Mobile Browsers Do It In The Evening

Adfonic, the European-based global mobile advertising marketplace, says that advertisers could be missing out on a growing mobile audience during the evening.

An analysis of Adfonic’s real-time hourly click patterns reveals that traffic starts to build from around 6pm and continues to rise throughout the evening, before peaking at midnight.

It also appears that the early morning offers potential for mobile advertisers, as an increasing number of people wake up and immediately spend time surfing the net on their smartphones. Both of these peaks in smartphone traffic coincide with dips in online traffic, traditionally seen as dead times for online advertising, revealing a clear opportunity for advertisers to reach incremental audiences through mobile.

“Analysis of our data shows that among iPhone, iPad and other smartphone traffic, there is a growth in ‘sofa’ and ‘bed’ surfing, as users switch from TV watching to mobile browsing in the commercial breaks or between programmes,” says Adfonic CMO, Paul Childs. “Many seem to prefer their smartphone, to engage with social media or to download apps for example, to a good book when they go to bed.”

Adfonic’s analysis also reveals that most smartphone users connect over wi-fi in the evenings rather than via their cellular data connection. This is reflected in a high level of app downloads. The same is not true during a smaller surfing peak through the morning commuter period, however, where app downloads are lower, due to the lack of a good connection.

“It appears that most brands are still missing a trick and are yet to tap into the full advertising potential of mobile,” says Childs. “As people switch off from TV advertising and spend less of the evening in front of a PC, the smartphone and tablet devices like the iPad are becoming the media of choice for spontaneous internet access. They also open up exciting new opportunities to cross-link TV and online campaigns with mobile devices and content, and the possibility to engage more effectively with consumers through richer mobile ad units.”

Adfonic’s real-time reporting and analytics is also able to map clicks across the UK, and reveals that contrary to popular opinion, iPhone, Android and iPad penetration is not confined to the London area. Adfonic’s figures show usage is now nationwide, with heavy concentrations around all major urban conurbations.

“What is clear from this research is that smartphone and tablet devices are changing the habits of the digital audience,” adds Childs. “As well as immediate and constant online access, they allow consumers to interact with brands in new ways that TV and laptops simply cannot compete with. The opportunity for advertisers to reach and engage with new audiences is huge and offers great potential for the mobile industry to leverage.”

Having launched just over a year ago, Adfonic now has over 2,000 publishers within its network, generating earnings from an average of 3,000 live ad campaigns per month, including major advertiser brands such as Yell.com, Peugeot and Sky. Adfonic says the number of ad impressions served through its network is set to reach 2bn per month over the next quarter.