With so many advertising channels these days, it’s hard to know where to put your time and money. At the end of the day, all marketers have the same goal in mind: to deliver targeted messages to the most relevant audience. When you land the right messages in the right hands, it directly drives sales, and you get a maximum return on your ad dollars. But, this is easier said than done, otherwise we would all have marketing perfected.

Targeted Messages Based on Purchase History

What customers purchased in the past makes a difference as to what they will purchase today. For example, if a customer has bought coffee creamer for the past week over the last year, it’s likely that he or she will purchase another bottle this week. It’s going to be a lot more effective to reach this customer with an advertisement for coffee creamer compared to another customer of the same age and location who doesn’t buy creamer, and may not even drink coffee. Understanding what customers are buying in the store is a good first step to personalizing their media.

Mobile Shoppers Buy More & Spend More

Adage.com ran an in-store test-and-learn and found that mobile shoppers shop 41% more often than their non-mobile counterparts and spend 43% more, too. And, for marketers that target their messages based on previous purchases, mobile customers spend 82% more on these promoted products compared to those who receive ads on their desktop. Instead of thinking that mobile ads are better than desktop ads, think in terms of the audience you’re reaching. Both ads are effective, but mobile customers are most valuable.

Combining Mobile and Desktop Ads is Best

The best approach is to combine both mobile and desktop ads rather than focusing on one or the other. We tend to think that everyone has both a computer and a smartphone and are digesting information off both. Really, people who use their mobile devices to consume content do so always, and vice versa with a computer. By utilizing mobile and desktop ads, you can maximize your audience and reach different people on different channels.