2015 Digital Industry, Mobile and Advertising Predictions

Digital Industry Predictions
Mobile Industry Predictions
Digital Advertising Predictions
Mobile Advertising Predictions
Social Media Marketing Predictions
Social Media Marketing Projections

In 2015, every website must be mobile-ready as it is
imperative to reach consumers. Mobile-only/Mobile-first will be
the rule, not the exception. One billion people will use mobile
as their only form of internet access. User experience is
everything in mobile and the focus must be on intricacy and
ease.
Adoption of wearable IoT technology will increase in the next
five years tremendously. Wearables will carve a niche in the
market as they will become essential to everyday life. Their
usages are growing exponentially and they will remain as
valuable utilities to complement both phones and laptops.
Media companies will adopt data-driven strategies and
integrate data into everyday marketing decisions, product
development and campaign planning. Big data and advanced
analytics will drive sales growth through more effective
marketing and advertising.

The second screen experience creates unique
opportunities for companies to enhance
engagement between the audience and their
favorite shows. People no longer consume media
in a linear, predictable way. Therefore, to achieve
brand objectives, we must mirror
this shift in content interaction.
62% of users say synchronized content
enhances their experience. In 2015, content will
need to be more engaging to go viral and gain
more traction.
Marketers must add value to the user
experience through content. This
demands the right creative across the
screen at the opportune time, and
using research to listen to the
consumer’s voice at key stages.
Digital Industry: Second Screen

Apple has been late to the game of smart watches
but in 2015 it will redefine how apps relate back to
phones.
With the heavy usage of iPhone users in America the
amount of units to be sold will exceed 20 million or
at least 10% of current iPhone users.
Apple intends to challenge competitors to keep up
with added features that others have yet to utilize.
This will be setting the standard for what consumers
expect in terms of wearables. Companies would be
wise to study the depth Apple has spent on redesign
and interface for apps on the phone versus the
watch.
Digital Industry: Apple Watch

Today’s society demands that more things in our lives
become innately connected and it’s only a matter of
time until this scope includes our homes.
Despite a relatively new marketplace, the consumer’s
need for control, convenience and safety around the
home is increasing in popularity. By 2019, there will be
23.3 billion IoT installed devices connected to the
Internet. This IoT expansion equates to 1.7 trillion
dollars in added value to the IoT economy.
Industries will be forced to deliver more efficient and
user friendly systems and services that help consumers
manage their homes and their security.
Digital Industry: Internet of
Things (IoT)

Digital Industry: Internet of
Things (IoT)
Amazon recently launched Prime Now, a one-hour delivery option for Amazon Prime members in NYC, will
take off. By upping the convenience of the service customers will flock to it to purchase “essential” products,
including things like paper towels, batteries, toys and books.
Amazon has to stay competitive with the growing number of startup services offering similar benefits,
including trials from larger companies. Amazon’s Prime push has seen the company add a lot to
membership benefits in 2015, alongside a price hike earlier in the year.
Amazon: Prime Now

Social Media Marketing Projections

Digital Advertising
Predictions
2015 is multi-platform.
Brands and agencies need Omni-device
targeting, which includes: display, tablet,
mobile, connected TV and others.
Programmatic Native Will Become Practical.
Publishers will make their native layouts
more accessible by supporting programmatic
native and will reap high CPMs. Advertisers
aim for an increase in engagement and
response, with early adopting platforms
collecting healthy margins. Programmatic
is primed to attract more players on both
sides.
The Demise Of Old School Ad Networks.
In 2015 publishers will see the greater
opportunity for ROI working with a
good programmatic partner, rather
than a traditional ad network.

Going forward, digital will continue to be the fastest-growing ad medium. U.S. advertisers’
spending on digital, largely due to mobile, will overtake even that of TV’s in 2016.
As more consumers and ad spends shift toward mobile, programmatic ad buying will continue to
boom, accounting for 50% of all mobile buys. Programmatic advertising in 2015 will increase
52% to $21 billion globally.
What does this mean for the digital
advertising?
2015 will mark the rise of the “Meta DSP.”
Brands and agencies will no longer single-source a
programmatic partner anymore. One provider will
not have the ability to satisfy every campaign need.
Therefore, working with multiple programmatic
partners in 2015 will be the norm, in order to
capitalize on their different skills.

