Dive Brief:
- Facebook is adding two new features to its mobile ad tool Creative Hub, per a news announcement, including a group of testing tools that allow marketers to test mobile ad creative and should be available soon. The first tool in the set will give marketers a snapshot of video results that can used to optimize video creative based on metrics.
- The second feature is the ability to deliver mocked-up ads directly from Creative Hub in real time and is currently available. The feature improves workflow between media and creative groups by allowing creative teams to bypass the step of sending ad mock-ups via email or zipped files by keeping the entire process within Creative Hub.
- Facebook first announced Creative Hub at Cannes Lions last year before formally launching it in November 2016, and is using this year’s festival to announce the latest updates to the mobile creative tool.
Dive Insight:
Platforms like Facebook are increasingly providing self-service tools as brands and agencies look to streamline the media production and buying process. Given that Facebook along with Google currently dominate the digital marketing ecosystem, the new tools are likely to see wide use. The news also points to the growing importance of mobile video as consumers spend more time consuming content on their smartphones. In the post, Facebook pointed to research showing consumers now spend three hours a day with on their phones.
Savvy brands are looking to take advantage of the trend with super short ads — sometimes as brief as 6 seconds. For Facebook, ensuring that marketers can easily optimize their efforts is key for it to retain its leading role. The video optimizing tool, for example, can help marketers create ads that tell a story in the mobile news feed.
The fact that the social media giant is using one of the largest gatherings of advertising creatives to announce the enhancements underscores its need to curry favor with agencies in order to build lasting relationships with big brands. The core function of Creative Hub is to provide an easier and faster way for marketers to produce mobile ads across Facebook’s platforms, and the new features announced in the news post add to those capabilities.
