ADOTAS — Mobile display ad spending is growing rapidly across all segments and will nearly triple between 2012 and 2014, jumping from $1.10 billion to $3.07 billion, according to eMarketer. While standard banners, rich media and video are the largest mobile display formats, dual-screen advertising is easily the most exciting and relevant segment in the space.
The always-on multi-screen consumer is a quickly growing yet hard-to-target audience. According to Business Insider, 85% of smartphone users report engaging in second screen-linked behavior at least once per month, and about 60% reported doing it on a weekly basis. I often check my favorite mobile application or website during a TV commercial break, and data shows I’m not alone. According to Pew, more than 80% of 18- to 24-year-olds say they use their phones while watching TV. A hefty 60% of Americans with annual incomes above $50,000 do so as well.
While the value of second-screen engagement may be hard to quantify, there’s no doubt it is real. A second-screen campaign DG executed for a major global retailer found a very strong correlation between the time proximity of seeing a TV ad and the frequency of click-throughs on the brand’s digital companion ad.
Other studies have focused on the second screen’s pronounced positive impact on top and mid-funnel marketing objectives like awareness and consideration. Nielsen recently found that TV plus mobile (smartphone/tablet) exposures improved brand recall by 69% and boosted purchase intent by 72%.
The question is: why does this type of execution provide such turbo-charged results? Here are a few possible answers.
At its core, second-screen executions facilitate the emotional carryover from a compelling TV ad onto the second screen. Who has ever laughed out loud or teared up over a banner ad? Second-screen executions create the opportunity for brands to directly jump into the hands of aware, persuadable or intending consumers. As technological and creative development advancements in HTML5 continue, the sophistication of the engagement experience on the companion handset and tablet will only improve.
A compelling second-screen execution also provides a non-interruptive user experience, whereas TV-driven actions from seeing ads often end the TV engagement. Second screen allows users to engage immediately without disrupting the initial TV-based content experience – or even other viewers in the room.
Finally, second-screen executions create an immediate insight and feedback loop that moves optimization from the second screen onto the TV. With traditional TV buys, you have to wait days or weeks for rating agency reports. Second-screen executions can tell brands what is moving people across screen in real-time. TV and digital ad serving companies allow brands to effortlessly optimize and increase the delivery of the TV and online creative versions that perform best.
Yes, it’s possible that second screen will eventually distracts users away from primary TV commercials and product placements. But second-screen advertising is here to stay. The best thing for brands and their marketers to do is to make it work for you — experimenting to leverage second screen’s proven performance results.