Mobile advertising is still in its infancy, but already, brands are seeing positive results. A new report from Nielsen shows us just how well those mobile ads really are working.
Nielsen’s study provides data gathered during the third quarter of 2011 for tablet and smartphone owners in the U.S., U.K., Italy, and Germany. Nielsen measured the impact of mobile advertising on these consumers after they saw a mobile ad on their tablet or smartphone devices. According to the report, Italian mobile consumers are more affected by mobile advertising than any other consumer group in the study.
Here are some of the highlights from the study:
- Overall, tablet owners interact with ads more frequently than smartphone owners.
- Overall, Italian tablet and smartphone owners are more affected by mobile ads than U.S., U.K., or German owners.
- Overall, German tablet and smartphone owners are more likely to make a purchase on the Internet with a PC after seeing a mobile ad than U.S. U.K., or Italian owners.
- Overall, U.S. smartphone owners are significantly less affected by mobile ads than U.K., Italian, or German smartphone owners.
- U.S. tablet and smartphone users are significantly less likely to make a purchase directly through their connected devices after seeing a mobile ad than U.K., Italian, or German owners.
Some of the specific data is shown in the table below.
| Impact of Mobile Ads by Tablet (T=) and Smartphone (S=) Owners | US | Italy | Germany | UK |
| I made a purchase on the Internet via PC | T=23% S=20% | T=32% S=27% | T=32% S=34% | T=27% S=28% |
| I made a purchase at a store for goods or services that I saw advertised on my connected device | T=16% S=6% | T=19% S=18% | T=18% S=15% | T=16% S=14% |
| I made a purchase directly through my connected device based on an ad I saw | T=8% S=4% | T=13% S=12% | T=10% S=8% | T=10% S=7% |
| I searched for more information about a business that I saw advertised on my connected device | T=21% S=11% | T=26% S=27% | T=23% S=20% | T=23% S=14% |
| I clicked on an ad to view the full advertisement or product offering | T=24% S=11% | T=28% S=24% | T=23% S=19% | T=23% S=17% |
| I used or requested a coupon through an ad I saw on my connected device | T=13% S=7% | T=12% S=10% | T=10% S=8% | T=10% S=8% |
Source: Nielsen (Q3 2011)
The most important take-away from this study is that consumers are willing to accept and act on mobile ads that they see and encounter on their tablet and smartphone devices. However, there is a lot of room for growth. Brands need to continually test and measure to identify the right mobile marketing mix to drive the best results, and that includes the types of mobile ads and corresponding offers that work.
Image: Robert Scoble
Susan Gunelius is the author of 10 marketing, social media, branding, copywriting, and technology books, and she is President & CEO of KeySplash Creative, Inc., a marketing communications company. She also owns Women on Business, an award-wining blog for business women. She is a featured columnist for Entrepreneur.com and Forbes.com, and her marketing-related articles have appeared on websites such as MSNBC.com, BusinessWeek.com, TodayShow.com, and more.
She has over 20 years of experience in the marketing field having spent the first decade of her career directing marketing programs for some of the largest companies in the world, including divisions of AT&T and HSBC. Today, her clients include large and small companies around the world and household brands like Citigroup, Cox Communications, Intuit, and more. Susan is frequently interviewed about marketing and branding by television, radio, print, and online media organizations, and she speaks about these topics at events around the world. You can connect with her on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, or Google+.
