Ian Carrington, Mobile Advertising Sales Director at Google, argues that mobile can be a more powerful converting channel than desktop search.
The number of people using their mobile phones to access the web is growing. At Google we’ve seen mobile web search traffic multiply five times over the past two years so there is a fantastic opportunity now to stake your claim in this dynamic space.
This new decade brings exciting developments in the world of smartphones which will have a long-standing impact on the industry. Thanks to full internet browsers on today’s phones, the gap is closing between desktop and mobile search.
In fact, we’ve seen rapid growth over the last six months. Every week, tens of millions of people search on Google from their mobile phones and generate hundreds of millions of searches.
By the end of Q3/09 we saw over 30% Q/Q growth in mobile searches on Google. In some countries, greater numbers search on mobile devices than on PCs.
Thus, as with general web advertising, being present on search is vital to any mobile advertising campaign. Make sure you can be found when users need to find you. Often, people using their phone for search need information immediately and this can lead to an instant conversion. Targeting is another significant aspect to mobile advertising. You can make your messages relevant to each person by taking advantage of device and operator targeting. Perhaps you want to tailor your ad to reach users on a particular network; you can now do it easily and at scale. When it comes to ROI, many advertisers find they have higher conversions and basket sizes on phone orders than through the web. Therefore, unique channel features such as Click to Call are great for connecting users with advertisers when they are ready to take action. In that dialogue there’s a greater opportunity to upsell products to the customer. Advertisers who participated in our Click to Call beta trial saw a 5-30% increase in CTRs, without losing clicks on URLs through to their sites.
Our best performing mobile advertisers have content that is simple to view on a mobile; however that doesn’t necessarily mean you need to build a mobile-specific site. For example, easyJet tested their desktop site on mobile users and saw ROI of 11:1 on light bookings. Downloaded apps are another invaluable way to offer a good user experience, incentivising repeat purchase.
In summary, mobile can be a more powerful converting channel then desktop search. Ensure you understand what every click from mobile and desktop is worth. Think about the devices they are using to tailor messaging accordingly and encourage interaction. Experiment now, don’t get left behind!
