How To Take Advantage Of New Trends In Mobile Advertising

Until recently, the mobile space was associated with people seeking low consideration or immediate gratification products and services like movies, restaurants, ring tones, apps, etc. A recent survey by Ipsos OTX MediaCT (commissioned by Google) revealed that smartphone usage has changed.

In this article, I’ll cover several recent trends highlighted in the report and discuss the implications of these trends on mobile advertising. Wider adoption of smartphones is a key driver in these most recent trends.

These trends include the following:

Smartphones Are More Ingrained In Daily Life

People are using their phones in a number of different places. Take a look at the following examples:

• Home – 93%
• On the go like when commuting, walking, etc. – 87%
• In stores – 77%
• In restaurants – 73%
• Work – 72%

Smartphones Are Used In Similar Ways As Computers

Some of the ways smartphone users are using their mobile devices are to:

• Access search engines – 77%
• Access apps – 68%
• Access videos – 48%

People Are Multitasking While Using Their Smartphones

Take a look at some of the examples of what people are doing while also checking their mobile devices:

• Watching TV – 33%
• Using the Internet – 29%
• Reading a book – 16%
• Reading a newspaper – 22%
• Waiting in a line – 59%
• Socializing – 40%

There are several specific actions people are taking while they’re on their smartphones. Here’s what people are doing while searching on their smartphones:

Action Oriented Searches

Searchers are:

• Social networking
• Visiting sites like search engines, retail stores, etc.

They Look For A Wide Variety Of Information

• Here’s a list of the type of information searchers are seeking:
  • News
  • Food & recipes
  • Dining info
  • Entertainment
  • Shopping

They Are Searching For Local Information

In general, people seeking local information are highly qualified and ready to buy. Of those conducting local searches, they are:

• Contacting an establishment – 77%
• Making a purchase – 44%

As these trends in consumer adoption of mobile increase, it makes greater sense to advertise via the mobile channel.

Here are a few suggestions on how to implement mobile advertising in Google AdWords.

Try Local Extensions

Local extensions show the address, map & phone info. There are two options to set this up:

1. The ad can pull address from Google Places account, or:
2. advertisers can set the geographical area up manually.

The results will dynamically change the location information based on:

• where you are located, or
• the area you are searching for (like Vancouver).

When expanded, the listing will show up to 4 red tags on the map with 4 listings.

You’re not charged for clicks that expand the map info window, but you are charged for clicks from the info window to your website.

Try Phone Extensions

With this feature, ads will display a clickable phone number on a full browser phone.

Advertisers pay the cost of the click when the phone number is clicked (and hopefully a call is made).

Here’s what it looks like:

And Don’t Forget…

Mobile advertising requires a different mindset. Don’t make assumptions. Desktop browser based advertising doesn’t necessarily translate to mobile. Take a unique approach and employ the following tactics:

• Create separate mobile campaigns so you can gear mobile advertising to mobile users.
• Bid high to ensure ads are in top positions. In general, mobile web pages only display 1 to 3 ads at the top of the page.
• Use shorter terms. In general, people will not type very long queries into their phones.
• Write ad copy geared to mobile users.

If you would like to delve even deeper into mobile advertising, read Cindy Krum’s book, Mobile Marketing: Finding Your Customers No Matter Where They Are.