• July 28, 2008

Outrider, GroupM's search marketing agency, has launched a mobile search practice to focus on the emerging category.

The new practice group aims to help clients develop and execute mobile search campaigns that complement their Web-based search marketing efforts. As of May, there were 12 million active users of mobile search, according to Nielsen Online.

"Mobile search will emerge as a critical component of many programs, as user behavior is evolving toward lean-forward activities on mobile," said Michael Nevins, GroupM's group director of mobile technologies for North America, in a statement. "This creates exciting opportunities for advertisers to reach consumers at the moment of impulse."

As an example, the agency pointed to a mobile search campaign for one entertainment client that generated 1.6 million impressions in its first 30 days, costing less than 1% of the company's annual search budget.

Outrider serves as the developmental unit for identifying new search trends and practices that can be applied across all GroupM agencies.--Mark Walsh