Programmatic TV can benefit all parties by automating buying, selling, delivery and
measurement. It will play a major role in targeting audiences across screens and provide more
deeply integrated planning options.
Programmatic video advertising will grow to a $3.8 billion market by 2016, up from $710 million
this year.
Connected TVs allow advertisers to select ad content that is relevant and specific to the user
watching at that exact moment. Access to consumer profiles and viewing activity in real time,
empowers more targeted engagement.
Digital Advertising: Programmatic TV

RTB will be the preferred buying method for all media. In 2015, more and more media buying
will become automated and instantaneous. This will further aid in the ability of systems to
seamlessly communicate with each other, improving accountability, measurability and efficiency.
Mobile’s seamless ad delivery and increase in adoption. 2015 will see a shift away from the last-
click model, towards click-to-engage metrics such as calls, use of a store locator and downloads.
Omni-channel strategies will be important this next year, with unified, cross screen marketing
efforts creating seamless experiences.
Big data is getting bigger. First and third party data sources will help marketers pinpoint exactly
when their customers are in the market for a product so that, instead of just knowing what the
customers want after they click an item, marketers will know before customers visit a website.
Companies have massive amounts of analytics related to sales, purchase history, search activity,
site interactions and more. Big data gives marketers the most complete obtainable customer
profile, which informs audience strategies, smarter media buying and creative decisions.
Digital Marketing Predictions: Mobile, Data and RTB

Augmented Reality
We predict AR to go up in popularity as it will lead to the much anticipated virtual reality.
Augmented reality marketing has developed fast in
the last few years, moving from web to mobile —
and next, to wearable. In 2015 AR will become
more commonplace in everyday life as well as
across advertising platforms.
AR campaigns require active engagement;
consumers choose to trigger an AR experience.
Brands will be able to deliver more value to their
audiences and create much more impactful
interactions, whether they are delivering
something of educational, entertainment or
functional value.
This will stumble in the beginning, make no
mistake, but by the end of 2015 it will have its
place among the marketing space

Personalization will become a widely adopted in 2015, leading to the growth of 1-to-1 marketing. No
one likes irrelevant content. A marriage of rich media and personalization will become the much desired
norm as deep engagement will be key. This coming year will give way to the rise of personal marketing.
Mobile apps will be seen as tools of the enterprise. In 2015 apps will no longer only seen as broadcast
mechanisms aimed at a public audience, but rather as as essential tools with specific purposes
targeting a certain group of people.
“Phablets” will drive roughly 30% of North American mobile traffic by end of 2015. Between September
2013 and 2014, North American smartphone-based web traffic driven by users of 5-inch or larger
devices grew from 6.9- 17.9%-- over 150% increase. By the end of 2015, we can expect 1/3 of all
continental smartphone web usage to be driven by these devices.
More mobile video. Most people already use their smartphones and tablets to stream video. The
popularity of viewing videos via handheld devices will surge– at least by 50%, in 2015. Video is
progressively overtaking other tactics online, and as rapidly as mobile is growing, mobile video is
growing with it.

Mobile App Predictions
Appification. Apps are becoming essential tools to serve larger
overall objectives. More so than ever, apps are being created for
designated purposes to address specific needs. This nuanced
change is opening the door to a larger more specialized market
tailored to needs.
Apps will be used for marketing at a heightened level. Alongside
the web and social media, mobile will bring unique qualities to
marketing campaigns. Targeted data along with personalization
will allow marketers to leverage things like location, photo-
sharing and messaging to build more engagement and push the
idea of mobile moments, immediate context.
Mobile and web will merge in 2015 like never before driven by
personalization and utility.
2015 will see apps that are more:
• targeted
• plentiful
• focused on communication
• integral to marketing

The Rise of Low Code Development
What are low code solutions?
Platforms that enable rapid application delivery with a minimum of hand-coding, and quick setup and
deployment, for systems of engagement.
Why is it gaining traction in 2015?
As of now this exists but little to no people realize it’s value. The value of a low-code development
platform is that it brings IT and the business together, allowing for more rapid, iterative and collaborative
development. Applications can quickly be built, seamlessly deployed and easily altered—there is no need
for low-level coding.
For enterprises seeking to scale their B2E applications, low-code platforms will be the go to solution,
alongside both native development and cross-platform means. Businesses that seek a faster and
cheaper way to deliver applications will increasingly turn to low code for solutions in 2015.

Wearable Tech Will Be Commonplace
By the end of 2015 the majority of wearables will be priced under $50 and become commonplace
commodities.
Wearables has been a hot topic, and the high-end Apple Watch’s arrival in 2015 will be met with much
anticipation, hype and media attention. However, much like we saw with the Walkman and then MP3
players, wearable technology will increasingly become mainstream and commoditized.
The Internet of things will create a new kind of environment and marketers will have to keep up with its
rapid development in order to stay in touch with changing needs. We expect the market will only be able
to support a few high-end wearables, and these will let you leave your phone and computer at home for
days.

