AdColony Sees Big Numbers for Aurora Interactive Mobile Video Ads

Mobile ad platform AdColony is reporting a huge win for Aurora HD Video, its latest mobile video format. The company introduced Aurora in June as a way to add unique customizations and playability to mobile video ads. The format combines interactive video, haptic effects that makes phones rumble and shake, and WebGL graphics to create ads that not only look great but are fun to play with.

Buffalo Wild Wings was one of the first advertisers to sample Aurora, debuting videos where the company's Foodoo doll (a voodoo doll made of appetizers) runs over the screen. Viewers are asked to catch the doll, and when they do they leave wing sauce fingerprints.

Disney used Aurora to promote Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, and Genesis Motors used it to plug a new line of vehicles.

"When we talk with brands about Aurora, the first topic of conversation is 'how can we make your mobile video campaign different than anything you've done before?'" asks Jeff Hackett, senior vice president for U.S. brand sales at Aurora. "Simply taking a video that was designed for the world of TV or online and trying to port it to mobile is not necessarily the most effective way to run video campaigns. Mobile is more than just an additional reach vehicle. It's a chance to let consumers actually interact with your content in an incredibly personal and custom way. This is where the industry is heading, and advertisers who take a mobile-specific approach with their video can do pretty amazing things."

The numbers are in for those first three campaigns, and they're stellar. AdColony says 43 percent of the people who saw one of the ads engaged with it, which is 7 times better than the company's average. Those who did interact with the ads often did so multiple times. The ads also drew an impressive 90 percent completion rate. A study by Research Now says Aurora use led to a nearly 3 percent delta lift in purchase intent, nearly three times the average. The format got even higher marks for brand favorability.

"Our mobile campaign allowed us to take what had already been a successful TV spot and incorporate a level of interactivity that allowed people to engage with our brand in an entirely new way," says Bob Ruhland, vice president of marketing for Buffalo Wild Wings. "The campaign provided measurable results that we are very pleased with, ranging from clicks to loyalty program sign ups. It has been a great indicator of the impact building a unique creative experience can produce."

To sample Aurora HD Video, scroll down to view the Buffalo Wild Wings and Disney campaigns.