Recently, I was a panelist at Netbiscuits World U.S 2011 Partner Day for Mobile Monetization that showcased the power of mobile advertising and how Netbiscuits enables this experience for their partners. The day was filled with big names like CBS and Google, who all hammered home the core theme that mobile really is here and is truly happening now!
Since WhitePages has had a successful mobile monetization track record for many years, I was asked to provide a publisher’s perspective on the topic. Here is an overview of the key themes that emerged:
Targeting and Scale
With the rise in smart phone device ownership, marketers are allocating more of their budgets for mobile advertising than ever before. From a display standpoint it really has been the year of mobile, and it surely is ramping up as marketers look to partners with targeting and scale.
Where, What, When
At WhitePages, our mobile display advertising model is monetized by utilizing our unique capability to serve ads based on “where” the person is located, “what” they are searching for (biz category), and “when” they are searching, without storing privacy protected information.
This allows for enhanced targeting and personalization with the ability for geo, location, device, and time of day
WhitePages' Reverse Phone iOS App
relevancy in specific campaigns. These solutions provide greater immediacy and drive interaction with our audience. Additionally, the geo targeting with scale that we provide offers marketers the ability to take advantage of the localized media they are looking for when structuring their buys.
Subscription Models
In addition to premium display, we are also able to monetize our mobile products by applying subscription models. On the panel, I spoke about how we are able to leverage cross platform, rich media high impact ads and targeting. I also discussed how mobile allows publishers to monetize in ways unique to the mobile experience. One of the fastest growing products and an all-time popular feature here at WP, is our “reverse phone lookup”, in which we are able to charge $1.99 to the cellphone bill if we have the number in our database. The mobile device allows for new revenue streams by utilizing standalone features, and offering them as individual apps or products, such as our popular Caller ID app.
The Tracking Challenge
One of the challenges we’re currently facing as an industry and what I believe is holding back brands from fully embracing mobile advertising, is a lack of third party tracking, performance metrics and analytics. Digital advertising has given us the ability to track delivery, but without the ability to implement tracking cookies and back end metrics for performance, it becomes difficult for agencies to justify spend to their brands.
The Game Changer
A key theme that was discussed throughout the day was the emergence of tablets. I echoed this sentiment as it pertains to advertising and monetization, and ultimately, how it will affect brand marketers. Because tablets have a larger screen size (which allows for more ad real estate), monetization will be impacted by an increase in cost for display ads, and subsequently, an increased revenue opportunity. Additionally, faster networks and 4G speed allows for richer ad experiences and cross platform opportunities more similar to what we run online.
For additional perspectives on the key themes discussed above, check out the full videos from Netbiscuits World 2011 here.
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