This month’s topic: Mobile Ads

The Internet. It’s on a lot more than your computer screen these days. The Internet is now accessible from many mobile devices, including cell phones, iPod Touches, iPads, and more. People are accessing the mobile web to check their email, watch video, search, and check up on their social networks, sports, news, weather, etc. This increase in the use of the mobile web has also led to the development of mobile ads- ads that are on mobile websites or are embedded in the apps on your smartphone.

A few facts and articles:

• 91% of Americans have a cell phone. This doesn’t mean that 91% of Americans get on the Internet using their phones, but look at that potential!
• According to a Kaiser Family Foundation study that came out in January 2010, young people spend more time per day consuming different media on their phone (:49) than they do talking on them (:33).
• Mary “Queen of the Net” Meeker of Morgan Stanley: Within the next five years, mobile Internet will overtake fixed Internet.
• A Neilson breakdown of how mobile Internet users spend their time.

Many mobile ads are simply banner ads like you would see on the Internet on your computer screen; only scaled down. However, they don’t just have to be simple banner or text ads. Mobile ads can also be much bigger, rich media ads that take over the entire cell phone or tablet screen, and are interactive with the consumer. Read about the success of HBO’s recent True Blood mobile ad that appeared when participating magazine apps on the iPhone were opened. There is definitely the potential to get creative. It’s also highly targeted. You choose which sites and apps to put your ads on so that you may reach your exact target audience. Even if you are a local business there is still the opportunity for you to use mobile ads through a network like the Google Display Network. Here is how it works:

1. Create a Google AdWords campaign and make sure the ads are opted into the Google Display Network.

2. Add your business phone number and address; also upload your business logo or an icon.

3. Check that you’d like your ads to be displayed on mobile devices.

And that’s it! Google will display your ads only to people within your area who are searching the Internet on their mobile device. The ad will appear as a text ad with your business icon that expands to show your business location on a Google map along with your ad creative, click-to-call phone number and option to get directions. To learn more, visit google.com/mobileads or contact Dave Morton. Not only can we set up a mobile ad campaign for you, but we can also put together and manage a Google AdWords campaign for your business.

Mobile ads are certainly a part of the ever-changing digital landscape in which we can advertise, and have their place in the marketing mix. How might they fit in with your strategic plans?

To learn more about mobile advertising trends, check out Mobile Marketing Watch or take a look at this article: Be Mobile or Be Dust.