We are a nation of multi-taskers. Nowhere is that more evident than in our love affair with screens-big little and in-between.  According to Nielsen's latest three screen report, we are viewing and engaging with content across our mobile, TV and PC screens like never before.   Advertisers are fully engaged in this multi-screen mania, with cross-media campaigns popping up all over the place.  As an industry, we are learning how to "follow the consumer" through their multi-screen experiences. 

Back in the early days of multiple screen advertising-say, circa 2008-zealous brand managers were anxious to execute digital campaigns across three screens, only to learn that shoehorning a TV spot onto the PC, or a banner ad onto a mobile phone screen, wasn't the answer.  The wonder of a TV screen is its size and quality; logos sure look good when they are displayed on a ginormous HD screen.  Conversely, the magic of a mobile phone-the most personal personal computer-is its portability.   And the PC continues to be the most versatile, fully interactive screen of them all.  Suffice it to say, it's taken marketers a few years to figure out how to take full advantage of each screen in a multi-screen campaign. 

Enter 2010, the second generation of multi-screen advertising.  In this new era, we see brands optimizing both creative and offers for each screen, rather than simply taking a one-size-fits-all-screens approach.  The Discovery Channel is a great example.  From last year's Deadliest Catch campaign to the network's recent multi-screen effort to promote its much anticipated "Life" series, Discovery's marketing team has shown they understand how to optimize for the media environment, whether it's the TV, PC or mobile phone.

When we think beyond the screen per se, and focus on the consumer experience, things get really interesting, (and even more effective for advertisers). For instance, the experience of viewing an ad on a large, HD screen is inspirational.  It engages the viewer in a visual, visceral way.  On the PC, the experience is interactive-it's where inspiration transforms to investigation and preparation for action.  And the action is increasingly being taken from the phone, no matter if the action is taken while stuck in traffic or at the point of sale.

The lines between these experiences will continue to blur.  Case in point: Xbox LIVE, the HD TV experience can be both visually mind-blowing and interactive. Interactive content can also start on the PC, move down to the phone and/or up to the TV, which continues to become richer and more interactive with each passing day.

It's exciting to see brands optimizing for the unique characteristics of all screens.  It's likely the only way they'll be able to keep up with the new, multi-screen consumer. 

(Author's note: this article was written on my PC, and then proofed and uploaded from my mobile phone).