HP launched a campaign to build awareness and preference for its ink cartridge products. As part of the digital marketing program, HP took advantage of Google’s mobile rich media capabilities to engage consumers on smartphones and tablets.

The rich media ads featured a short interactive game that HP developed for Android and iOS phones and tablets. Users could drag their fingertips across the screen to guide a net and
capture floating butterflies and score points for coupon savings while learning about the HP supplies value proposition.

As it turned out, HP’s playful mobile experience yielded impressive results. Within seven weeks, HP drove significant engagement with consumers. The campaign, executed with the help of mobile agency Airwave, resulted in:

• Over 400,000 games played
• 15% of consumers replaying the game
• Over 26,000 video views

HP took notice of the mobile engagement rates and are now considering other ways to take advantage of the rich creative palette that mobile can provide. According to Tariq Hassan, VP WW Marketing and Communications at HP, “Our customers are looking to mobile devices for entertainment as well as education. Through this collaboration with Google, we were able to deliver both at the same time, giving our customers valuable information about our products in a fun and engaging way.”

Posted by Kevin Otsuka, Associate Product Marketing Manager, Mobile Ads

Did you know that 33 % of the Spanish population actually has a smartphone (Ipsos GmbH & TNS Infratest)? Through the recently released research site ourmobileplanet.com we have seen that among major European countries Spain is now leading the smartphone revolution. The study reveals that in terms of parallel media usage, 50 % of Spanish smartphone users are actively browsing the Internet while listening to music and 35 % of users are in fact using the Internet on another device simultaneously. The Spanish are also actively using their mobile when searching their neighbourhood; 55 % have looked up directions or used a map and 45 % have performed a local search for a business.

Spain has highest smartphone penetration in Europe

And how are companies responding to this situation? During Think Mobile we held a few weeks ago in Madrid, eDreams & Telepizza shared how they are building their mobile strategy and The Cocktail highlighted mobile trends and the new mobile user experience in Spain. An example we mentioned earlier on this blog is Meliá Hotels International, who have seen an increase in mobile transactions by twelve since they launched their mobile site. Although we have these great examples of companies who are embracing mobile, our internal data shows that only 10 % of large companies in Spain have developed a mobile website.

Alberto Knapp, CEO of Cocktail presenting at Think Mobile

Therefore, to catch up with the mobile user, businesses need to go mobile now. Find out how with the presentations and mobile research statistics from Think Mobile Spain.

Posted by Frank Albert Coates, Product Marketing Manager, Mobile ads & Laura Abarquero, Head of Mobile advertising Spain

Not sure how to most effectively leverage and measure your mobile marketing campaigns? Well, you’re not alone. While mobile is an incredible new way to distribute content and reach customers on the go, it also presents a unique challenge when it comes to measuring the impact of our mobile efforts (like applications, advertisements or mobile-optimized websites).

Tune in on November 2nd for Google’s Think Mobile webinar, Mobile Advertising: Right Person, Right Time, Right Message - Finally!, led by Avinash Kaushik, Digital Marketing Evangelist. Avinash will share tips and best practices for mobile marketing campaigns, new metrics unique to mobile, and how best to measure mobile ads and websites.

• When: Wednesday, November 2, 2011 9-10:30am PST/ 12-1:30pm EST
• How: Register here

Posted by: Kevin Otsuka, Associate Product Marketing Manager

Yesterday on the Official Google Blog, we talked about the momentum we’re seeing in mobile search advertising.  We also announced a new mobile search ad product - custom search ads in mobile apps.  We wanted to give some more details about this new format and how developers can begin using it to grow their businesses on mobile.

Today, an entire world of mobile apps connect users with information via search functionality.  These apps do a great job delivering useful information about everything from travel plans, to nearby restaurants, to shopping services, and much more.  

