• by Srini Dharmaji , March 27, 2012

Savvy marketers understand the power of rich mobile media advertising -- with a “call” to action simply a click away -- to the tune of $1.5 billion in projected mobile ad spend this year alone, according to eMarketer. By 2016, over 70% of the world’s mobile data traffic will be video, a remarkable 20% increase since 2011. With analysts touting blockbuster figures like these, it has become crystal clear that mobile video advertising offers marketers one promising way to capitalize on the ever-expanding landscape of the mobile media ad space.

According to a recent report from AAAA Media Mind, mobile ads reach “one out of every three consumers.” Therefore, the key for most industry insiders is not if mobile video advertising is the best strategy for their clients, but ratherhow to effectively engage consumers in a way that translates into revenue and sales growth.

As with all newly chartered mediums, recommended methodologies and strategies are changing faster than marketers and publishers can react. The result is a wide spectrum of marketing campaign performance in need of industry insight to drive ROI, and most importantly, conversion. As the industry adapts to the introduction of new technology and digital capabilities, there are specific steps that marketers can take to maximize their mobile video advertising initiatives.

1. Introduce form to function. Today’s consumers are known to be media multitaskers. It’s not uncommon for mobile device owners to simultaneously watch television while using their web-enabled phones daily; 49% of consumers reported doing so according to recent data from Yahoo. Industry trends show more marketers are enhancing “traditional” print, broadcast and online media campaigns with mobile video advertising. It is imperative to take account of all consumer touchpoints within the brand experience-- specifically when tailoring content that is appropriate to its given medium, like capping the mobile video ad experience to 15 seconds to increase consumer engagement.

2. Beware of bandwidth. Mobile video campaigns can increase unaided brand awareness by as much as 4 times when compared to traditional online video campaigns, according to InsightExpress. With that in mind, marketers should be diligent in delivering a consistent, high-quality brand experience by customizing mobile video ads to suit the user’s bandwidth capabilities. Mobile video streaming can be significantly compromised due to bandwidth limitations. Ads served on data networks, like 3G and 4G, should be optimized for lower bandwidth so as not to perform poorly and generate negative consumer engagement. Mobile video ads delivered over higher bandwidth networks, like WiFi, lend themselves to richer features like auto-expanding video overlays. By allowing the option for manual or auto-expanding animation, consumers can experience full-screen content with minimal latency.

3. Be engaging, not intrusive. Although pre-roll has dominated the online video advertising space for some time, there are additional options for marketers and publishers to consider. Studies show that the mobile device has the power to consistently elicit response from consumers because of its personal nature. As marketers seek innovative methods for increasing consumer engagement, the consumer experience must be top-of-mind at all times. For examples, tapless, muted video ads can be delivered within the banner space or as a video overpass. These are much better formats to deliver on mobile than content-invasive ad formats such as prestitials and interstitials that take users away from the content pages they intend to consume.

4. Think local. Relevance must not be lost in the sea of mobile video advertising options. In fact, when executed properly, mobile video advertising should enhance opportunities to localize and share content, and instantly drive conversion. Customized call-to-action overlays allow consumers to locate retailers, share products via social media networks and contact retailers with the click of a button -- all from their mobile device!

5. Be consumer-friendly. Mobile operators are limiting data plans due to the explosion in smartphones and mobile. The wireless data pipe is finite, and growing mobile adoption means worsening connection speeds. Delivering data-intensive video ads can be a user experience challenge, both in terms of latency and quality. Innovative video ad formats such as intelli-video-banners offer a perfect balance for data rich video ads, wherein the starting banner ad unit can expand to a tapless video overlay when the user is on broadband WiFi, and mobile optimized streaming tap-to video while on 3G.

Mobile video advertising does not necessarily mean pre-roll or video ads stitched together with video content is some way. Intelligent use of connection, bandwidth, innovative ad formats and call-to-action with video can dramatically reduce the video acquisition cost per user while maximizing engagement and ROI for advertisers.