Dive Brief:

• PR Week reports that Coke, Nestle and Mondelez are three CPG brands taking advantage of Facebook’s Slideshow ad unit to reach audiences in emerging markets where data use and bandwidth is an issue on mobile devices.
• The Slideshow format was designed for places like Brazil and Indonesia where video ads would be too taxing for most users and wouldn’t provide a satisfactory user experience.
• Facebook created the ad unit specifically to reach a more global audience for its advertisers, as well as provide them with a way to turn video creative into more user-friendly content for viewers who don’t have the mobile bandwidth to view full video ads.

Dive Insight:

Facebook unveiled Slideshow, what was described as a "video light" ad unit, last fall at a time when the ad community has been dealing with issues such as a rise in ad block adoption and lack of viewability standards. Though Facebook's stripped-down ads are meant for users in emerging markets, the thought behind the ad unit, of paring down bulky ads to bare bones, is in line with the IAB's new LEAN advertising principles. In the face of consumers asking for fewer ads, finding creative, non-intrusive ways to reach them with ads is key to seeing positive results.

Jennifer Spies, product marketing manager at Facebook, told PR Week, "Frequently, marketers are creating Facebook videos, but because of the difference between 2G and 4G connections, people cannot access these. Slideshow’s flexible ad format, one of the first to be developed in emerging markets, creates an immersive advertising experience for varying levels of connectivity."

The three brands are using Slideshow to reach audiences in different emerging markets: Mondelez is targeting Argentina and Brazil; Nestle is targeting the Philippines; and Coke is targeting Kenya and Nigeria. The common denominator is all three are achieving positive results with the campaign. Sock e-tailer Stance is using the format in the U.S. market where it could just serve up regular video ads, and it posted positive results as well, possibly from standing out with a somewhat novel ad format for the market.