With the mobile wave conquering the desktop environment back in 2014, it began a new era for digital marketing. Now, every company owner wants to promote his products using this promising ecosystem. But one needs to decide what to choose: mobile web or mobile apps.
With this chart in mind, you must know that numbers doubled for ad spending on each channel in just two years.
Taking into account this harsh competition nobody can provide a sure answer for this question. Instead, we will discuss the main advantages and disadvantages for each method. After that, it will be easier for you to make the best decision for your ad. We just advise you not to throw your money away. Just think twice and spend once.
Mobile Web Advertising
This is a handy method to promote your product. But what are the upsides and downsides of choosing mobile web for your campaign?
Benefits of Mobile Web Advertising
The positive characteristics of this solution would be:
- Accessible
With no need to download the app, the ads on web are available for everyone who browses for the wanted content. Responsive design allows advertisers to present their ad to potential customers without caring about the screen sizes of mobile devices.
- Larger Audience
On websites customers can find different topics according to their preferences, so the number of viewers that can access the site where the ad is displayed is higher than the ones that use an app.
- More Affordable
The cost may influence your decision since it is less expensive to show your ad on mobile web than in an app. This happens because marketers create just one ad for all types of devices.
- User Cookies
Having the possibility to identify users through cookies allows advertisers to improve customers’ experience. Increasing their interest will have good effects for the results of the whole campaign.
Disadvantages of Mobile Web Advertising
The negative elements of this method are:
- Fraudulent Traffic
With the evil eyes that watch mobile advertising area it is harder to protect your actions on mobile web than inside the app. Ad fraud is a real problem for brands and advertisers so this downside can influence your decision.
- Harsh Competition
With the high number of ads displayed on a web page it is relatively hard for viewers to notice your product. If the site is useful for him, but there are too many ads shown on the same page he can just ignore all of them and he will focus his attention only on the desired content. On the other hand, even if you avoid this blindness, without targeting options, you risk showing your ad to customers that have nothing to do with your product.
Mobile In App Advertising
We already discussed about In App Advertising with previous occasions but advantages and disadvantages of mobile marketing require more in-depth research. Mobile marketing is the topic we see in everywhere nowadays, but it has ups and downs. In this part, we will discuss the advantages and disadvantages of mobile marketing.
Benefits of Mobile In-App Marketing
Some of the pros of choosing this marketing method are:
- Highly Visible
Mobile apps represent also a target for fraudulent attacks. However it is more difficult to simulate false actions inside an app than on mobile web. In this case for in app ads there are bigger chances that the ad is seen by real users and not by bots.
- Higher Engagement
Because customers are already involved in the activities that run inside the app, they will connect with the content of the ad better. Moreover, with the time invested to use the app there are higher chances to pay attention to the ad inside the app than on the web where the bounce rate is higher.
- Lower Competition
In an app which runs on mobile devices the number of ads displayed is lower so the ad is better received by users. Even more, with the analytics tools available nowadays advertisers can figure out the perfect position for showing your ad in order to reach better performance.
- Higher Conversion Rates
Every app has its own audience, so the ad will receive the proper attention. Personalizing the ad according to the type of app will make users observe without too much effort the product presented. As you all know, in an app, engagement can be transformed in conversion.
- Advanced Targeting Options
Inside the app there are more opportunities to discover users’ preferences. If they permit the app to access their location and other information then you can be sure that the ad will reach a more specific group of users.
- Brand Safe Content
In an app is all about the content provided. Company owners know that choosing to promote their product inside an app it means that their ad will be presented in similar way as the rest of the app. In this case, they can be sure that if users like the app, they will appreciate also the ad.
Disadvantages of Mobile In-App Marketing
The limitations of in app advertising are:
- No Cookies
With no cookies available for in app ads it is harder to discover which user already saw the ad. Not being able to identify users as easy as it is for mobile web it demands additional efforts for retargeting.
- More Expensive
Because of the advantages listed above the prices are usually higher for in app ads than for the ads displayed on mobile web. In the same time for an efficient campaign, you need to create various formats for different screen sizes. This aspect can get really expensive. But if your budget allows then this is your chance to bring your product in front of specific buyers.
FINAL THOUGHTS
If you sum up the data presented above, what is the result? There are many things you have to consider when you need to choose between mobile web advertising and in-app advertising. In this blog post we try to explain advantages and disadvantages of mobile in-app marketing and mobile web advertising. This way, you can see the differences of mobile marketing types and choose the best one applicable to you.
The main factors that influence your decision are your target audience and your budget. Then again you can go with both solutions if your resources allow you to play with more than one marketing methods. Creating a balance between the elements provided by these marketing methods will be considered relevant to a successful strategy.