As both consumers’ attention and shopping habits go mobile, so will retail advertising.
Consider this: Consumers spend 10 percent of their media attention on mobile, but mobile advertising only accounts for 1 percent of ad spending. In contrast, print makes up 25 percent of ad-spend in the U.S., but consumers only pay attention to print media 7 percent of the time, according to a recent survey cited in an article on The Atlantic’s website.
Even though the ad spend numbers don’t adequately portray the significance of mobile, this is an area that retailers are absolutely spending their money on. TV, radio and print are very mature markets and there’s not much more that retailers can do there. But the number of people with smartphones is only going to grow.
The Atlantic article highlighted several factors that make smartphones the consumers’ media of choice:
- We are a mobile culture. Two-thirds of time spent on smartphones are used for non-communication: An average of 94 minutes a day is spent using mobile apps and 72 minutes is spent on the web.
- The mobile medium can seamlessly integrate technology and social design. Companies are enhancing their mobile apps with 3D animations, making mobile advertising more engaging. Companies are developing the applications to make mobile technology a true force in retail.
- We are entering the golden age of smartphone technology. Brands need to increase their mobile budgets and embrace the medium as much as consumers have. Mobile technology will evolve, making the apps more personal to users’ lifestyles. The convenience of the smartphone is a huge factor and will continue to make mobile advertising a high-growth area.
Source: The Atlantic, June 2012
