• by Mark Walsh  @markfwal, December 3, 2013

Having the ability to reach the same consumer across various platforms has become an increasingly sought-after tactic among marketers. The split in time spent between the desktop and mobile is now at about 50-50 in the U.S., according to the latest data from comScore.
 
A growing number of companies are trying to turn cross-device targeting from an aspiration into a reality. Google, for example, recently announced it would start showing advertisers paid search conversions that begin on one device, such as a smartphone, and end on another, like a laptop. Smaller firms like Drawbridge power retargeting of desktop users on mobile devices.

In that vein, location-focused mobile ad network Verve Mobile on Tuesday announced a new offering that lets marketers reach the same audience on PCs and tablets, as well as smartphones and digital-out-of-home screens. The announcement comes a month after company announced a partnership with Vistar Media to link DOOH and mobile buys.
 
Verve’s technology targets mobile advertising according to a grid of city block-sized geographic areas. That allows marketers to reach specific audiences like soccer moms or tech enthusiasts with mobile messages where they’re most likely to be, down to the neighborhood level.
 
Verve relies on its own location data, as well as that from outside sources, including the U.S. Census, public and private databases, and partners such as Placed. From that range of sources, it combines location information, IP addresses, mobile device IDs, and cookies to anonymously target the same audience across devices.
 
With its cross-platform targeting, the company says it can now help advertisers reach a particular audience, such as affluent, stay-at home moms, while they’re doing research on the desktop, or shopping on their smartphone or at the mall.
 
Based on the company location-based tracking method, a device observed at a Whole Foods on a weekday morning, at a soccer facility on a Saturday morning,\ and at a nearby suburban mall on a weekday afternoon, for instance, is likely owned by a member of the target audience segment.
 
“Effective location advertising is about understanding consumer behavior in the physical world and also across their many devices,” stated Verve CRO James Smith. Earlier this year, the company raised $14 million in a third-round financing from investors including Nokia Growth Partners and Qualcomm Ventures.