Mobile marketing saw its fair share of wins in 2015, as well as a few losses. It surpassed desktop and television in regards to searches for the first time ever, and otherwise became a significant part of consumers’ lives. Yet, not every mobile marketing concept was a hit. So what were some of the biggest “ups” for the mobile marketing community last year, and what failed to make an impact?
WINS
Ad Spend Increase
In 2011, eMarketer predicted mobile ad spend in the U.S. would increase from $1.2 billion to $4.4 billion by 2015. This number was exceeded…by a lot.
Mobile ad spend for 2015 was $30.4 billion—quite a difference, yes? Mobile became the “first screen,” or the most important screen used for a wide variety of consumers in 2015, and is essentially part of life rather than simply a marketing channel. Facebook’s ad revenue growth in 2015, for example, was due to ads on phones and tablets. Mobile currently makes up 78 percent of Facebook’s ad revenue and 74 percent of total revenue.
More Search Queries, More Mobile App Time
In 2015, Google confirmed that more searches took place over mobile than desktop devices for the first time. In addition to mobile-only Internet users surpassing desktop-only users, time spent on mobile apps exceeded time spent watching television for the first time in 2015. People spent an average of 198 minutes per day on their apps compared to 168 minutes watching TV.
Mobile Order Increase
Another win for mobile in 2015 was an increase in “ordering.” More and more consumers look to their mobile devices to order, well, anything, with Starbucks paving the way and other businesses scrambling to follow. UberEats is another big winner in mobile ordering, as it combines a low-commitment option for trying new restaurants with the convenience of an extensive menu.
LOSSES
Beacons
Beacons didn’t exactly live up to their hype and potential in 2015. The idea was to revolutionize retail, yet low-quality tech and an overall lack of vision resulted in an experience laden with too many push notifications requiring app downloads. Beacons were more spam than anything else last year…perhaps marketers will come up with a better way to make use of beacons in 2016.
Live-Streaming Apps
Live-streaming apps such as Meerkat and Periscope didn’t do so well in 2015, thanks to little to no creative control and scalability. The apps quickly became niche options for brands rather than must-haves, as they did not provide a formal ad product.
Ad Product Unavailability
Arguably, one of the biggest mobile marketing losses in 2015 was that marketing and ad products failed to sync up with advances in technology. For example, 3D Touch on the iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus provided developers with a wonderful new avenue, yet the technology remains unavailable to the advertising community.
Last year was undoubtedly a big year for mobile, as mobile devices have become cornerstones of life rather than gadgets and toys.