Mobile consumers hate to be interrupted, so make sure your marketing adds value to their lives, says Tim Leake of Hyper Island

Editor’s note: “Mobile Matters” is our ongoing series where advertising industry leaders sound off on the top issues, challenges, and opportunities in the fast-moving world of mobile marketing.

In this week’s edition of “Mobile Matters” we hear from Tim Leake, Innovation & Partnership Director at Hyper Island, which works with major brands, agencies, and marketers to help them better understand how technology is changing consumer behavior and the marketplace. Tim took on the question, “If you could solve one key challenge for mobile marketers, what would it be?”

I think the one key challenge for mobile marketers is to make mobile users care about their messages, because as a mobile user who owns way too many devices, I often don’t. I think that’s because when I’m on mobile, I’m just not interested in being interrupted in the usual way that advertising interrupts you.

We’ve come to accept those interruptions with television and radio ads, but with mobile, that approach has to go out the window. For one thing, the screens are too small, and when I’m using a mobile device, I’m very focused on a particular task. Too many mobile marketers are taking on the old-world mentality that says it’s okay to interrupt somebody with a message we want users to see, rather than using mobile to actually solve a problem or provide value for them. And mobile gives marketers a tremendous ability to provide value.

Acquisition aims at boosting personalization and engagement for Yahoo! mobile properties

When it comes to daily habits, checking the news is near the top of most people’s lists, and they’re often using mobile devices to do it. To help mobile users search through news articles and sites faster and easier, Yahoo! has announced plans to acquire Summly, a popular, innovative mobile news app. The sale is expected to close in the second quarter, and we will soon begin integrating Summly technology into its mobile products to help on-the-move users find the news they want faster than ever before.

Summly makes it easy for mobile users to skim articles and websites by serving them snapshots in an easy-to-browse window, which Adam Cahan, Yahoo! SVP of Mobile and Emerging Products, calls a “simple and elegant solution” in his recent blog post. Today, Fast Company noted how the Summly deal fits alongside other recent Yahoo! acquisitions in our ongoing move to improve users experience and engagement through new solutions that increase personalization.

Ad language contrasts, giving keywords the credit they deserve, and playing for Man U

Editor's Note: What lies behind the great and powerful search engine marketing curtain? A lot of smart search planners! In our ongoing "Meet a Media Planner" series, we’re catching up with search and media planners to hear their perspectives on digital advertising. This week, we’re speaking with Jai Amin, a senior PPC manager for Jellyfish in Baltimore, Maryland. Jai began his search career in the U.K., shortly after university graduation. In 2010, he took a job as a PPC Manager with Jellyfish and was relocated “across the pond” in late 2011 to help open a U.S. office for the agency. Jai now oversees search campaign management for one of Jellyfish’s largest accounts, Laureate International Universities.

Yahoo! Ad Blog: You started out doing search in the U.K. and then came to the U.S. Are there any major differences in the way you run campaigns here?

Jai Amin: Yahoo! and Bing are an even bigger focus for us in the U.S than in the U.K. We discovered we actually generate cheaper cost-per-leads through Yahoo! and Bing on average, so we’re trying to expand the amount we invest in those channels every month. Another interesting difference is that we have to be more careful with the words and phrasing we use in our ads for the university. There are subtle differences in spellings in the U.S. and the U.K., such as optimization/optimisation and enroll/enrol. To keep words and phrases from being misinterpreted, we always make sure our ads and landing pages are reviewed in a thorough approval process.

“LiveRoom” gives Yahoo! News users an interactive platform to share their views and attracts a key demo for brands

Every day, millions of people go to Yahoo! News for expert coverage of breaking stories and major events. Now they can turn those visits into two-way conversations with a live chat series called “LiveRoom.” The series offers Yahoo! users a unique opportunity to interact with newsmakers, thought leaders, and Yahoo! journalists on topical issues. By giving them an online platform to share their opinions on news stories they care about, “LiveRoom” creates the kind of immersive, personalized experience that attracts a younger demographic and offers brands a great opportunity to connect with them.

Recent “LiveRoom” chats cover everything from the election of Pope Francis to Oscar predictions. Throughout the month of March, “LiveRoom” held a series of live chats focused on Women’s History Month that featured experts and thought leaders on a wide range of women’s issues. For example, the March 14 live chat discussed what the Republican Party can do to attract more women voters and included three GOP congresswomen. Other thought-provoking chats included “Are Women-Led Startups Simply Better?” and “Is a New Women’s Movement Being Born?”

