The university compared click-through rates and other engagement metrics on both smartphones and tablets for the mobile campaign, in which three ad networks were given 30 days to generate 1 million impressions. One of the networks, AdTheorent, generated markedly higher engagement. 

?Comparing the different targeting approaches and capabilities of vendors in the mobile space is extremely important, and will continue to be as the space changes,? said Jessica Ruscito, director of U.S. media and digital branding at Reebok International. ?Digging further into additional metrics like site visitation and engagement will also be vital to evaluating mobile performance.? 

All three of the networks in the study had the same creative, provided by Carat, as part of the footwear company?s ?Skyscape? campaign. The networks used two different-sized ad units per platform. 

The research determined that AdTheorent drove overall engagement of 3.5 percent, including 2.4 percent on smartphones and 4.1 percent on tablets. That compares with overall engagement of 0.9 percent on the network identified as ?Network B? and 1.22 percent on ?Network C.? 

Engagement was much higher on tablet than it was on smartphone for AdTheorent ad recipients, while the other two ad networks delivered higher engagement via smartphone than tablet. 

Across the three networks, 52 percent of the 3.27 million impressions were served on tablet devices. Tablets accounted for 65% of impressions for AdTheorent, compared with 50 percent for Network B and 41 percent for Network C. 

The study also showed differences in engagement by the size of the ad used. Overall, 35 percent of the 3.27 million impressions were served using the 320 x 50 ad on smartphones and 46 percent were served using the 728 x 90 creative on tablets.

Across the board, click-through rates were higher for all networks using a 320 x 50 creative compared with the 300 x 250 for smartphone, and using a 728 x 90 creative compared with the larger ad on tablets. 

Mobile marketing will continue to grow at Reebok, Ms. Ruscito said. The company learned some valuable lessons from the study. 

?AdTheorent?s predictive targeting model can be an effective and efficient way for us to generate clicks and engagement with our ads in the mobile and tablet space,? she said. ?The performance we saw with them in this study was an encouraging validation of their targeting model capabilities.

?Mobile advertising will continue to grow in importance as part of our overall advertising strategy and media mix. This type of third-party research is certainly helpful in measuring the engagement we see in the platform and confirming our increased focus in the space."