Ask YC: Does it make sense to combine ads with interactive puzzles/games to get people's attention?

[amichail]

You don't need to go to a different site to play with the puzzle/game. It can be done right from the ad.

Note that the advertising may have nothing to do with puzzles/games, but the interactive puzzles/games draw you in for a while so that you notice the ad more.

So now creating an effective ad involves not just creating the ad itself but also the puzzle(s)/game(s) that will go along with it.

[hernan7]

Aren't there already ads that are supposedly game-like? "Click on the bouncing ball and win $$$", things like that.

Personally I avoid clicking on anything ad-like, to avoid pop-ups and generally having the flow of my web browsing interrupted.

Now, if the execution was really good, with a nice design and a fun-looking gameplay, that may change. The gameplay should look intriguing even before the user clicks on the ad -- maybe show a demo screen, like the arcade games?

[iamdave]

If getting people's attention means breaking the design of the site, disrupting natural UI progression then no. People wont pay any attention to your content (ex. porn on TechCrunch) and ads become self-defeating. hernan7 has the right idea, if the implementation was good and enhanced experience, why not.

Just be careful with how you do it..

[jakewolf]

Many ads have gone interactive. Anything that makes clicks sounds good to me, especially if it leads to money or new users.