67% of all Internet users visit social networks. Here’s a look at who’s using five popular ones.

With 90% of marketers now using social in their media campaigns, it’s vital for them to know as much as possible about the users of social networks. This week’s infographic from AdWeek is based on a recent study by the Pew Research Centre that shows the varying habits and preferences of users on five popular social networks---Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, and Tumblr.

The infographic breaks down users by age, gender, urbanity, race/ethnicity, and household income. Here are some highlights:

• 67% of all Web users use social networking tools (with Facebook claiming, oddly enough, 67% of those users)
• City dwellers are almost twice as likely to use Twitter than rural residents
• Blacks and Hispanics are more likely to use Instagram
• Higher-educated, affluent women are attracted to Pinterest

For a deeper dive into social users’ demographics, jump over to the full infographic.

Patrick (l) and Edward Mears at last month’s Georgetown-Syracuse gameUpload your hoops-themed photos to our contest Flickr page to compete with agency colleagues for a Canon camera

More than 1,700 of our ad agency friends entered our Agency Pick ‘Em hoops fantasy competition, the exclusive version of Yahoo! Sports’ Tourney Pick ‘Em contest that’s open to ad agencies only. With the tourney in full swing, brackets are now locked down, but here’s another way to compete with your agency colleagues for a great prize and bragging rights---the Agency Pick ‘Em Tourney Flickr Photo Contest.

All you have to do is upload your hoops-themed photos to our Agency Pick ‘Em Flickr group by April 8. (Like Agency Pick ‘Em, this contest is open to ad agencies only.) Any photo with a hoops flavor is fair game---pics that show pride in your favorite school, dis a rival, or just give an interesting view on college hoops competition. The winner will receive a Canon EOS Rebel T3i DSLR camera.

To get you inspired, here’s a photo entered by Edward Mears, head of Business Development at Dentsu Sports America and a 2007 graduate of Georgetown University. It shows a special moment last month between Edward and his dad, Patrick, when they attended the last Big East Conference game between longtime rivals Georgetown and Syracuse (which is moving to the Atlantic Coast Conference next year). Edward is quick to point out that Georgetown won the game, 57-46, and adds, “Hoya Saxa!”

Enough with the cubes, lions, and little heads … we need some new ad awards that are easier to win

What are advertising awards but little Lucite-and-metal affirmations of your hard work and dedication? You spend all those late nights away from family and endless hours in focus groups and post-production edit bays just for the chance that someday you might get a little bling. Is it really worth it? “Totally,” says our David T. Jones. In fact, he takes things up another notch by proposing some new (and pretty strange) awards to go along with the Addys, CLIOs, and other big-time awards programs out there.

This isn’t the first time that Ad Land has focused on ad awards. In January, David complained about how difficult it is just to complete the entry forms for a contest. We bet he’s glad he did it, though. This month, his “little shop” Third Street picked up three Chicago Addy awards for their “Real Complainers Vote” project, and they were also nominated for Agency of the Year alongside mega-agencies including BBDO and ultimate winner Arc Worldwide/Leo Burnett. (Congrats, David.)

The rest of us can practice acting surprised and giving a modest wave as we jump over to the full cartoon.

Here’s how to make sure your ads and keywords are within Bing Ads’ Editorial Guidelines and how you can appeal if they’re rejected

Editor's Note: Where can you go to find answers to your pressing Search Engine Marketing questions, quandaries, doubts, and dilemmas? Right here at “Ask the Search Expert,” our regular series featuring SEM experts from the crack Yahoo! SearchAccount Management team. Today, Arran Gimba, Sr. Creative Strategist, answers a common question from a search advertiser.

Dear Search Expert:

My ads and keywords keep on being rejected. I can’t figure out why, and it’s so annoying, I could pull out my hair! How can I avoid rejections? And is there any way I can get them overturned?

Signed, Wigging Out

Dear Wigging:

First, take a deep breath and relax. Then we’ll go over the guidelines on acceptable ads and keywords, and I’ll share something that will save your curly locks---an easy new process for appealing rejections.

Rejections, or editorial disapprovals, are red flags in an advertiser’s account that indicate your ad copy or keyword selection doesn’t comply with Bing Ad’s Editorial Guidelines. Those guidelines weren’t created to annoy you, but to ensure that the search network contains relevant advertisements that result in a good experience for both advertisers and users.