Digital Advertising Strategies for Mobile

If your company hasn’t already adapted to the mobile landscape, it is more important than ever to make that transition now. Why? Well, let us look at a summary of some of the most significant mobile search algorithm updates of 2016. These updates and recommendations should be in the conversation when you evaluate your digital advertising strategies for mobile in the coming year.

2016 Mobile Search Highlights

In the last year, we have seen more penalties towards non-mobile friendly websites than ever before. In addition, we have seen a surge in mobile advertising, proving its undeniable importance for business growth.

  1. In February, Google hosted a Hangout covering the transition of digital ads to adapt with AMP (accelerated mobile pages). [1]
  2. Also in February, Google announced the switch from sidebar ads to just top & bottom page ads on search results. [2]
  3. In April, eMarketer released a study showing that programmatic ad spending is reaching an all-time high due to mobile. It is predicted that this will increase enough by 2017, that mobile advertising spending will surpass desktop advertising spend. [3]
  4. In July, Google announced the increasing importance of mobile webpage load time. [4]
  5. Then in August, they followed it up with the extended release of AMP across all mobile search engines. [5]
  6. Also in August, it was announced that Google will penalize “intrusive interstitial ads” starting early January 2017. [6]

Throughout the year, it has become increasingly obvious that being mobile friendly will not only prevent you from unwanted penalties, but it will help you reach an audience that is otherwise not easy to reach.

There have been two clear conclusions of paid advertising for this year:

  1. This year has been packed full of AMP updates, which can surely lead us to believe that Google will eventually penalize slow load times.
  2. It has also been the biggest surge in advertising among all mobile devices. So, creating optimized paid advertising campaigns that give the right information to the right audience at the right time, is no longer a trend, it has become commonplace.

If you already have a mobile friendly responsive website and are now considering digital advertising, or are concerned about your existing digital marketing strategies, you are not alone. Here are some strategies that will keep your business advertising afloat in the ever-changing digital space.

Content + Advertising = Awareness & Trust

Integrate a Strategic Paid Advertising Plan

Establishing a trusted brand is not an easy task, however adding a strategic paid advertising plan can help make more people aware of you. This will boost trust, enabling a higher search rank. The key to building trust through paid advertising is through content marketing. If the ad links to quality content, it can strengthen your brand.

Accelerate Engagement with Social & Programmatic Advertising

Not only can content form awareness and trust among new consumers, it is also engaging towards existing customers. If you have new content on a regular basis, be it blogs, news, etc. you can accelerate engagement through social & programmatic advertising. This type of advertising usually points to trending or share-worthy content that targets people already interested in your product or service.

Inspire Audiences with Video Advertising

One of the fastest growing channels of paid advertising is video. It is more appealing & engaging. Consumers can be inspired, instructed, or made aware of something a lot easier with attention grabbing content, like video advertising. Look to video as both an SEO tool and differentiating way to engage and improve your digital advertising strategies.

Create Quality, Properly Optimized, Landing Pages

Ads should be intriguing and mobile friendly, but so should the content it leads to. To learn more about some of the biggest content marketing trends, check out this article from Content Marketing Institute.

Targeting + Relevance = Interested Consumers

Target Specific Audiences

Paid advertising goes beyond pay per click advertising on search engines. It extends through social media, re-targeting, video ads and beyond. You can target specific audiences, content shared, specific age groups, or platforms. The options for paid advertising are quite limitless.

Maintain Relevance & Quality

For a consumer, our phones have become part of our daily shopping routine. We use them before, during and after making a purchase. We have become accustom to having everything at our finger tips. We expect to see ads that are relevant to what we want and where we are. By using targeted ads, we can show the exact type of ad that person wants to see, at the right time they want to see it.

Niche Targeting

Targeting can be simple, and it can also be very specific. Niche targeting often results in more relevant leads, but less traffic. While broad targeting will make your name more common, it will result in a lot of misinformed leads. Niche advertising is becoming more common due to the effectiveness of its reach. Your digital advertising strategies should consider niche targeting.

The Perfect Combination

To adapt to the mobile landscape, and ensure you’re including best digital advertising strategies, it is important that you understand how to update your existing digital approach. Building a plan that allows you to take advantage of relevant content and advertising will establish trust and create awareness for your brand. To make sure you are doing this right you must make sure you are targeting the right audience with the right information at the right time using the right channel. Work with your internal team, or hire a talented outside agency to help you develop the right approach. By having that road-map, you will set yourself up for a greater chance at success.