17 Feb Rise of the Second Screen Viewers

If you watch any live television broadcast – a sporting event, American Idol, etc. – I’m sure you’ve witnessed the incorporation of mobile interaction via social media channels.

Even pre-recorded television has gotten in on the act. Viewers are encouraged to use Twitter to vote for their favorites, or Shazam commercials for supplemental information.

Shazam recognizes music and media playing around you. Tap the Shazam button to instantly tag, and then explore, buy, share and comment. Tagging is unlimited, so use Shazam as much as you want.

Everyone I know today has a device in hand while watching television. In fact for many, their phone or tablet is their first screen; for some others, a mobile device might be the only screen.

Does the idea of cross-screen media plans disappear when trying to reach this demographic? Perhaps not – we just need to adjust the two-screen strategy to cater toward those who are mobile-centric.

Even with a growing portion of the population falling into the mobile-first category, it’s important for brands to still have a way to reach these consumers with large-format video in addition to mobile application.

Large format doesn’t have to mean their home TV screens!

Location-based video – those screens in offices, gyms, gas stations and malls – provide a platform to serve this large-format video to the mobile-first audience.

Imagine how powerful it would be for brands to target their audiences on mobile in combination with location-based video.

According to Mobile Commerce Daily, this mobile-first audience is by definition not sitting at home watching TV.  Instead, they are out and about: consumers on the go.

For this audience, you can take the data they generate while mobile and use it to immediately customize the collective experience – not on television, where it is difficult, if not impossible, to make real-time changes of this sort – but rather on location-based video screens reaching those same consumers while on the go.

Do you use location-based strategies when reaching your mobile audience?