We wanted to develop a way for these app developers to make money and grow their businesses more effectively with mobile ads.  With Custom Search Ads in Android and iOS applications, we're bringing the power of search ads to the world of mobile apps.  Apps that provide a search experience will also be able to show ads related to those searches. Users will receive ads relevant to what they're looking for, and our developer partners will have a new tool to monetize their great content and services.

Because so many mobile apps contain custom search functions, they usually ask consumers to search within a variety of specific parameters. For example, in the search below, the user is looking for Thai restaurants, in a given price range and location, with a certain dress code.  These parameters help determine what ad is shown, and will help deliver the most relevant ad for a user’s query - in this case, a restaurant called ‘Tasty Thai’.


App developers are able to customize the look and feel of the ads to complement the app design and layout by modifying details like the font size, background color, and gradient.   Ad placement is also customizable and can be fixed to the frame or embedded within the search results to save space.  The images below are two examples of how a developer could customize the same ad to fit with the content of their page.


Custom Search ads can also be integrated into mobile websites with the same customization features and options available on mobile apps.  Mobile publishers and app developers who are interested in showing search ads can apply now on the Custom Search Ads page.

Posted by: Linus Chou, Product Manager, Mobile Ads

(Cross-posted on the Official Google blog)

Mobile search helps people find what they need in a snap.  Whether they’re choosing between two restaurants, shopping for a new watch, or buying a movie ticket, people make better decisions when they have access to more information. Search ads are information—answers—and on mobile devices, they’re able to connect people and businesses in new, useful and relevant ways.

Today, we’re unveiling new mobile search ad formats and some new details about the ways many different businesses are benefiting from mobile advertising.

Search ads, meet mobile apps
We’re bringing the worlds of search and apps together with mobile advertising in a few ways:

• Search ads in mobile apps: Lots of mobile apps give people the ability to search for information—like an app that lets you search for a restaurant nearby.  Today we’re announcing Custom Search Ads for these apps.  These ads provide useful and relevant answers, for people searching within a mobile app.  Custom search ads will also help app developers earn more money to fund their apps and grow their businesses on mobile. Developers interested can request permission here.

Custom Search Ads in mobile apps

• Click to Download: Not surprisingly, many people use Google to search for information about mobile apps. This ad format helps consumers right when they searching for information about an app, linking them directly to the App Store or Android Marketplace to download.  We’ve recently enabled app developers to include app icons and information about the app in their ad unit so that people can make more informed decisions about whether they want to download the app.
• Mobile App Extensions: This new, beta ad unit enables businesses to use mobile search ads to direct someone to a page within a mobile app already installed on their phone.  For example, if someone searches for sneakers on a mobile device, they might see an ad that takes them directly into a cool shopping app they’ve installed on their phone.

Local search ads—so hot right now
Building local context into mobile ads makes them more useful both for both consumers and businesses. Here are a few specific examples:

• Click to Call: We introduced these ads for high-end smartphones less than two years ago and now they are now driving millions of calls per week to hundreds of thousands of businesses around the world.  Click to call ads have been very effective in generating leads for businesses of all sizes, across many verticals—more people can call an Enterprise Rent-A-Car near them for rentals and more potential customers can connect with ADT Security for alarm system expertise, for example.
• Hyperlocal search ads: Launched a year ago, these search ads contain useful local information like phone numbers, driving directions, a number to click and call a business directly, and also show people how far they are from specific business locations. Roy’s Restaurants’ efforts with this format led to a 40 percent increase in call volume—and lots more full tables!
• Proximity as a factor in mobile search ads ranking: The distance between a person and an advertiser’s business location is now a factor in mobile search ads ranking. This means an ad for a business with a physical location close to to a consumer may perform better in AdWords—driving more mobile traffic at a lower cost. The feature will be effective only when consumers opt in to share their device location for mobile searches.  It will make our hyperlocal format more useful for businesses and users—advertisers can get started with this by creating Location Extensions for their mobile campaigns. Particularly this holiday season, when consumers are using their mobile phones to find a nearby store for last minute gift purchases, this new feature will help connect customers with storefronts.
• Circulars: We began testing this new ad format with Best Buy and Macy’s earlier this month.  When someone clicks on a search or display ad (on desktop, mobile or tablet devices), they may see these engaging ads which contain photos of relevant products and special offers. With a few simple clicks, people who are at their desk can email that circular to their mobile phones, and later walk into their local store, flash their phone and redeem the offers.

