April 20, 2011

The Dove Men+Care iAd on an iPad

Mobile advertising is really taking off, with creative executions in the first quarter of 2011 unlike anything the industry has ever seen.

With mobile advertising spend expected to reach $1 billion by year’s end, according to Forrester Research, it is no wonder the game has changed in terms of campaign execution and creative.

The Mobile Marketer team has analyzed some of the first-quarter mobile advertising campaigns. Here are some we found to be really interesting:

Buick to raise awareness of scholarship program via Verizon iPhone ads
General Motors Co.-owned Buick is relying on mobile advertising via Apple’s iPhone for Verizon Wireless to generate buzz around its Buick Achievers Scholarship Program. Buick partnered with Millennial Media to increase public awareness of new GM Foundation-funded scholarship program. The partnership was launched with support from GM’s media agency of record, Starcom USA (see story).

The Daily iPad app with PepsiMax and Land Rover
The Daily launched with a really powerful set of rich media campaigns, including Virgin Atlantic, PepsiMax and Land Rover.

The ad for Land Rover, which featured a spinning globe that engaged the user with videos in 15 locations around the world, came out of the gate with an engagement rate of 50 percent (see story). 

Dr Pepper employs animation in mobile ads to hang onto users
Lizards, leprechauns and bears, oh my. The Dr Pepper Snapple Group used animated characters in mobile ads to increase engagement as part of the company’s multichannel “Hunt for the Unbelievable” campaign. The mobile component of the campaign consists of banner ads created with HTML 5 technology. The experience is designed by Crisp Media Inc., and the ads were created to boost user engagement rather than click-through rates (see story).

Herbal Essences Microsoft Tag effort rolls out in 53,000 stores
Clairol's Herbal Essences rolled out a retail mobile campaign and is using Microsoft Tags on its in-store shelf talkers to help shoppers determine which hair products are best for them. Shoppers can scan the Tag with their smartphones to find out which product is best suited for their hair. The Tag also offers additional content that lets consumers view detailed descriptions of each hair care collection that corresponds to their hair type (see story).

Kimberly Clark Pull-Ups brand seeks interactivity within Parents iPad magazine
Kimberly Clark’s Pull-Ups advertised within the digital versions of a number of new applications that Meredith Corp. released. Pull-Ups promoted its Go Potty application via an advertisement in Parents magazine.  The ad was interactive, letting users color in a picture and learn a dance (see story).

Nissan builds marketing database for Quest model via iAd platform
Nissan ran its second iAd campaign, promoting a new car model this time around via rich-media advertising that offers interactivity. The new iAds are for the Nissan Quest minivan. The ads give consumers the chance to win a Nissan Quest and a Disney family getaway. The ads shine light on the Quest’s spacious interior and fuel efficiency rating (see story).

Toyota, HP rich-media ad campaigns exceed 4pc CTR
Toyota launched two mobile campaigns in support of the Auris and Verso car models that incorporated clickable video, banners and interstitial ad placements with the first use of a mobile Web landing page in Spain. Running rich-media and mobile video ad units, Toyota was able to capture consumer interaction time averaging approximately 10 seconds per user.

To advertise its new HP OfficeJet Pro printer, HP teamed up with Taptap Networks and GoldSpot Media to develop a mobile campaign that combined traditional ad formats with clickable video. Targeting tech-savvy men and women ages 18-45, the campaign ran on native applications on the iPhone between December and January. In this time, the campaign generated more than 400,000 total impressions with user engagement averaging just over 10 seconds (see story).

Unilever breaks first iAd campaign to run on iPad
Unilever placed its Dove Men+Care brand in the spotlight with mobile advertising during its inaugural season as a sponsor of the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship, running an Apple iAd campaign it claims is the first to appear on the iPad. The iAd, which was released on March 14, showcases stories from basketball greats such as Magic Johnson. The creative execution was quite impressive (see story).

Volkwagen blends print, mobile to enable virtual test drives
Automaker Volkwagen used an augmented-reality application to make its print campaign interactive and let mobile consumers take a virtual test drive of its new Passat model (see story).

Westin Hotels & Resorts aims for increased bookings via geo-targeted mobile ad
The recent Westin Hotels & Resorts ad that ran on The Weather Channel for iPhone app was another unique Medialets-powered execution.  

The creative, which only displayed when there was a chilly forecast, invited users to wipe away virtual frost to reveal a stunning photo carousel featuring eight Westin Hotels & Resorts located in warm climates.

The combination of native device capabilities, relevant targeting and a long, cold winter added up to an exceptionally powerful mobile rich media campaign (see story).

Herbal Essences shelf talkers