Location-based advertising shows promise in reaching mobile consumers on the move
Given the astonishing pace of technological innovation today, marketers don't have a minute to get complacent. As anyone at the helm of a mobile ad campaign can tell you, optimizing your website for smartphone and tablet users used to set you apart, but these days, it's table stakes. According to the latest numbers from the Pew Research Center, officially half of U.S. adults now own a smartphone or tablet.
So with mobile consumption only getting stronger, what's the next point of differentiation for advertisers? In a word: Location.
Low-hanging fruit
Smartphones and tablets already have all the requisite GPS capabilities built in, and consumers are growing increasingly reliant on mobile navigation tools when they're behind the wheel or on foot. In addition, the "Foursquare Effect" has started to make consumers comfortable with routinely sharing their location information with their social network. And a range of mobile apps that many consumers use on a daily basis leverage your location to push offers and notifications.
With location-based behaviors and services becoming increasingly part of consumers' day-to-day lives, advertisers can tailor their message to location conscious consumers. For instance, the University of Phoenix recently rolled out a new mobile campaign on Yahoo!. The campaign helps direct potential students to local campuses using zip code information or a smartphone's GPS capabilities, as shown in the series of photos below.
If you'd like to learn more about how location-based mobile targeting can help you reach on-the-go consumers, contact your Yahoo! account manager or a sales representative today.