Mobile Industry: Beacon Technology
Beacons are low cost hardware that utilize low-energy Bluetooth (BLE) to connect delivering signals,
data, and messages directly to a smartphone or tablet. This method of reaching consumers is
becoming more prevalent due to its heightened accuracy over GPS, WiFi or NFC.
Because BLE is compatible with an estimated 570 million smartphones, beacons will continue to
transform how retailers, event organizers, and businesses can use location based targeting to
engage with customers in the coming 2015 year.
We will see a massive increase in beacon usage. There will be 4.5 million active beacons overall
by the end of 2018, with 3.5 million of these in use by retailers.
Ad spending on location targeted ads will grow from the current 4.9 billion to more than 15 billion
in 2018.
FDG and our FreshBeacon technology has already been implemented in the Miami Dolphins
Stadium, and are currently in the process of attaining several more. As beacons grow in popularity,
FDG will be at the forefront in this growing field.

The rise of in-store beacons, sensors and tracking
technologies will result in significant increase in the number
of retailers tracking new types of in-store metrics. Retailers
will continue to create more immersive experiences for their
shoppers.
Beacons have the real potential to take collected data and
create a more engaged experience between store and
shopper. Discounts being pushed to users will be a norm
and perhaps expected for shoppers entering the store.
Half of the top 100 retailers in the U.S. have tested beacons
this year, this will be installed in one-third of their store
locations by the end of 2015 and by 2019 60 million
beacons deployed in US stores.
Beacons in Retail

Almost all attendees bring their mobile phones to events, with
76% in 2014 engaging on their device. FDG believes that
the amount will only increase, companies will utilize this
excellent opportunity to implement beacon technology for
location based targeting.
With beacons, sporting events will have an added level of
engagement. This will enable fans to check into the game,
receive exclusive stadium offers, find the quickest routes to
their seats and get the latest game and team content.
Check the Score
Find Your Seat
Coupon Deals
Beacons at Events

Where to Find Mobile Beacons: 2015
Although popularity in beacon technology has a bright future in retail and sports arenas it will also
start gaining traction in:
• Museums and zoos. Stand-alone audio narration devices are commonplace, but they’re costly and
inconvenient. Beacons will lower cost and eliminate need for users to carry additional equipment,
and in-app purchases could enable site operators to continue to generate additional revenues by
forwarding information about upcoming events.
• Hotels and restaurants. Upscale hotels are already utilizing beacon technology to automatically
check in guests as they walk into the building, unlock doors to their rooms when within a certain
proximity, and find their way to the nearest on-site bar or restaurant.
• Amusement parks. Beacons will give real-time information regarding the wait times for nearby
rides on top of greeting visitors at the entrance and delivering information such as the day’s event
schedule.
• Mass transit. Beacons will be invaluable in airports, subway stations and other mass transit
centers. They will not only serve as a navigation guide for unfamiliar travelers but alert users on a
certain concourse or platform about canceled flights or train delays.

• With 2014 as the year of leaked nude celebrity photos, in addition to the Sony Pictures
Hack, there is a pressing concern for invasion of privacy in the mobile and digital space.
• 58% now say that they are concerned about the internet eroding their personal privacy.
• Digital consumers are taking direct and pro-active steps to safeguard themselves by
deleting cookies, using private browsing windows, and the use of Virtual Private Networks
(VPNS) and Proxy Servers.
• Currently, older segments are most concerned about their online privacy, whereas younger
segments are the most active in protecting themselves.
Taking Our Privacy Back

Mobile Advertising
Predictions
Brands will tap into the power of medium as an
advertisement tool. We will see much more
sophisticated and creative collaborations in
2015, as content creators build audiences that
rival those of pop stars and brands grasp just
how powerful a advertising tool this can be.
Your stories will be everywhere. In 2015 there
will be a big push towards trans-media
storytelling. Rather than crafting a story
for an isolated viewing experience, like a
blog post, a billboard or a Tweet,
advertisers will design stories that are
pieced together across different media,
with a focus on mobile.
U.S. digital ad revenues will be mobile
centric in 2015 with mobile ad
spending up 77%.

