Tag: in-app advertising

Facebook apps now include in-app shopping install ads

The social network is now bringing together its lucrative advertising with deep linking.

Facebook apps have now opened up a new world of monetization for the social network as they are now combining the highly revenue generating application install ads with deep linking in order to bring in a new specific form of in-app purchase page that will launch itself once the application has finished downloading.

The outcome is expected to be a powerful new direct mobile marketing tool for the sale of products and services.

Direct marketing is already highly popular on the standard web, as it makes it possible for users to view an advertisement for a specific product and click on it to open a new browser tab so that they can learn more and make their purchase. That said, in mobile marketing, if a sale is made through an application, the merchant first needs to encourage consumers to download the app. Then the merchant can only hope that the user will then follow through with the initial intentions and make his or her way through the steps that were outlined in the advertisement. Facebook apps could now change that process.

Facebook apps allow deep linking to manage the entire process, with the goal of boosting conversion rates.

Facebook AppsThe idea is that Facebook could let deep linking send the user directly to the right place to make the sale. This could make buying much more natural and convenient for the user, to the degree that app install ads and direct marketing could fuse together in the mobile ecosystem. These in-app shopping install ads have the potential to push the social network well beyond the massive $3.32 billion that it earned in the first quarter through ad revenues.

This form of mobile marketing doesn’t just stop at encouraging consumers to download an app. After all, application downloads aren’t all that helpful if consumers don’t do anything with them. Therefore, the ads for the apps are targeted to the people who are most likely to be a relevant market for the products or services being sold within the app. Then, once the app is downloaded, an ad is automatically launched to encourage the consumer to take the next step. This helps to make sure that the social network earns more through Facebook app marketing because it doesn’t just stop at the download, but it also earns commissions on a sale.

Video ads in mobile gaming apps benefit developers and gamers

Vungle gives mobile gamers incentive to watch video ads.

While ads keep mobile gaming apps free, one of the main complaints mobile gamers have with regard to these advertisements is that they pop-up while they are playing and this disrupts the game. However, in-app advertising platform Vungle has created a technique that actually gives gamers incentive to watch the ads.

Vungle delivers ads without interrupting the player’s gaming experience.

The ads that Vungle puts inside a mobile game promote other games or smartphone apps. That said, unlike other traditional forms of in-app advertising that disrupts the game, Vungle provides an opt-in approach that also includes a benefit for the player.

Ville Heijari of Vungle explains that “when we do an opt-in approach, people actually want to see the ads.” He also went on to say that “gamers download the other applications that are being advertised, but they also gain some kind of benefit within the game or app.”

Vungle helps game developers make money from free mobile gaming apps and provides advertisers with a new audience.

Mobile Gaming App - In-app advertisingThe in-app video advertising company is helping developers of mobile games earn money from mobile users who, on average, are not interested in paying for apps. It also provides advertisers with a mobile audience for their ads.

For instance, RGB Express is a puzzle game on the Vungle platform. The games developer, Markus Kaikkonen, says that while the game was launched as a paid app for Apple devices, he decided to offer the Android version of the app for free in December 2014. In order to make money from it, Kaikkonene joined Vungle, which places video ads inside his game that rewards players with a game credit or hint, simply for watching a 15-second ad.

Kaikkonen explained that in the Android version, “the player can use hints to watch the solutions for the problems.” He added that the player can purchase more hints if they desire, but if they want to continue enjoying additions to the game for free, they can watch a Vungle video ad and obtain a hint at no cost.

In order to create space to plug in advertisements for consumer brands, Vungle’s strategy is to build up a customer base and boost overall mobile gaming app usage. Half of the ads Vungle puts into mobile games promotes games and smartphone apps, and the other half of the advertisements on the firm’s platform are paid for by companies like Nokia and Unilever.