Leveraging Mobile Consumer Insights to Drive Greater Audience Reach and Engagement

As I get ready to step on stage at this year’s Mobile Marketing Forum in Los Angeles, I can’t help but think of consumers – or more specifically, the changing consumer behaviors that are unique to the mobile medium and how this affects everything we do.

Achieving Scale

With the rise in popularity and increasing power of smartphones, mobile is becoming the device class of choice for users to consume content, connect with brands and complete the purchase cycle. According to Nielsen, smartphones are the fastest growing class of devices and is expected to experience 33% year over year, growth and is expected to become the dominant device class by Q3 2011.

If we’re to capitalize on this opportunity, we must first understand how consumers are using their mobile phones – and of the differences between PC and Mobile usage. One insight of note is, that while PC use peaks around noon, mobile traffic increases steadily throughout the day, but tends to pick up where PC traffic leaves off, spiking in the 7 – 9P hours when consumers are on their way home from work, or headed out to dinner.

These results shed new light on the effectiveness of employing day parting for mobile or multi-screen campaigns to improve audience reach.

Taking Action with Commercial Intent

A recent Bing Mobile research study uncovered some interesting search behavior among mobile consumers. We know from experience most mobile consumers tend to take immediate action based on their mobile search experience. The study not only confirmed that most searches were local but mobile consumers were nearly twice as likely as PC searchers to be looking to take action locally, and with commercial intent.

By adapting mobile paid search campaigns to incorporate these new consumer insights, advertisers will be in a better position to dramatically improve ad relevance and ROI.

Bold New Experiences on Windows Phone 7 and iPhone

To satisfy growing demand for premium content while on the go, consumers now have the freedom to access the mobile web as well as apps across a variety of mobile platforms. Microsoft’s approach to the market is to deliver the best in class consumer and ad experiences across all mobile platforms and device classes via our premium properties like MSN, Bing, MSNBC, FOX Sports, CNBC, Wonderwall, Windows Live Hotmail and Messenger and Verizon On-Deck. In fact, through these properties Microsoft Advertising currently reaches 59% of iPhone, 53% of Android and 45% of Blackberry users in the U.S. (Nielsen Co./Nielsen@Plan Mobile, Q1 2010).

We’re continually expanding the number of mobile apps that deliver immersive content for consumers while delivering targeted reach and engagement for advertisers. Our most recent addition is the new MSN Money Stock Apps for financially minded consumers available on Windows Phone 7.

If you haven’t seen it yet, the MSN Money Stocks app provides investors and market enthusiasts with a quick snapshot of the day’s market activity, headline news and real-time insights into the stocks they care about most.  The MSN Money Stocks app, which is ad funded, is one of the featured U.S. apps in the Windows Phone Marketplace this month.

In addition, we’ve recently released several ad funded iPhone apps. There were two new mobile apps in the Msnbc Digital Network: “NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams” and Breaking News, as well as an app for MSN and BermanBraun’s celebrity site, Wonderwall.

With the Wonderwall app, users are able to stay up-to-date on their favorite stars and entertainment news while they’re on the go. The Wonderwall app is available in the U.S. and uses the “Wall” as the central design and navigation, allowing fans easy access to photos, news, videos, and more.

“With the release of Wonderwall’s newly redesigned web experience and recently launched iPhone application, MSN and BermanBraun will connect brands with the fast growing and engaging smartphone audience in the U.S.” said Lloyd Braun of Berman Braun. “Top advertisers like Lexus and Wrigley’s were launch partners of the iPhone app and new Wonderwall apps for Windows Phone 7 and Android are coming next year.”

  With these developments from Microsoft and many more to come in the next few months, advertisers are poised to take advantage of the tremendous opportunity that is Mobile Marketing. Keep an eye on this blog for more consumer mobile insights and product launches that are sure to keep the momentum going in this exciting and fast moving space.

Cheers,

Jamie Wells - Director, Global Trade Marketing, Microsoft Mobile Advertising

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