most people hate adverts on the internet.

SaskiaRembrandtWasFramed · 24/10/2017 22:37

As I said on another thread, I'm seeing this keep the lights on message, on a device and browser that do not have an adblocker installed. Then the screen lurches and an ad appears that takes up about half of the available space.

Banjax · 24/10/2017 22:42

Justine, hopefully you will use the revenue generated to buy:

  1. a proper tech team
  2. some PR because at the moment, you're ruining your own empire

All my friends are fed up with the content harvesting, the trolls, the perverts and the high-handed school prefect nonsense that you indulge in. When your content is generated "by Huns for huns", then you'll realise it's a pile of sparkly worthless fluff and you'll be the new FriendsReunited

We do REDDIT now
MN is OVER.

BlackeyedSusan · 24/10/2017 23:00

Has anybody looked at it from a disability point of view. MN was more autism friendly as it was less busy.

these bloody ads are not autism friendly. sensory overload making. not great. can you make sure they are not on the SNeeds boards that have a higher prevalence of disabled users.

GladAllOver · 24/10/2017 23:15

I think some of the more recent comments here are over the top.

MN is making a big mistake in force feeding its users with excessive advertising. Now that they know how bad it is, let's give them a chance to pull it back. Being rude won't help them to solve it.

But MN, please, please change that 'lights out' message. We know that you are in no danger of having the power cut off.