Everywhere you look — in bars and restaurants, on the freeway (cringe), waiting for an appointment, standing in line — you see people with their heads down, their expressions relaxed, and their faces illuminated by the soft glow of their digital screens. Smartphones have practically become an extension of the human body! We use them to order food, hail cabs, pacify our children, pay at the register, manage our bank accounts and a million other things. According to one source, we spend more time fixated on our mobile devices than we do sleeping each night. YouTube adds that over half of their views come from mobile devices, with the average mobile viewing sessions now lasting more than 40 minutes.
If you aren’t using mobile video to reach audiences and deliver your messages — you’ve fallen seriously behind.
Mobile Video’s Steady Climb to Kingship
In a single year (2013-2014) mobile video ad spend more than doubled in the U.S. from $720 million to $1.5 billion (techcrunch). By 2018 — spending is expected to reach $6 billion. That’s nearly half of the total online video ad spend!
Here’s where things get weird.
Despite the fact that audiences are borderline obsessed with their mobile devices, and overwhelmingly prefer to receive information in video format, traditional (non-mobile) video ad spend still outpaces mobile. In fact, experts believe we are still a couple years away from seeing mobile as the dominant advertising platform (MarketingDIVE).
Why Are Advertisers Stuck On Traditional Ad Spending?
According to a survey by ClickZ and Search Optics, 56% of respondents called themselves “beginners” at mobile marketing. It appears that many marketing teams either don’t understand what a mobile-first approach is, or get the gist, but haven’t gotten around to adapting their strategies. After all, adaptation takes time, money and resources. Plus — mobile is foreign territory, which makes it scary!
To which we say…get over it!
Mobile video is what lies beyond the curve. And now is your chance to become an early adopter and outpace your competition! Beyond the fact that it is undoubtedly the future of video marketing, consider the unspoken benefits of going mobile:
Geolocation Data: Mobile video enables marketers to pinpoint a consumer’s exact location and deliver customized content based on that information (e.g. using local fare or a city’s sports team in-ad to elicit familiarity and increase engagement).
Full-Screen Takeover: When a video ad is playing on a desktop, it often gets overlooked in the corner of the page. Mobile ads put the action front and center, allowing your message to dominate the viewer’s attention.
Greater Brand Exposure:92% of mobile video consumers share videos with others, which means you could potentially get a lot more bang for your buck if your video is deemed share-worthy.
Marketers, you can thank 4G mobile networks for opening this new world of video viewing possibility. According to an article by Forbes, there’s even evidence to support that mobile video viewers pay greater attention to content!
If mobile video freaks you out, don’t waste any more time. Find a video production partner with the experience and resources to guide you through the uncharted mobile video landscape. They will eliminate the risk involved in investing in new technologies and strategies by providing everything you need, including expertise in mobile best practices. More importantly, a video production partner will keep you informed about where mobile video goes next.
Hint, hint: programmatic technology is about to hit the mobile video scene — and it’s going to be epic!
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