Mobile Advertising: Importance of Rich Media & Creative
By the end of 2015, ads will be very different from the
ones we see today. The ability for brands to add rich
media to their existing ad campaigns will only enhance
and offer a new venue for reaching their intended
audiences. Companies will adapt to incorporate native,
fun and interactive features to instill the app experience
with a sense of engagement that will keep users
interested and coming back.
Rich Media will remain one of the best mobile advertising trends for 2015. These ads will focus on
achieving increased engagement, getting leads, as well as, increasing sales volumes. Personalization
will need to be enhanced in order to reach the everyday consumer. It not only is expected but
demanded by the audience to better know them and what they would want.
With an increase in marketing noise, marketers need to use creative to boost visual storytelling as a
medium to help their message stand out, be more engaging and send a clear message about the
brand. Luxury brands will have to use this avenue of reaching new consumers given the rise of rich
media click-throughs in wealthier populations. If luxury brands want modern customers, they will need
to update their marketing strategy.
Mobile users want information delivered to their phones in a
convenient and personalized way. They increasingly expect
devices and apps to anticipate their needs. It is imperative to
understand customers’ personal goals and emotions to craft
brand messages that convey personal value.

Creative will up its game to new heights.
Rich media ad units have seen a 216% growth from year-to-year and this trend will continue into the
coming year. Mobile is surpassing any other device on click-throughs.
Visual Storytelling Will Go Wild
Due to the increase in marketing noise, marketers need to find a medium that will help their message
stand out from the crowd. The answer? Visual storytelling. This tactic will be employed to communicate
the brand’s philosophy and aesthetics by engaging and nurturing consumer communities.
Videos on Mobile
The demand for personalized videos will drive the intent for companies to produce these. Marketing is no
longer about campaigns that take months to create, long shelf lives is not the goal, it is archaic. The
beauty of video ads are the shortness while still allowing the footprint of what was watched to linger.

Mobile Advertising: Mobile Gaming
Gaming will remain the number one type of mobile app people download in 2015. Moreover, mobile is
expected to become gaming’s overall biggest market this coming year.
Advertisements in games can be targeted directly the right people, so the ad is actually relevant to the
person’s interests. Games will be a massive asset for data collection and will allow the development of
new content. At least 2/3 of mobile gamers check price or read reviews on their phones while in store.
Brand advertisers are currently spending just 20% of their budgets on mobile now, but by 2018 that
share will increase to 35%.
The mobile game business is expected to surpass console games in revenue in 2015 as mobile gamers
each year are getting younger. We expect mobile games will hit $30.3 billion in 2015, up from $25 billion
in 2014. By 2017, mobile games are expected to top $40 billion.

The rise of Ello- Ello, which is still in public beta (invite-only,) has been mounting in interest. Ello
offers a forever ad-free experience and promises to never sell its users’ information to third parties.
Though engagement on the platform does not seem to be high at this point, Ello is primed to grow
in 2015, both in terms of numbers and engagement. This is one to watch.
Facebook ad pricing and demand will significantly increase. As Facebook continues to limit the
number of posts page fans see, the demand for promoted posts and ads will continue to increase. A
trend of increased pricing since 2013 is likely to continue into 2015 as organic post reach continues
to diminish, this will lead to an increased demand and ultimately increased pricing
Google+ will further lag behind Twitter, LinkedIn
and Facebook. With the failure of Google’s
Authorship experiment, Google+ no longer brings
unique value given that most don’t realize with the
creation of a gmail this is also created.
We will be taking our Privacy back. The time for
broken boundaries has passed. Educated
consumers will continue to refuse using
applications and sites that want too much personal
information and companies should pay close
attention to this blurred line.

Social commerce: FB + Twitter
Facebook will remain the primary platform for users in 2015 and will continue to drive massive
amounts of daily traffic while remaining the best in shopping influences. Facebook users can
expect a new “Buy button” allowing them to make purchases on a platform native to Facebook. In
addition, expect less ads and promotions! Facebook will begin to allow users to control the ads
they see, even allowing users to opt out of viewing ads completely.
In 2015, we also expect Twitter to have it’s own “Buy button” along its side tweets and posts,
bringing online sales to new highs by eliminating the hassle of searching for your purchases
online. As Twitter rolls out new shipping and payment options, it will become a contender with
commerce heavy weights Amazon and eBay. Twitter itself has an advantage against Facebook
because filtering is an option to gear feeds specific to each user offering convenience of purchase
right from Twitter.
2015 will see a deeper integration of e-commerce and social media, due to social media power
players Facebook and Twitter. This has been an escalating battle between the two and will only
intensify further coming into 2015 as both are envious of features the other offers.

