In current ad campaigns appearing on the Huffington Post mobile site, Jeep is leveraging a banner ad that expands to a screen where viewers can engage with close to 20 different images and videos while Honda?s native ad grabs viewers? attention with dynamic content that evolves from a text-like message. Both brands have a history of investing in mobile advertising, with their latest efforts clearly attempting to incorporate best-in-class practices to make a big impact.

?While some viewers may think that the Honda ad is a video or a rich media unit it is more likely a gif or a rotation of banners,? said Shuil Lowy, marketing director for mobile at Ping Mobile. ?From a consumer standpoint that may not make much of difference but from a media buying standpoint it does.

?A video or rich media unit can easily be 2-4 times the price of a regular banner ad unit,? she said. ?Marketers can use gifs to give their ads a little more spark without having to dramatically cut the amount of impression they get.?

However, as the volume of native ads has grown ? native ads now appear after every five to 10 headlines on Huffington Post ? marketers need to focus more on creating native ads that grab the viewer?s attention.

Honda is addressing this challenge with the use of a GIF that gradually morphs from a text-like message informing viewers that they need a new Accord to an announcement that the Honda summer clearance event is happening and finally to an image of a car and the details of the offer.

The use of graphics that resemble a text message and the slow evolution of the ad could help Honda get its ad noticed.  

?The dynamic nature of the ad itself focuses on the consumers who have not yet clicked on the ad,? Ms. Lowy said. ?Even a really good ad campaign doesn?t usually get a 2 percent click through rate.

?It?s therefore important to make sure the banner itself catches the eye of the consumer?so that there?s a powerful brand impression for consumers who view but don?t click on the ad,? she said.

Viewers can tap on a ?see offers? button to be taken to a separate landing page where they can find dealers, build a Honda and request a quote. Honda is likely to see a large drop off at the point where viewers are asked to leave the Huffington Post site to learn more about the offer.

An expandable banner appears on the top of page that, when tapped on, opens a screen where viewers can scroll through 10 different static images of the Jeep Renegade. Two boxes on the bottom of the screen enable viewers to toggle between the photos and a range of 8 videos showing the car in action.

Viewers can easily tap the top right hand of the screen to go back to Huffington Post.

Jeep?s use of a banner ad points to the ongoing dependency on this traditional desktop ad unit that has questionable relevancy on a smartphone?s small screen.

However, in this case, Jeep makes the banner ad work by enabling viewers to expand the ad without having to leave the Huffington Post site, thereby cutting down on the intrusiveness of the ad.

Jeep?s biggest challenge will be getting consumers to tap on the banner ad in the first place.

?An expandable unit, such as the one featured in the Jeep campaign, leads to better post ad engagement rates,? Ms. Lowy said.

?The content expands as an overlay to the screen which the viewer can exit out of at anytime,? she said. ?It?s still within the Huffington Post experience. The post click content all lives within the expandable unit so it take less time to load.

?Jeep?s post click experience focuses primarily on encouraging the consumer to explore the car. Jeep understands that most consumers aren?t buying cars on their phones and therefore focuses the ad on giving consumers tools to explore the vehicle.?