Mastering mobile-first advertising: how to engage the always-connected consumer
February 25, 2025
How can advertisers keep up with the always-connected consumer? The answer lies in mobile-first advertising, an approach that prioritizes how and where your ads appear on the devices your customers use the most.
Why mobile-first advertising matters
Mobile advertising is any form of advertising that appears on mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets. With Americans spending an average of 3 hours and 15 minutes on their mobile devices daily and checking them 159 times a day, embracing mobile-first advertising means meeting your customers where they are in real-time – whether they’re in line at a coffee shop, relaxing on the couch or out shopping.
In addition to reaching your audience where they are, there are other benefits to mobile advertising. By leveraging your customer data, you can strategically segment your audience and develop customized ads tailored to their specific demographics, increasing the likelihood of customer engagement. This not only enhances the effectiveness of marketing efforts but also fosters a deeper connection with the target audience.
79% of smartphone owners have made a purchase online in the last 6 months using their mobile device and the average transaction value on a mobile device is $120. By delivering ads to the right devices at the right time, your business minimizes wasted spend while maximizing engagement, ultimately achieving a higher return on investment.
The success of engaging and retaining your audience lies in the mobile experiences your ads provide. These best practices set the stage to elevate your mobile presence and drive your business toward success:
1. Prioritize mobile-friendliness
With search engines emphasizing mobile-friendliness in their rankings, your websites and apps must be ready for mobile devices. By creating a better experience for your customers on mobile platforms, you make it easier for people to find your business, ultimately driving more traffic and boosting your sales.
2. Captivate customers
Capturing your customer’s attention within the first few seconds of seeing your ads is essential. By understanding their search behavior and purchase motivations, you can tailor your ad content to appeal to their needs and preferences, driving them to take action and drive conversions.
3. Simplify mobile content
Design mobile content that fits on smaller screens by using bold visuals, concise text and clean formatting. Simplicity is the key to conveying your message, improving user engagement and maximizing the impact of your content on mobile platforms.
4. Optimize for speed
Mobile users prioritize speed and instant access to information. Make sure your ads and landing pages have quick page loading times to deliver a positive user experience. When you prioritize speed and accessibility, you maintain engagement and prevent potential customers from leaving your site due to slow performance.
Strategies for mobile-first success
From analyzing website traffic patterns on mobile devices to crafting compelling ads for social media platforms, your mobile advertising strategy plays a role in capturing and retaining the attention of your target audience. To succeed in mobile advertising, you need strategies that make a difference:
Research traffic: Analyzing your website’s mobile traffic shows you how customers use your site on mobile devices. Discovering where they spend the most time and verifying they are taking the action you intended gives valuable insights as you make strategic decisions.
Leverage social media platforms: Platforms like Instagram thrive on mobile-first audiences. Create platform-specific advertising that fits naturally into your customer’s feeds. Be sure to research the demographics and best practices of the platforms so your ads are where your customers will see and interact with them.
Use location-based targeting: Take advantage of geotargeting to deliver ads to your customers based on where they are and their demographics and behaviors. A restaurant might show ads to people who are near their location or a retail store might direct ads to people who are near their store or their competitors.
Embrace video storytelling: Short, engaging videos with bite-sized content used to captivate and inform often dominate mobile screens. 82% of consumers have been convinced to buy a product or service by watching a video with 89% stating they wanted to see more videos from businesses.
Partner with Forum Communications: Our mobile advertising experts will help you target your audience, make the most of your ads and maximize your return on investment. We bring our advanced data analytics and insights, access to technology and platforms and our flexibility and customization to your multichannel advertising.
How to set up your mobile-advertising
Your mobile advertising has the potential to yield strong results as long as you have a clearly defined advertising plan. Follow these steps to set your business up for success:
Establish clear goals: Start by setting specific, measurable goals for your mobile advertising. What outcomes are you aiming for? Whether it’s boosting sales, driving website traffic or building brand awareness, defining your objectives will guide your advertising strategy.
Define your target audience: Understand your audience and tailor your mobile ads to resonate with them. Identify who your ideal customers are and create compelling messages and visuals that speak directly to their needs and preferences. Personalizing your ads to suit your target audience increases the chances of engagement and conversion.
Set a budget: Determine the amount you will spend on your mobile advertising campaigns. By setting a clear budget, you can manage your expenses and optimize your ad spending to maximize your return on investment. Your budget should align with your goals and allow for testing and adjustments to improve ad performance over time.
- Analyze and optimize continuously: Regularly monitor the performance of your mobile ads and review key metrics to determine effectiveness. Use data-driven insights to optimize your campaigns by identifying what works and what doesn’t. Experiment with different approaches, test new strategies and refine your tactics based on real-time data to achieve the best results and continuous improvement.
Types of mobile-first advertising
When it comes to mobile ads, picking the right type should align with your goals, budget and audience. When you understand these formats, your advertising resonates with your audience while staying aligned with your marketing objectives. Here’s a breakdown:
Banner ads: Banner ads are static or animated images placed within mobile apps to catch attention.
Interstitial ads: These are full-screen ads, appearing during key moments of interaction, like between app pages or web content, for maximum impact.
Native ads: Blending seamlessly into the app or website, native ads fit in with the surrounding content using images, videos or text, creating a unified experience.
Mobile video ads: These video ads play on mobile devices and can appear before, during or after video content, delivering engaging storytelling opportunities.
In-app ads: Displayed while consumers navigate an app, these ads can promote the app itself or other products and services, enhancing engagement.
Interactive media: Multimedia ads that include video, audio, animation or text to actively engage viewers.
Audio ads: Perfect for music and voice platforms like Spotify, audio-only ads deliver your message directly to listeners through their headphones or speakers.
Measure your mobile-first success
Tracking essential key performance indicators (KPIs) helps you measure the success of your advertising. By keeping an eye on metrics, you gain insights into what works and what needs adjustment in your ad strategy. Monitoring KPIs helps you make informed decisions, update your campaigns in real time and drive better results with your mobile advertising efforts. Keep track of these KPIs:
Mobile traffic: Monitor how much traffic comes from mobile devices versus desktops. This comparison helps you spot trends and prioritize efforts for mobile optimization.
Bounce rate: A high bounce rate means visitors leave quickly, which might mean your landing page or site experience needs to be adjusted. Focus on creating an experience that provides value to keep visitors around longer.
Conversion rate: Track how many mobile users complete your desired actions, like making purchases or signing up for services. Identify which advertising channels drive the most conversions to maximize return on investment.
Measure engagement: Look at how consumers engage with your site or app – average time on page, number of pages per session and click-through rates. These insights reveal how well your site or app captures attention and keeps consumers exploring.
Mobile-first advertising is about meeting your audience where they spend a lot of their time: their phones. By understanding your audience, setting clear goals, using the right platforms and tracking KPIs, your advertising will drive traffic and convert customers for your business.
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