• by Anthony Iacovone , December 27, 2012

The 2012 holiday season has demonstrated that real-time bidding (RTB) is at the top of the list of what mobile advertisers want.

We entered this season with high hopes that retailers, and the agencies running their campaigns, would move into a new level of understanding of the RTB paradigm. Initial results during this period were nothing short of astonishing, even to our experienced eyes: one client showed a 20% engagement rate – in which users engaged with the ad unit in some way - during the four-day Black Friday-to-Cyber Monday period (the days that traditionally kick off the U.S. holiday shopping period).

Additionally, the click-through rate (CTR) for the pre-roll video campaign at 15.79% showed a level that is 4-5 times the industry average, demonstrating the power of mobile video advertising during the initial weekend of the 2012 holiday buying season. And, yes, the creative, with a catchy music video, helped increase engagement, but the post-click behavior was due to RTBs’ better targeting capability, which put the mobile content in front of the right consumers at the right time.

We saw consistent levels of engagement for this campaign across all social media channels, and a relatively high view-through rate (VTR) of 12% for the video, which, at 30 seconds, shows the capacity for targeted campaigns to draw engaged viewers.

We have already witnessed how RTB is an ideal platform for brands to target mobile shoppers, but the heady statistics we are delivering for clients indicate how greater relevance and richer data sets can deliver greater value for the client.

The predictive modeling question has already been answered by mobile consumers this year, as well: as long as privacy is maintained, the impressions that RTB-enable mobile ad networks can yield richer impressions – through enriched demographic information, behavioral factors, location data, device features, as well as other advertiser-specified targeting criteria. When predictive modeling is used to identify impressions with a higher propensity for conversion and awareness lift, marketers will receive higher conversion at a significantly lower cost.

All of this bodes well for marketers who are taking the RTB leap. They have answered their own deepest questions on what RTB can ultimately deliver: solid results.