- Media landscape at tipping point as social, mobile and video spend set to increase, whilst traditional media remains flat or declines
- Planners and buyers recognise benefits of mobile video but risk-aversion, poor creative and complex tech remain biggest barriers to widespread adoption
London – Over half of UK media buyers and planners are now using mobile video in their advertising campaigns, exceeding the number using TV. 51% of media planners now include mobile video advertising in their campaigns, and more than two thirds (68%) expect to increase investment in mobile video over the next 12 months.
Along with social media and mobile, mobile video is set to be one of the big channel winners in 2017, as the UK media landscape evolves. 88% of planners expect to increase investment in social media advertising over the next 12 months, whilst 71% predict greater spend in general mobile advertising. Radio, TV and magazine advertising is likely to remain flat, whilst most planners (58%) intend to reduce investment in newspaper advertising.
The findings come from a new report, The Appiness Index, launched by AdColony, which explores understanding and perceptions of mobile video advertising amongst UK media buyers and planners. The report examines the benefits, barriers and challenges associated with mobile video, and assesses the key triggers which could lead to widespread adoption of the format within UK advertising campaigns.
Perceived barriers to mobile video adoption
Whilst mobile video is set to grow significantly in 2017, of the planners who are using mobile video, they’re still only able to use the format in less than 10% of their total campaigns, and remain concerned about perceived risks, both from a technical and campaign perspective.
42% of planners said they are put off mobile video because they struggle to find the right technology partner, 37% believe there are problems with Ad Blocking, and 27% cite issues around the transition of big screen to small screen video. And when it comes to the effectiveness of the campaigns themselves, 53% of planners are concerned about ineffective targeting and 49% believe that creatives are not building campaigns with mobile video in mind.
At a more general level, only 47% of planners are confident in their knowledge of mobile video, whilst a third (32%) are not confident when dealing with this format. This compares to online advertising and magazine advertising, where 75% of planners expressed confidence.
“We are moving into a media planning environment that is no longer about channels, devices, platforms. It’s about audiences; where and how they choose to spend time, and where they consume and engage with content and experiences. Simply planning media budgets based on time spent is not an effective approach vs allocating budgets based on media’s ability to drive outcomes”, said Jon Hook, VP Brand and Agencies, at Ad Colony. “To succeed in this adapting landscape, agencies and brands must have a deeper understanding and robust measurement structure enabling them to effectively balance the key ingredients of reach, quality and cost. As the Appiness Index shows, planners & buyers are beginning to recognise mobile video as the perfect platform to deliver valuable business outcomes, so the onus is on providers, such as ourselves, to supply the best possible mobile video solutions, and all of the data and insight that comes with it.”
Perceived benefits of mobile video
Media planners and buyers stated that the main reason for using mobile video within campaigns was to drive brand engagement (37%) and build brand awareness (31%). Respondents in the survey also felt that mobile video was best suited to campaigns targeting a younger demographic. 70% of planners believe that mobile video is most effective at reaching a Gen Z audience, between the ages of 15 and 21 years old, compared with only 6% who feel that it is relevant to baby boomers.
About the research
The Appiness Index research was based on interviews with 100 media planners and buyers in Autumn 2016. Most respondents (63%) work across buying and planning, for agencies (72%) and in a hybrid role (72%). Over half of all respondents (55%) work in client teams of between two and five people (within larger departments), and have been in media buying and planning for over 11 years (51%), ensuring an authoritative, knowledgeable and experienced sample set. The research was created in conjunction with London-based research agency, Loudhouse.
About AdColony
AdColony is one of the largest mobile advertising platforms in the world with a reach of more than 1.4 billion users globally. With a mission to elevate the state of mobile advertising by focusing on the highest quality consumer experiences that deliver outcomes for brands and publishers on today’s primetime apps and sites, AdColony is trusted by Fortune 500 brands and more than 85% of the world’s top grossing mobile publishers. Known for our exclusive Instant-Play™ HD video technology, proprietary rich media formats, our global performance advertising business and programmatic marketplace, and our extensive ad SDK footprint in the Top 1000 apps worldwide, we are passionate about helping brands connect with consumers at scale on the most important screen in their lives. A fully-owned subsidiary of Opera ASA, AdColony is a global organisation with over 20 offices worldwide.
