Five things advertisers should know about tablets

Kelvin Rowlette , President and General Manager

LOS ANGELES, CA March 17, 2011 – Tablets have been hyped as the ultimate media consumption device, with all of the allure of a smartphone’s portability and touchscreen interface in a larger, more engaging form factor. And indeed, robust sales of the iPad and the growing list of competing devices indicate that tablets are in fact living up to the hype among early-adopters.

However, many marketers are confused about how they must think about tablets differently than they do about smartphones, netbooks and laptops. Here are the top five things that advertisers should know about tablets:

1. Research firm IDC forecasts that at least 44 million tablets will hit the market this year, and that by next year, the number of tablets shipped will exceed 70 million. More devices in people’s hands means more tablet usage. Chitika projects that iPad traffic will account for more than 2 percent of all Internet traffic in North America this year, and that percentage is poised to grow steadily.

2. Tablet users tend to be better educated and more affluent than the general population. That is a desirable demographic for brands and agencies, and advertisers have already been flocking to tablets, rolling out campaigns targeting that influential audience.

3. Last year saw the rise of innovative rich-media advertising campaigns targeting tablet users, the large majority full-page expandable ad units within iPad applications. Often featuring animation or video, as well as interactive element’s taking advantage of the device’s touchscreen and native functionality, tablet ads have proved effective. A leading mobile video ad network found that interactive pre-roll ads achieved a click-through rate of around 2.5 percent on the iPad, versus 1.5 percent on iPod touch, 1 percent on iPhone and 0.75 on Android smartphones. Nielsen’s Connected Devices Playbook found that iPad owners are more receptive to advertising than smartphone users, and are more likely to buy a featured product after seeing an ad promoting it. This year, tablet advertisers are building on the momentum generated by the success of last year’s campaigns.

4. While in-app advertising has dominated the tablet space to date, the emergence of HTML5 has led to more sophisticated tablet browsers, including Safari for iPad. While app usage on tablets is off the charts, and advertisers should focus on in-app inventory, many tablet users browse the Internet more than they use all of their apps combined. And as tablet browsers increasingly allow Web-based advertising to take advantage of each device’s native features and functionality, advertisers must focus on the browser as much as downloadable apps.

5. Some, but not all, ad creative can be repurposed for tablets. Because tablets have larger form factors than smartphones, it is easier to transpose online and even some print ad creative for tablets. Many magazine publishers, for example, have been able to translate their print advertisers’ creative seamlessly into their tablet editions. It is important to note that the most effective tablet ads, whether converted from another channel or built especially for a particular device, have an interactive element. Some brands and retailers have found success with using print creative on tablets by linking product images to a commerce portal so that consumers can simply click-to-buy.

As consumer adoption of tablets continues to grow, it is an area that advertisers must take into consideration. It is comforting to know that brands and agencies do not have to reinvent the wheel to reach tablet users. However, those that factor tablets’ unique form factor, user interface, features and functionality when creating their ad campaigns will be better positioned to innovate in this red-hot arena.