There are more than 270 million mobile phones active in the U.S., according to CTIA, the international association for wireless telecommunications. Between October 2007 and October 2008 YouTube’s mobile audience grew by 277%. In the third quarter of 2008, it was accessed by about 3 million U.S. mobile subscribers.
What does any of this mean for the small and minority-owned business advertiser? Targeting niche groups using mobile TV advertising might be more precise and provide more bang for the buck.
For example, as of the third quarter in 2008, 14% of the mobile video audience was African American (compared with just 9% of all subscribers, respectively). Plus, African-Americans are 42% more likely to recall mobile advertising compared to all data users, reports Telephia, a researcher of mobile media markets.
“African American businesses will be able to compete in a way that they have not been able to without having [big] budgets,†says Aaron Walton, co-founder of advertising firm Walton Isaacson.
The interactivity of Mobile TV and video has the potential to be a “game changer†within mobile advertising, says the Mobile Marketing Association. Advertisers might be able to target ads to certain customers based on what they watch, their demographics, socio-economic profile and lifestyle. Advertisers can cull this data from performance oriented advertisements that encourage users to take actions such as “click to call†or “click to buy.â€
Users will be interested in mobile video that appeals to their specific interests, says Jeff Orr, senior analyst for mobile content at ABI Research. This will provide a great opportunity to reach minority markets
“The ability to engage the consumer in that adverting experience and have their eyeballs longer is much more measurable,†says Orr.