MobileFirstMagicWordWherever you go, people are busy with their smartphones: shopping, online banking or answering emails, the trend is clearly moving from the desktop to the smartphone to deal with everyday needs both in business and in private life. Consequently, marketers must see how they reach their target group via mobile ads.

Unfortunately, even in the mobile sector, users are already overwhelmed by a flood of advertising, but the following might provide some assistance on how mobile ads must be structured to really excite the target group:

  • First, every marketer should keep in mind that the user in the mobile area has a completely different potential for paying attention compared to the user in the desktop area. If we are on the train or sitting in a doctor’s waiting room, we take in information less attentively than at the work computer. Therefore, mobile ads should primarily convince with their visual finesse and in no way appear as a wasteland of text. Products and services should be tangible in the mobile ad and require little explanation.

  • Second, since there is obviously less space available on the smartphone screen than on the desktop, ads must really be limited to essential information to remain clearly visible. For example, the brand name should never get visually lost and must be easy to read. The size and position of the ad are also decisive for good readability: e.g., while classic banner ads and native advertising appear smaller, ad formats such as the medium rectangle gives more leeway.

  • Third, slider ads, which integrate into the reading flow, are particularly popular and provide a lot of space to convey the brand and content, while popup screens are perceived by users as annoying, especially when appearing with sound. You should urgently refrain from this format in order not to damage your own branding. In general, ad formats should in no way stand in the way of user-friendliness or be overloaded with features. They should blend in well with their surroundings, both visually and topically.

  • Fourth, videos have always been one of the most effective advertising formats and mobile video ads particularly activate the user's potential for attention. They are emotional and visually stunning. Before marketers decide on a video ad, however, it should be ensured that the message goes well, for example, without sound. Besides, make sure that the video takes up little data volume for the user to implement as long video formats on the smartphone can otherwise become a real disruptive factor. It is also advisable to be careful with the frequency when modulating.

  • Fifth, the number of apps in all categories is very extensive and serves practically every need in daily life, both professionally and privately. We know that most apps collect a lot of exciting information with the consent of the user. Thanks to the intensive use of mobile devices, they are also very extensive and, above all, up to date. To address the right target group at the right time, it is essential for the success of a campaign to correctly evaluate user data. Subjective assumptions have no place here. Bear in mind that quality is not defined by the name of an app but by its actual use. So, if you still think of “at the right time, in the right place” in the context of data-driven display advertising (programmatic advertising) on the desktop, rest assured that we are already at the level of the moment in the world of mobile devices. For example, it can be seen which applications are used particularly frequently by the user and which the user tends to neglect despite installation. Commuters often use the apps of local transport companies, local sharing offers, as well as news and gaming apps. If the smartphone also provides information via geolocation that the user is currently in another city, for example, the content of advertising offers can be adjusted accordingly. In this scenario, ads about hotels or good restaurants nearby would bring real added value. Together with in-app targeting parameters, such as age and gender, the image of the target groups becomes considerably more granular and can be used for further content optimization.

  • Sixth, but then a mobile presence is also required, which allows the user to reach the goal quickly and intuitively. Care must be taken to ensure that menus can also be read on small screens and that goods offered in online shops, for example, can be quickly added to the shopping cart; thus, ensuring a “shopping experience” online as well. However, it can regularly be found that it is very complex to make the purchase or to carry out a registration. Only with effort and a lot of patience can the data be entered in fields. Even in the payment mode there are still numerous hurdles to be found that the user must overcome. It is therefore advisable to also think about the planned advertising measures from the smartphone to discover any hurdles at an early stage and to resolve them before the actual advertising measure.

 

In the end, the behavior of the user is decisive for the success of a mobile ad campaign. It is therefore more important than ever to include as much information as possible about users in the design and placement of the ad. In the future, more and more providers will address consumers via smartphones. As mentioned before, quality is not defined by the name of an app, but whether you have reached the right end user. Hence, the decisive factor will be who manages to stand out from the crowd with a clear campaign and individual targeting, and that mobile campaigns without mobile websites should be avoided.

By MediaBUZZ