Lysol?s native mobile ad sparkles on Huffington Post
In a reflection of mobile native advertising?s potential outside of Facebook, Reckitt Benckiser's Lysol is running a campaign on the Huffington Post news feed on mobile that delivers relevant content across several areas of interest, introduces a new product and features a wealth of engaging visuals as well as quizzes yet is easy to navigate.
The ad encourages readers to tap to find out how Lysol kills cold and flu germs. Its positioning on the Huffington Post news feed ensures the ad will reach readers who are interested in the latest news, including reports of flu outbreaks, and reading informative content from their mobile devices.
?Lysol understands that organic posts are always more valuable than brand originated ones,? said Shuli Lowy, marketing director for mobile with Ping Mobile. ?Accordingly, the brand?s campaign is focused largely on shareability ? encouraging others to post their own stories or photos with the hashtag ?lysolthat.?
?Lysol?s campaign delivers full length articles and tips that would interest their target audience ? providing a strategic way for consumers to engage further with the brand and gain useful ideas on how to keep their surroundings germ free," she said.
?The timing and location of the campaign is particularly well suited as it is smack in the middle of flu season in a flu-prone location,? said Shuli Lowy, marketing director for mobile with Ping Mobile. ?Many people are already thinking of how to avoid the flu?which makes the value proposition of Lysol that much more pertinent.
A better experience
The use of native advertising on mobile is growing as it provides a more seamless experience than banner ads, which can be disruptive for users. While it is still early day for native advertising, early learnings suggest that users find native ads more appealing and less intrusive.
While much of the focus in mobile native advertising has been on Facebook and Twitter, a growing number of publishers are also focusing on building their expertise here.
One of these is Huffington Post, which reached 115 monthly unique visitors last summer. The online news aggregator and blog also has an in-house studio that works with brands on developing their native campaigns.
The Lysol campaign is a good example of what native advertising can accomplish as it uses a large, colorful ad with effective placement that drives readers to a mobile-optimized experience featuring interactivity and multiple ways to engage.
?By using rich media unit to introduce a new product, Lysol not only generates awareness but encourages users to have a deep interaction with the brand and product,? said Esha Shah, manager of mobile and strategy atFetch.
?Unlike standard banners, rich media units offer advertisers more measurable elements and touch-points to measure so they can understand and adapt and optimize the consumer experience. Additionally, rich media units have shown to deliver 267 percent more clickthroughs than a traditional banner.?
When viewers tap on the big blue button on the native ad to find out more, they are taken to a mobile site, Lysol.com/illness-prevention, with three lead images. Viewers can swipe the screen from right to left to view all three.
Tapping and swiping
?The first image promotes a new Lysol product, TapTop, which dispenses a disinfectant cleaning solution when users tap a cloth on the top of the bottle.
The image appears to play off the mobile angle by encouraging readers to ?tap? to power their ?swipe? ? activities that can apply to both mobile and cleaning.
The next image shows a mother and baby and encourages viewers to find out more about getting the world ready for a new baby.
A third image shows a child blowing his nose and urges consumers to read tips on how to keep their family healthy during cold and flu season.
At any point, users can swipe the screen upwards to view a series of related articles.
There are also engaging quizzes, with users able to find out how their cleaning habits stack up against other consumers.
For example, one quiz asks: ?How do you help make hand washing fun for kids?? The two possible answers to pick from are: ?Turn it into a game? or ?Sing a song.?
Viewers can also scroll through a gallery of products at the bottom of the screen, tap on an item to find out more about it and tap on a ?Shop Now? button to find out which online retailers a product can be purchased from.
While the campaign stands out for its effective use of mobile, it could be improved with day-parting and location-based targeting.
?Lysol should also do targeting so they can reach their target consumers at specific times of the day,? Ms. Shah said. ?They could also experiment with location based targeting, perhaps targeting people near or in grocery stores.?
Final Take
?Chantal Tode is senior editor on Mobile Marketer, New York
?Chantal Tode is senior editor on Mobile Marketer, New York
