U.S. Navy, Land Rover advertise on new sites in Quattro network

By Dan Butcher

June 26, 2008

Toyota, Land Rover, American Express, Sony, the U.S. Navy and Microsoft are advertising on newly added sites to Quattro Wireless’ mobile ad network.

Quattro has added mobile sites to its Entertainment & Lifestyle channel that features gossip, entertainment news and celebrity images. The mobile new sites include TheInsider.com, Cracked.com, Savvy.com, Fandango.com, Hollywood.com, JoBlo.com and MovieWeb.com.

“We have a bunch of leading publishers within each channel, providing a compelling inventory for advertisers to target on the mobile Web,” said Lars Albright, vice president of business development for Quattro, Waltham, MA. “The latest additions to the Quattro network are entertainment sites, a channel that is particularly effective in the mobile space.”

Quattro provides both branded and direct response advertising. The company delivers targeted mobile ads via channels within its network of several hundred Web sites.

Other advertisers in the Quattro network include Axe, Gillette, Covergirl, CBS News, Lionsgate Films and the NBA Choice Hotels, the University of Phoenix, Thumbplay, Neo Networks and BuzzWire.

“Quattro Wireless matches leading advertisers with leading publishers within the mobile space,” Mr. Albright said. “The goal is to generate interactivity and drive traffic.”

Branded ads are generally graphical advertising such as banner ads for clients looking to get out a broader message, he said.

Direct response, cost-per-click advertising is geared toward clients trying to get people to do something very specific such as click-to-call to sign up for a monthly subscription of mobile content.

Some clients combine both aspects.

For example, the U.S. Navy has branded graphical advertising, as well as direct response ads urging people to get more information and eventually enlist.

The University of Phoenix ads try to get people to click-to-call to learn about their educational opportunities and to sign up for classes. Ringtones sites often use click-through banner ads.

“There’s a pre-click component with standard-size banner ads at the top of the page above the fold that includes a compelling call to action,” Mr. Albright said. “Once they’ve clicked getting through, we get people to engage with an ad microsite or landing page.”

“With direct response, we have consumers interact with a bunch of different options and issue a call-to-action for them to sign up for an SMS club, get product info or store locators,” Mr. Albright said. “These CPC ads are focused on specific actions.”

Quattro is about to launch a branded ad buy with Land Rover that will run across some of these new sites where consumers can click for information about cars and get product reviews.

Other channels in Quattro’s mobile ad network include Women, News & Information, Sports, Teen, Mobile Content, Hispanic and Communities & Gaming.

“Our network gives advertisers the ability to select the right audience and right type of ad by targeting on a channel level and a site-to-site level,” Mr. Albright said. “We allow advertisers to pick a specific channel or site to reach a certain demographic, although there is usually some overlap.”