Hello again from London. 

In this newsletter, I want to focus on looking at mobile advertising. Heralded as the new kid on the block not long ago, mobile advertising has melded itself into the whole digital ecosystem and is now an integral part of most advertising campaigns.  

Then I have two smaller but interesting items to share with you: one on a recent publisher’s poll I ran at the recent INMA master class on print advertising innovation, the second on a creative advertising idea spotted in London.

Firstly, mobile advertising. The channel has opened up a different way to target and engage readers. With the right mobile advertising tools and applications, a media business can tailor client content to a number of desired audiences. With a select number of demographics regarding its target audience, it can burrow down to granular levels and target independently.

However, not all media businesses nor advertising clients know how to use mobile effectively and efficiently. Below, I have highlighted my top eight ways on how media companies/advertising clients can use mobile advertising well.

8 ways to improve mobile advertising

1. Be useful and relevant: May sound obvious, but while this applies to all types of advertising, ensure that your messaging hits your target audience(s) exactly with mobile. Remember, the handset is a personal space. People are already used to mobile advertising being quite personalised, based on location or via recommendations on their buying behaviours. So if you misstep in the targeting, even just by a small amount, you’ll miss whatever message you wanted to convey. 

Former CEO of The New York Times Mark Thompson once told me, “If not right, readers will disregard you with one heartless thumb swipe.” Ouch! But it’s too true. Recognise this. It’s crucial.

2. Mobile exclusivity: Make mobile advertising exclusive. If you’re running a campaign, ensure the message you’re sending out is for mobile customers only and tell them so prominently. For instance, if you’re highlighting a 25% discount, include that in your message with a note that the promotion is exclusive to mobile. Customers will feel appreciated and more likely to notice your mobile advertising messages in the future. When booking a hotel, I often get push notifications on my mobile telling me of “mobile exclusive” deals from the likes of booking.com. It works. It entices me in, anyhow. 

3. Be clear and succinct: Text messaging has much higher click-through rates than e-mail, due to the personal nature of mobile (as mentioned in the last point above). So to reap the rewards, being very clear and succinct in your messaging is vital. Ensure your calls to action (CTAs) all have clear instructions so your audience knows exactly what to expect when they engage with you … and how to do so. Remember, it’s a small screen. You can’t be too cluttered. 

4. Small means be visually compelling: Maybe a short length video or photo carousel can attract attention much better than words or still photos. Strong, visually compelling images and video with limited words in attention-grabbing copy works best. 

5. Hyperlocal focus: Hyperlocal targeting is the preserve of mobile. Use it. Geo-fenced mobile apps or Web platforms that send push notifications to people if they physically move into a “fenced-off” area are really powerful. Push notification can direct users to a discount code/voucher or promotional offer (time limited) and can help keep users loyal.

6. The time and place: Think about the time and the place of content consumption. People carry their phones with them constantly. Based on data you’ve collected already, you may for instance know stuff about their daily habits and behaviours.

As an example, if you’re sending a client advertising message out at say, Monday at 6 p.m, timing and relevance are key. Where will they be when they get your message? What will likely be their reaction to it at the end of a working day?

If it’s for a food delivery service, that might be the perfect time. But if it’s work related, they may have had enough work for one day and don’t want more — again, especially on a personal device. Ask yourself, are you being intrusive or being useful? Are you interrupting their evening or adding value?

Finding the right time to send out your message can make a massive impact in how it is viewed.

7. Adopting scannable codes: It took a pandemic to get many parts of the world to use QR codes. QR codes have developed now so that they work easily with your phone’s camera (no need for a separate app). They allow you to instantly send and receive information … everything from a business address to a promotional offer, to a restaurant menu, etc. The list is limitless.

8. Notifications and reminder messaging: Appointment reminders and delivery notifications have become common as part of any company “worth its salt.” They are great examples for proactive mobile advertising customer servicing that are relevant, appreciated, and valuable to the customer. Missed appointments can also be costly for your client’s business. Sending out appointment reminders or maybe the time of an expected delivery can go a long way in keeping customers loyal, happy, and improving the running of your client’s business.

Media print advertising spend in 2022

The second item I wanted to bring to your attention in this newsletter is the exclusive INMA poll I instigated in my recent master class on print advertising innovation. 

At the end of the session, I asked attendees (of 80 people from 28 countries worldwide) what they were expecting from their print advertising revenue expectations this year when compared with pre-pandemic levels. 

Would those revenues decrease or increase based on “say, 2019 levels?” 

The most prominent reply (41%) was from those who, encouragingly, stated that they expected it to be about the same as 2019. But perhaps more interesting than that, a big total of 69% said that they expected this year’s print advertising revenues to either be the same or more than 2019. 

Commenting on the results, Denise Turner, director of insights at Newsworks UK, said: “I am not surprised. I have seen the WARC (World Advertising Research Center) figures, and print is bouncing back.” WARC has predicted a 1% fall in overall global print revenues this year. Very encouraging based on how devastating the pandemic has been for so many.

A print advertising resurgence? Watch this space. 

BBC interactive billboard: a creative user experience

Finally, I wanted to share an advertising innovation in London UK this month. 

Broadcaster BBC wanted to promote its TV series “This is Going to Hurt,” an insider view on the operating of the National Health Service (NHS). The TV series follows the manic life of an NHS doctor working a near 100 hour week. The storyline is based on the true experiences of a real-life NHS worker. 

BBC Creative, the broadcaster’s in-house creative marketing team, came up with a 48-sheet giant roadside poster located in a specific high volume of traffic area, frequented by cars and on-foot workers alike. It was made up of over 300 real pagers (used by doctors) to promote the new show.

It is fitted with LED lights and speakers that recreate the buzzing noise of the doctors’ pagers, giving the impression of a busy hospital. The wording on the pagers all differed but were taken from real life examples. Messages such as “sleep in car” and “late for dinner” were displayed, which together with the sounds, create a genuine feel of what it’s like to be on the hospital ward for a medical professional with little time to think. 

About this newsletter 

Today’s newsletter is written by Mark Challinor, based in London and lead for the INMA Advertising Initiative. Mark will share research, case studies, and thought leadership on the topic of global news media advertising. Sign up for the newsletter here.

This newsletter is a public face of the Advertising Initiative by INMA, outlined here.

E-mail Mark at Inma.mark@gmail.com with thoughts, suggestions, and questions or follow him on Twitter (@challinor).

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