The team at MAW probed the depths of a fascinating new report this week and the findings are likely leaving many mobile advertisers feeling a little uneasy.
Retale, a location-based mobile platform, provided MAW with a first look at results of a commissioned study examining mobile advertising’s so-called “fat finger” problem.
60 percent of all respondents said that when they click on banner ads while on a smartphone or tablet “it’s usually by accident” due to the device’s small screen size, a finger slipping, or a combination of the two.
“Only 16 percent said that they click on mobile banner ads because they “like the company, product or service being promoted,” with just 13 percent saying they do so because “the ads are interesting,” the results summary reads.
And it happens during a lot of typical mobile activities, MAW reports.
“Nearly 70 percent (69 percent) of those surveyed identified at least one occasion where they had clicked on a mobile banner ad (within mobile web or app),” according to Retale’s data. “When asked to pick the mobile channels in which they typically encounter these ads, the overwhelming majority of respondents – 65 percent – said they did so “while surfing the Web or reading the news.” The top-5 was rounded out by “using social media” (50 percent), “playing games” (47 percent), “watching videos” (45 percent) and, finally, “listening to music” (45 percent).”
All told, mobile banner ads have “little to no value,” according to respondents in Retale’s study.
“Mobile users aren’t showing any love to accidentally clicked ads,” says Pat Dermody, President of Retale. “They’re too frustrated by the experience to care, which means more wasted dollars and opportunities for brands and marketers. We need to engage users through mobile in a smarter, more effective way.”