Facebook = Digital Media Powerhouse
Facebook will keep increasing their dominance as a digital media powerhouse in 2015. Facebook
has been on a spending spree, shelling out billions of dollars on both small and large companies
that it will either fold into its umbrella or tap to improve experiences.
Facebook has acquired up around 50 companies since 2005, and most of them are considered
talent acquisitions. The biggest purchases however - including Instagram, WhatsApp, and Oculus
VR - are some of the most notable exceptions, because Facebook plans to use them for global and
mobile dominance.
In 2015, Facebook will push forward with its digital media expansion and increase its media impact
through mobile and digital execution.
Facebook’s Multifaceted Reach

Social commerce: Instagram + Snapchat
The number of Instagram users has surpassed that
of Twitter and it is projected to grow at least 15% in
2015. More opportunities in brand engagement will
occur, especially in direct messaging, where
coupons or promo codes can be sent directly to
followers. Instagram will bring the shopping
experience to a new level by making links clickable
under posts to direct commerce traffic and increase
their product placement.
Snapchat has recently rolled out Snapcash, a
convenient person-to-person payment platform
powered by Square. Built in to Snapchat’s direct
messaging system, Snapcash is used to send
money from a user’s bank account to friends also
registered with the program. Snapcash partners
with major events like NCAA Football, Oktoberfest
or The World Cup to become a ticket sales platform
allowing the purchase of tickets through Snapchat
in 2015.
Social Media Marketing
Predictions

In 2015, Yik Yak has a
chance of bringing marketing
opportunities to local small
businesses through events,
special in-store deals, and
product information promotion. This
will eventually move up to larger
corporations.
Having launched in November 2013,
Yik Yak had 100,000 users by Februrary
2014 and proceeded to raise $61 million in
funding soon thereafter. We expect this latest messaging
app to take the social media world by storm in 2015.
35
Yik Yak next?
Yik Yak, also known as the “local anonymous Twitter” lets unknown users share their voice
according to their location. Yik Yak is the first location-based social platform and is especially
popular among college students.

Twitter’s new business advertising model will skyrocket in popularity. With Twitter’s move to offering
businesses more choice and flexibility in how and what they pay for in terms of advertising, more
small and medium sized businesses will join Twitter. The new fee structure allows businesses to
pay for certain performance-based actions rather than just retweets or clicks. These campaigns will
be particularly appealing to small business owners who want to pay for results, not just for brand
visibility.
Instagram will become essential for image-based social media marketing. Instagram will also
continue to grow in the micro-video space. With both Vine and Instagram vying for billing as the top
video networking site, the platforms have continued to differentiate themselves from the other
offering dissimilar features, video lengths and editing capabilities. However, it is likely we will see
Instagram begin to outpace Vine as we enter 2015 by removing unpopular filters and adding newer
ones.
LinkedIn will widen the gap as “the” B2B social network. For the B2B crowd: 88% of B2B marketers
are using LinkedIn, compared to 89% for Facebook and 86% for Twitter. B2C marketers, on the
other hand, report LinkedIn as being significantly less important than Facebook or Twitter for their
marketing efforts. We believe 2015 is the year LinkedIn will surpass Facebook for B2B marketing.

Digital Industry
• Wearable technology will change behavior
• Big Data and advanced analytics will drive everyday marketing decisions
• Beacons will be used in the retail and event setting
• IoT offers the opportunity to develop a system of products rather than stand-alone
• Second Screen will drive creative execution that has value at the opportune time
Digital Advertising
• Digital advertising will outpace TV in the coming years
• Working with multiple programmatic partners will become the norm
• Augmented reality will grow
• Brands and agencies must specialize omni-device targeting
• Traditional ad networks will become outdated with a shift to programmatic
• Programmatic TV will be utilized for more personalized advertising
Key Takeaways: Digital

Mobile Industry
• Apps will again be viewed as app utility will enter the fourth inning of progression
• Apps will be used for marketing to leverage things like location, photo-sharing etc. to build
more engagement through personalization
• The frequency of communication is important to maintain user engagement no matter the
audience size
Mobile Advertising
• Rich media will continue to be a major factor in mobile advertising as user experience is
critical in capturing and sustaining their attention
• Gaming will be a new platform to boost sales with targeted content
Social Media Marketing
• Facebook and Twitter’s ad pricing and demand will significantly increase
• Instagram will become the leader in image-based social media marketing
• LinkedIn will be considered the favorite go-to social network for B2B
Key Takeaways: Mobile and Social Media

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2015 Digital Industry, Mobile and Advertising Predictions

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