It seems that Facebook mobile ads are working. That may have been a bit of an understatement as our original report found that the CTR for mobile ads (sponsored stories) was four times higher than all ad placements. That’s not only working, it’s a bustling city of tiny advertising commerce. The question now is who’s driving this massive spike in mobile revenue?
A report from ad management firm Optimal has revealed that Android users are seemingly in love with Facebook mobile ads. Android users click on ads 10 to 55 percent more than iOS users. Those are some startling figures, but Android users can’t get enough it seems. According to the same report, the conversion rate is through the roof as 28 to 109 percent more Android users engage with these ads than their iOS counterparts.
Forbes spoke with a few advertisers who confirmed the findings. They found that iOS users still clicked on their fair share number of ads, even more than what’s clicked on the Web. Android was still much higher though with even a rate of sometimes more than 100 percent. It was found that Android users specifically like to click the Like button on mobile ads.
The report from Optimal only further solidifies the findings from an NPD report back in May that found Facebook was far more popular on Android devices. The study found that the Android Facebook app as well as the mobile Web version had a reach of about 70 to 75 percent. Compile this with the fact that Android users spend 15 minutes a day on Facebook and you have the perfect recipe for mobile ad success.
The other reason for success is the fact that Facebook for Android is just better than the iOS app according to Optimal CEO Rob Leathern. Speaking to Forbes, he said that brand pages suffer on iOS because users can only Like a page and not really interact with it in any meaningful way. He hopes that the new Facebook-iOS6 integration will improve mobile ads for Apple’s platform.
In the end, this isn’t about a pissing contest between Android and iOS. There are much better ways for the platforms to compete beyond CTR for mobile ads. This is more about Android setting the example of how best to engage audiences on mobile platforms with advertising. People like to interact with brands and Facebook for Android does this very well. Once iOS gets people on board with the same features, I’m sure the numbers will mostly even out. Unfortunately, it still won’t fix the ungodly amount of time Android users waste their time on the constantly buggy Facebook app.
