YuMe, a US-based advertising platform and provider of video advertising technologies has recently launched the Mobile Flip, a new ad format that helps brand advertisers create highly interactive, immersive advertising experiences. Ed Haslam, YuMe’s SVP Marketing, has kindly agreed to give us a closer look into the Mobile Flip.
Otilia Otlacan: Congratulations for the launch of the Mobile Flip ad unit – what made you look into a new ad unit in the first place?
Ed Haslam: Thank you. We’re very excited to roll out YuMe Mobile Flip for brand advertisers. The fruition of YuMe Mobile Flip started with growth of tablet ownership and demand from brand advertisers around unique and engaging interactive video ad experiences and innovative ways to drive brand lift on tablets. In case of YuMe Mobile Flip, it leverages a tablet’s (or a smart phone’s) touch-screen capabilities to enable user interaction with the video ad. From the consumer standpoint, we considered how users interact with touchscreen devices and determined that this interaction is a natural extension of how they currently interact with content – so why not extend it to video advertising?
Otilia Otlacan: The mobile ad marketplace is still display-driven; some new formats were launched and tested in the past years but few, if any, made it mainstream. What does the YuMe Mobile Flip bring to the table?
Ed Haslam: Video content is consumed throughout the day on various digital screens and brands depend heavily on video advertising to drive brand awareness. Tablets are on the growth when it comes to digital video consumption as well as mobile app usage, and with YuMe Mobile Flip, we can now offer interactive video campaigns on Tablet screens for brand advertisers in both inside digital video content as well as in mobile apps in interstitial form. Mobile Flip is composed of two slates that uses can switch back and forth during the course of video ad duration with either a tap on the “Flip” button or “Swipe” their fingers on a tablet screen. One slate is always a video where the other slate could be either an image or another video (short or long-form). Existence of two slates is just the perfect opportunity for an advertiser to push their marketing message via video and branding image or secondary video. A “one-two punch” branding experience on a tablet device, if you will…
Otilia Otlacan: Can you tell us a little about the availability of the Mobile Flip?
Ed Haslam: Mobile Flip is now generally available for brand advertisers looking to run interactive video ad campaigns on tablets as well as to complement their multi-screen digital video advertising initiatives. Also, YuMe is now offering brand advertisers the ability to run tablet-only campaigns featuring all of our interactive mobile video ad units. YuMe’s mobile ad unit portfolio can run on iOS and Android based tablet screens at scale and delivers a unique branding experience with the power of sight, sound and motion.
Otilia Otlacan: In terms of driving adoption for a mobile ad unit, who would you see as having more power: the advertisers or the users?
Ed Haslam: Both audiences are influential in driving mobile ad adoption. The massive growth around video consumption and app usage on tablets, turn this screen into a perfect branding opportunity for advertisers. Mobile video advertising is not new to YuMe and we’ve put our data and video ad receptiveness insights to work as we designed YuMe Mobile Flip. It was perceived very well by mobile publishers, app developers as well as initial user testing conducted by our ad lab. Especially, TV creative formatted for digital screens that are interactive, not only deliver a consistent branding experience but also drive brand lift that simply cannot be achieved with TV advertising alone.
Otilia Otlacan: What are the main metrics one should look at when it comes to highly interactive ads?
Ed Haslam: Interactive video ads – agnostic of screen type and size – are instrumental in driving brand lift. Main metrics that brand advertisers closely monitor are video completions, engagement rates and brand lift metrics such as awareness, attitudes, favorability, intent and preference.
Otilia Otlacan: Is there anything else you would like to share with us?
Ed Haslam: We’re excited to offer brand advertisers a unique, engaging branding experience on tablet devices and adding YuMe Mobile Flip to our rich portfolio of our interactive mobile ad unit offerings. We also recommend TV advertisers amplify their brand message with their video creative on all digital screens and get their brand message in front of their target audience on the right digital screen at the right time of the day.
For more information and samples of the YuMe Mobile Flip, please visit the YuMe ad gallery at http://www.yume.com/content/ad-gallery-mobile-us-mobile-flip.
About YuMe
YuMe is the software infrastructure provider powering digital video and the next generation of television with its operating system for TV 2.0. Its video advertising technology and services seamlessly connect advertisers, app developers, content distributors, consumer electronics manufacturers, and publishers across the globe. YuMe’s patent-pending Relevance Engine powers its premium in-stream video ad network, the YuMe Connected Audience Network, and its industry-leading advertising management solutions, ACE for Publishers and ACE for Advertisers. The YuMe Relevance Engine matches the right ad to the right audience on whatever screen they are viewing—PC, mobile, or connected TV. YuMe is a privately held company headquartered in Redwood City, CA with its European headquarters in London. The company is backed by Accel Partners, BV Capital, DAG Ventures, Intel Capital, Khosla Ventures, Menlo Ventures, Samsung Ventures, Translink Capital and WestSummit Capital. For more information, visit www.YuMe.com, follow @YuMevideo on Twitter (www.twitter.com/YuMevideo), or like YuMe on Facebook at www.facebook.com/YuMevideo.
