iPad campaigns from Target, Dove and Ford Lincoln all had higher levels of user engagement than their online campaign counterparts, according to textPlus, an ad-supported mobile application that allows free unlimited texting over Wi-Fi and on the iPad.
textPlus partnered with PointRoll to create some of the first iPad apps that ran in the days following the iPad’s release, the companies say. (via MediaBuyerPlanner).
The campaigns asked users to click to watch a video, and all had higher video completion rates than their online video counterparts, writes Mobile Marketing Today.
Interaction rates - that is, the number of people tapping to expand and engage with the ads - were from 0.9% to 1.5% during the first month, as much as 6 times higher than comparable ads on PCs, claims textPlus. In addition, 67% of users who viewed a video component of the ad in the app watched it all the way through, compared to 53% completion rate for desktop.
Ford’s digital marketing manager, Scott Kelly, calls the ability to engage with target consumers on the iPad “terrific,” adding that the ads have allowed the brand "to extend our presence into another powerful channel."
Jason Tafler, CEO of PointRoll, says that clients have seen "unprecedented levels of interaction." Marketers can view mobile and tablet metrics alongside their other campaign metrics, giving them a holistic view of how campaigns are performing across media.
Early iPad advertisers are still experimenting with the platform and mulling how they might buy ads in the future via iAd, which will launch in July. "Should we do an iAd, go direct to the publisher or wait for [Google's] Android to do the same thing? We want the targeting and the interactivity of the big screen where you can do 360 [degree] views and videos - we're just trying to find the most economical way to do that," Kelly says (via AdAge).
Ford hasn't yet committed dollars to the iAd platform, but it is considering it. Key is the ability to create an ad once to use on many platforms, which is complicated by different formats and technologies, namely the iPad, which doesn’t handle Adobe's Flash, the dominant technology for web ads.
Engagement Could Be Related to New Tech
Some of the increase in engagement could be attributed to the new-ness of the iPad itself. Still, says comScore evp Serge Matta (via BizReport), "These devices have the potential to be incredibly disruptive to the way consumers currently access digital content. While only time will tell exactly how consumer behavior will change, our research suggests that not only will a variety of markets be impacted by the introduction of these devices but also that there are substantial opportunities for those in the digital content ecosystem."