Macy’s Circular Ads on Mobile

The exciting thing for mobile users and businesses is that we’re genuinely just getting started.  The possibilities for mobile search advertising are nearly endless and we’re looking forward to helping businesses and consumers alike take advantage of this brave new (mobile) world.

Posted by:
Surojit Chatterjee, Senior Product Manager, Mobile Ads

Update: Developers interested can request permission here.

With 20 million smartphones in Italy and an increase of 52% compared to 2010 (Nielsen, Q1 2011), smartphones are radically changing interactions between businesses and consumers. However, most companies have not yet adapted their digital strategy for the mobile world. This is why two weeks ago we gathered more than 700 executives and developers from the mobile ecosystem in Italy for Think Mobile in Milan.

Partner panel with Citroen, Wind, Unicredit, Fiat and Digitouch sharing their mobile strategies at Think Mobile Italy.

During the panel on mobile strategies, several partners highlighted the fact that you need to be mobile ready now. Vittorio Veltroni, General Director, Digital Division, at Mondadori states that mobile is no longer a space for experiments for the industry. For Fiat, Maurizio Spagnulo, Marketing Communication Director, clarifies that mobile gives them the opportunity to be close to their customers 24/7.

For mobile advertising, Italy leads globally with Italians having a high awareness of mobile ads; 72% of Italian smartphone users notice mobile advertising with search engines and video websites having the highest advertising recall (Ipsos GmbH & TNS Infratest). In addition, half of these users actually perform an action after seeing the ad. On an overall level, Italy has one of the highest acceptance rates of mobile ads by users with 37% open to receiving ads on their smartphone.

Italy with highest acceptance of mobile ads

M-commerce is already a reality in Italy; 23% of smartphone owners said they had already made a purchase via mobile and Italy together with Japan are among the major markets globally with highest expected increase in mobile purchase in the next 12 months. As innovative developers are key to driving m-commerce, at Think Mobile we hosted specific sessions to grow the local developer community with more than 250 Italian mobile developers attending. To promote mobile app creation, we launched the Guide to the App Galaxy in Italian with a local case study from Il Meteo.

Are you ready to go mobile in Italy? Find out how to with the presentations and videos from Think Mobile Italy.

Posted by Frank Albert Coates, Product Marketing Manager, Mobile Ads & Dario Mancini, Country Head Mobile Sales Italy

We recently launched new consumer and advertising research that demonstrates why brands should extend their marketing across all screens -- TVs, PCs, phones and tablets.

We’re excited to share details on a recent success story that demonstrates how brands can shine with multi-screen branding. Reebok wanted to promote the launch of its new lineup of lightweight, high-performance shoes, RealFlex.

Reebok’s agency, Carat, worked with Google to extend Reebok video creatives across all digital platforms and drive branding across YouTube for PC & Mobile, and mobile rich media on AdMob. In addition to driving awareness and engagement, Reebok drove conversions with savvy targeting levers such as contextual targeting and remarketing.

The multi-screen approach yielded impressive results:

• YouTube masthead ads led to 131% lift in brand conversions (i.e., site visits and searches for Reebok brand)
• YouTube In-Stream ads resulted in interaction rates 27% higher than Reebok’s internal benchmarks
• AdMob tablet rich media led to interactions rates 5x higher than Reebok’s internal benchmarks
• Contextual targeting on the Google Display Network led to CTRs 9x Reebok’s internal benchmarks

Check out this video to learn more and see how Reebok successfully adapted its TV creatives across digital platforms.

Posted by Ben Chung, Product Marketing Manager, Mobile Ads