Mobile Monday: Cross-Channel Marketing, Increased IAP in Mobile Games, and Mobile & Gaming Growth in 2022

Digital Turbine is constantly keeping tabs on the mobile world, and every week, we’re sharing the most interesting and important need-to-know stories and articles. In this edition of Mobile Monday, the stories we’re covering are the growing popularity of cross-channel marketing, the increase of revenue in mobile games from ads and in-app purchases, and the continued growth of mobile and the gaming ecosystem in 2022. Learn all about these stories in this week’s Mobile Monday!The Rise of Cross-ChannelThe growing popularity of cross-channel marketing has given us some novel new ways of reaching audiences. Recently we profiled Coinbase’s Super Bowl ad, which created a direct link between the TV and the smartphone unlike we had ever seen. The success of the ad campaign itself still is bearing itself out, but the immediate results — which caused Coinbase’s site to crash — blew away expectations. But they aren’t the only ones who have seen success from cross-channel efforts. MarTech’s recent article on cross-channel best practices points out some others: M&M’s Super Bowl ad, Bones Coffee, and Rebecca Mink.What all of these brands are trying to do, of course, is have their campaigns meet the customers where they are. Many of these are creating campaigns that keep a consistent message and extend it to other platforms — social media, mobile applications, emails, or SMS. Having the right pieces of data to help inform their campaigns and combining it with the right level of technology can allow savvy advertisers to extend their campaigns across several channels — helping to reach customers at a granular level no matter where they are in the journey.At the center of it all, however, is the consumer device. And when thinking about cross-channel, marketers should consider how to be prominent on the device itself while also thinking about where they can be within apps, social media, or email. Digital Turbine can extend the efficacy of cross-channel campaigns by keeping your brand and message up front with consumers through smart notifications, wizards, search screens, and news screens built into devices. Consumers Prefer Ad-Supported Games and Will Spend In-App While time spent on mobile and in mobile games has been increasing, so has consumer spend within mobile games. This recent article from WARC explains that revenue from advertising in mobile gaming has risen 28% in 2021 worldwide, with a lot of growth coming from the Americas. In addition to spending in-game, users are also watching in-game ads; the amount of users watching in-game ads has risen from 22% in 2020 to 26% in 2021.Although the number of people watching ads in mobile games has increased, the increase in people spending in-game is even greater — IAP from mobile games rose 32% last year.

When looking at the Americas, revenue is split pretty evenly between advertising and in-app purchases in mobile games. In addition, WARC relays that ad-supported games are the most preferred by mobile gamers and attract regular players. All this to say, mobile gaming is the place to be to reach a growing and engaged consumer base. Advertising in this space has proven to be effective as these gamers are interacting with the app regularly, prefer ads in-app, and come to this space for fun and entertainment. The App Market Continues to Grow, No Peak in SightGaming, advertising growth, and more time on mobile than ever before are only some of the highlights in Data.ai’s State of Mobile 2022. We’re diving deep into the macro trends pushing mobile in recent years, as well as regional and Apple vs. Google data that gives us more insight into where things are headed. Mobile downloads, hours and appsConsumers migrated more of their entertainment and games consumption onto mobile. In 2021, there were over 230 apps and games surpassing $100M in annual consumer spend, with 13 of them surpassing $1 billion — 20% higher than 2020. App publishers released over 2 million new apps and games, bringing the total ever released to over 21 million titles. Games represented 15% of all new releases in 2021. Looking at the bigger picture, global data shows 230 billion downloads, $170 billion in consumer spend, and 3.8 trillion hours spent on mobile in 2021. More apps, more time - more adsWhile IDFA had the mobile advertising ecosystem bracing for impact, mobile ads saw a 23% YoY uptick — reaching $295 billion in 2021. The stage is set for even more growth as ad dollars flowed to mobile as the primary and captive channel for engaging consumers — representing 70% of digital spend. 2022 is projected to see $350 billion in ad spend, despite privacy changes.

Games started the year strongThe first quarter of 2022 proved to be the biggest ever for consumer spending, which reached $33 billion. Top categories for spending on mobile include games, entertainment, and photo and video apps. For Q1 2022, mobile games accounted for the lion’s share of consumer spending on the App Store and Google Play. Games accounted for 73% of consumer spend on Google Play and 60% on the App Store. Spending hit $22 billion for Q1, 42% higher than Q1 2020 spending (pre-pandemic).

About Mobile MondaysMobile Monday examines the latest news, trends, and developments in mobile apps, tech, and advertising. Do you have a story to share for the next Mobile Monday? About Digital TurbineDigital Turbine is the leading independent mobile growth platform and levels up the landscape for advertisers, publishers, carriers, and OEMs. By integrating a full ad stack with proprietary technology built into devices by wireless operators and OEMs, Digital Turbine supercharges advertising and monetization. Looking to supercharge your mobile advertising? Check out their blog to start!About FyberFyber, part of Digital Turbine’s independent Mobile Growth Platform, develops innovative ad monetization solutions trusted by top mobile game and app publishers. Fyber’s product suite offers publishers a trusted, unconflicted alternative that drives superior results by creating an optimal connection between mobile audiences, top global brands, and mobile-first advertisers across over 40Bn daily ad opportunities. Fyber’s FairBid mediation, Fyber Marketplace, and Offer Wall Edge are all built with performance, scale, and transparency in mind. To dive deeper into how their monetization solutions put app developers first, check out their blog.About AdColonyAdColony, part of Digital Turbine’s leading independent mobile growth and monetization platform, helps brands, agencies, and apps expand their reach and results with the power of mobile. AdColony is known globally for its award-winning video advertising marketplace, with ad engagement innovations like Instant-Play™, Aurora™ HD Video, Playables, and more. Looking for more insights on apps and mobile games? Find out more on their blog!Join the ConversationHave any story ideas for Mobile Monday? Tweet us at @AdColony. For the latest AdColony mobile news and updates, follow @AdColony on Twitter, like us on Facebook, or connect on LinkedIn.