How Mobile Advertising Works

Modern technology has given consumers a wider range of options when it comes to how they consume media. In fact, the popularity of mobile devices—smartphones, tablets, and other devices—now outnumbers that of television sets. According to reports, people now spend more time on their mobile devices than they do sitting in front of the TV. That's because of the ease and cost of these devices—not to mention the availability of wireless connections allowing people to tap in.

In order to keep up with changing consumer habits, companies adapted their advertising campaigns by adopting mobile advertising strategies. That's because the chance that new and existing customers will see an ad through a mobile device is greater than they would through traditional avenues. Because mobile devices typically have smaller screens than computers or laptops, this form of digital advertising is usually optimized for small displays by being concise.

The earliest form of mobile advertising took place via SMS text messages. But mobile ad campaigns quickly evolved into mobile web and in-app advertisements. One of the popular models in mobile advertising is known as cost per install (CPI), where payment is based on the user installing an app on their mobile device. CPI mobile advertising networks work either as incent or non-incent. In the incent model, the user is given virtual points or rewards to install the game or app.

Many apps offer a free version that can be downloaded at no cost, but which is paid for by placement of advertisements within the app. Mobile versions of websites also have advertisements that are optimized for mobile displays—smaller than they would appear on the full version of the same website.

This article comes from investopedia edit released