5 charts: The truth about mobile display ad performance

Mobile ads are a moving target, so to speak.

To get a clear picture of mobile display ad performance, Celtra conducted a comprehensive audit of ads that ran on the Celtra AdCreator 4 platform. During Q2 of 2014, of the total requested mobile display ad impressions, 98 percent were Standard ad formats; 89 percent were made by smartphones and 11 percent by tablets.

As for device platforms, more than half (51 percent) were served on iOS, 47 percent on Android and 2 percent on other platforms. Nearly two-thirds (64 percent) were in-app, while the rest were served in Web browsers.

That’s the big picture. Digging deeper into the findings, we learn more about specific ad formats, how they perform in each vertical and, perhaps, what the future holds.

Smart video ads significantly outperformed other format types in unit engagement rate

celtra-graphs_1

Specifically, Smart video ads engaged at nearly 64 percent above the average, and nearly double the engagement of Standard formats. Additionally, Smart video ads outperformed for time spent on ad unit: 27.1 seconds vs. Standard’s 16 seconds on tablets, and 24.8 seconds vs. Standard’s 16.1 seconds on smartphones.

 

For both Standard and Smart video formats, ads placed within apps enjoyed higher expansion rates and time spent on ad unit in comparison to ads published in web browsers


celtra-graphs_2

While in-app expansion rates are impressive leaders, their clear advantage lies in their time spent on ad units. Standard ads performed nearly 50 percent better in-app than in web browsers. For Smart video ads, it’s a full 66 percent better performance.

 

At 0.79 percent, technology yielded the highest ad expansion rate in Q2

celtra-graphs_3

The least engaged verticals? Finance and CPG, each at 0.52 percent.

 

Automotive’s expanded banners boasted the longest time spent on ad unit, performing nearly 10 percent better in kind than the next vertical, technology

celtra-graphs_4

For interstitial ads, only entertainment showed a longer time on ad unit: 12.2 seconds compared to automotive’s 8.1 seconds.

 

The highest video completion rates were seen in the entertainment and travel verticals

celtra-graphs_5

The worst performers? Finance (33.8 percent) and, curiously, technology (40.4 percent), which actually demonstrated the highest expansion rate this quarter (see above).

For more information on these and other important findings, click here.

celtra_rev

https://digiday.com/?p=89488

More from Digiday

Podcast companies turn to live events to capture growing advertiser spend

The surge in the number of live podcast events in 2025 reflects a broader shift: advertisers are betting bigger on podcasts — not just as an audio channel but as a full-fledged creator economy play.

Best Buy, Lowe’s chief marketing officers explain why they launched new influencer programs

CMOs launched these new programs in response to the growing importance of influencers in recommending products.

Agencies create specialist units to help marketers’ solve for AI search gatekeepers

Wpromote, Kepler and Jellyfish practices aim to illuminate impact of black box LLMs’ understanding of brands search and social efforts.