5 Key Questions to Ask with Location-Based Mobile Advertising in 2014 | Production Management | Agency | ANA

5 Key Questions to Ask with Location-Based Mobile Advertising in 2014

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By Ryan Golden, MediaPost

1. How can we A/B Test?

Ad rotation within a location is key to determining which creative will drive the best results. By creating several versions of your ad units, you can test which unit(s) perform best for targeted locations. Observe what creative drives engagement in specific areas and note the results. You may be surprised to learn that consumers respond differently to creative based on location, and those findings can change how you market by city, neighborhood and even down to the street. Quite often in mobile, the target you least expect will be the one who engages.

2. What is the right size in regard to geotargeting?

Location advertising has been proven to generate better results for specific targeting objectives, this is one reason that geotargeting is so important for advertisers. Geotargeting is evolving beyond growing and shrinking a geo-fence — it is about identifying locations, specific audience segments and optimizing. What size should my geo-fence be? The typical approach surrounds a location with a preset radius. Optimization is performed by increasing or decreasing the size of the fence in the hope to get the desired CTR. This could be done manually or automatically in regard to the resizing, leading to wasted dollars or impressions. Ask how the growing and shrinking affects results. Can you see results after an area is manipulated? Can you see results within a certain area?

3. How can we optimize?

In 2014 a greater emphasis on targeting within a target and optimization will take hold. We are already seeing smart marketers going beyond the ZIP code to learn where within the ZIP code is yielding the best results. Utilizing data from third-party sources combined with advertisers' own customer databases, more advertisers will be able to learn which locations are driving the greatest impact. In addition, optimizing those locations to know what is working and what is not in regard to location will help to protect ad dollars and wasted impressions. Look for optimization to go beyond the standard CTR and be driven to optimize by your specific KPIs.

4. What types of data should we capture?

Having a historical and location-based data trail is paramount to how you advise clients for future geotargeted ad endeavors, and even the insights that can feed into the overall marketing mix. Example: Macy's runs a targeted ad in Chicago. Can Macy's see where in Chicago had the best results? Can Macy's go back 6 months to a year and see how they did? Begin to plan and learn about how the brand relates to location and results and become the steward of location strategy. Data is king in advertising. Make sure that the mechanisms are in place for capturing historical campaign data vs. losing important campaign insights every time you re-size a geo-fence. Ownership of your client's data vs. a black box will be a necessity for agencies to be the strategist.

5. What Worked?

In 2014, mobile advertising optimization should not be limited to a geo-fence size. Rather, mobile optimization should involve using facets of location. Know the difference between a data company and location targeting company. If you like certain data sets, ask to see if your partner can access them. Most data is available. Targeting and learning from it is the differentiator.

Source

"5 Key Questions to Ask with Location-Based Mobile Advertising in 2014." Ryan Golden. MediaPost, 02/18/14.

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