Changing Engagement Levels              

RecentForrester research found that consumers are becoming so “device agnostic” that 51% begin their path to purchase on whatever device is available at the time the intent enters their mind. Consumers are researching products and brands while queueing for coffee, considering purchase further while on their lunch break and purchasing on their evening commute or whilst relaxing at home. Purchase behaviour now extends across numerous platforms and marketers must be aware that relevance and creative delivery need to be tailored to each device.

Usage changes depending on device. Users engage with smartphones when they are on-the-go, looking for features like store locators or click-to-call function, while the tablet larger screen size encourages engagement with attractive product visuals and rich media experiences, such as video advertisements.

Right screen. Right place. Right time. Effective Cross-Channel Messaging

The Forrester research also revealed that 71% of consumers are put off by inconsistent cross-channel messaging — with one in ten going so far as to say that inconsistencies in the brand experience from device-to-device would make them stop interacting with a brand altogether.

With differing usage and engagement patterns in mind, advertisements must be designed to ensure brand messaging is consistent  across all platforms. This will ensure optimum customer engagement throughout the customer journey.

Knowing your audience

Marketers must also consider who exactly they are targeting, not just what they are targeting customers with.

Ad retargeting is a innovative digital marketing technology that enables marketers to remind customers about products they have previously browsed or incomplete product journeys, in a bid to encourage a final conversion. In terms of cross-device, it is particularly effective if we consider the person who browses on their phone, interacts on their tablet and purchases on their desktop.

Essentially, cross-device retargeting isn’t just serving advertisements on different platforms; it is finding your audience across different platforms in order to serve relevant and personalised ads that relate to their online activity. The abundance of consumer data now available allows marketers to develop a deeper understanding of device usage across operating systems, model, location and more, enabling them to make behavioural predictions and personalise messaging accordingly.

Mobile retargeting allows marketers to effectively reach prospects and customers across all devices. Advertisers can leverage mobile retargeting on Facebook and Twitter as well, creating a complete 360° campaign that retargets desktop visitors in iOS and Android apps to help re-engage site visitors on their mobile devices.

Making It Add Up: Scaling a Cross-Device Campaign

Multiple devices mean multiple data streams and a plethora of information about purchasing behaviour, which in turn wreaks havoc on measuring reach and frequency.

Marketers need to be able to collect intent signals, understand them, and then reach their customers wherever and whenever they are most likely to take the desired action.

This can be achieved in cross-device campaigns by matching user IDs across platforms.Marketers can now reach customers wherever they spend their time. Thanks to cross-device retargeting, it is now possible to drive audience engagement on mobile through Facebook Custom Audiences; reach Twitter users through Tailored Audiences; as well as retarget mobile site visitors as they browse other mobile sites.

There is no question that cross-device presents a wealth of opportunities for marketers and their brands. Taking the time to identify opportunities and challenges and develop a further understanding of consumer behaviours will enable marketers to formulate appropriate strategies and ensure success in this new multi-screen world.

By Marius Smyth, EMEA MD, AdRoll