Adobe Survey Finds Pockets of Opportunity for Consumer Electronics Advertisers

With consumer electronics brands forecasted to eclipse $10.1 billion in digital ad spend this year and Samsung recently surpassing Proctor & Gamble as the largest U.S. advertiser, it’s an exciting time to be a consumer electronics marketer. It’s also a complicated time, as heightened consumer expectations, a fragmented media landscape, and an explosion in screens, devices, content, and data make advertising to consumers more difficult than ever.

According to Ovum, over half (51%) of high-tech marketers cite “engaging customers using contextual and relevant advertising” as the most important digital capability that companies plan to use in 2019 — but also among the most challenging as amplifying audiences tops marketers’ list of concerns (see Figure 1).

Figure 1

A recent survey of over 1,000 Americans that Adobe conducted using Surveys by Adobe Advertising Cloud bears out that fact, with many consumer electronics brands struggling to reach consumers with relevant ads. Among the results:

1. Consumers — particularly millennials — are not seeing relevant ads

In spite of record time spent online, whether it’s streaming video or podcasts or perusing social media, a majority of Americans say they haven’t seen digital ads for consumer electronics brands.

• In particular, only 15.9% of millennials and 9.6% of Generation Z say they have seen digital ads for consumer electronics on a website or app — less than any other age group surveyed.
• When millennials see ads for consumer electronics, however, nearly one in four (22.7%) report being persuaded — more than any other age group surveyed.
• PC brands, in particular, stand out for lack of awareness among younger consumers. Over one in four millennials (24.7%) say they have never seen ads for the top three PC brands (in terms of sales). In fact, nearly twice as many millennials (44.1%) have seen ads for smartphones or tablets as they have for PC brands (23.5%).

2. Smart home and smart speakers: a growth category (for advertising)

• Despite being a growth category, smart home technology (i.e., Nest) and smart speaker brands stand out for lack of ad exposure. Only 12.9% of Americans report ever seeing ads for smart home brands, and fewer (8.5%) are seeing ads for smart speakers — with millennials the least exposed of all age groups surveyed.
• Of Americans who recall seeing ads for smart home technology, 80.3% report being unpersuaded or turned off — more than any other category.

These results speak to why Adobe Experience Cloud launched Adobe Advertising Cloud over two years ago. By leveraging a native integration with Adobe Analytics and Adobe Audience Manager, Advertising Cloud helps consumer electronics marketers drive incremental reach to specific audiences across traditional and digital formats — from search to video, display, audio, and even linear TV — and ultimately transform advertising from disparate exposures to connected advertising experiences.

To learn more about Adobe Advertising Cloud, click here.