Ford, First Direct and Toni & Guy kick-start AOP initiative to prove value of mobile advertising
Ford, First Direct and Toni & Guy are the first brands to join the Association of Online Publisher’s (AOP) mobile advertising initiative aimed at standardising and proving the value of premium mobile advertising.
The project, which will be conducted by Mindshare on behalf of the AOP, will see each of the three brands supply creative for a month-long mobile campaign.
The ads, which will run until the end of July, will stretch across 100 media brands from the AOP’s 17 publisher members, including Conde Nast, Future, Guardian, The Sun, Metro and Trinity Mirror, accounting for a quarter of the UK’s total mobile internet audience.
The project is also designed to encourage collaboration among premium publishers in the joint quest to establish standardised mobile ad formats and prove the value of mobile media.
The campaigns will test the performance of standard ad formats of 320x50 rich-media, expandable ads.
Tim Cain, head of research and insight for the AOP, said that co-operation between premium publishers will help address mobile issues faster while ensuring the benefits of advertising around original, branded quality content.
“By addressing selected barriers together focusing on premium mobile display with agency and client buy-in, we can create more wide-reaching, consistent, effective ads for the entire mobile industry, helping buy-side and sell side alike,” he added.
The IAB’s mobile and operations director Jon Mew said: “Industry cooperation is essential in building the framework that helps us all deliver the most engaging mobile experiences for consumers. The IAB is happy to work with and support the AOP, the MMA and others to help make mobile mandatory.”
The initiative will also include an agency road show, planned to start in September following the release of the study’s results.