The hair care brand has a prominently placed banner ad at the top of the Huffington Post?s mobile news feed. The expandable ad enable viewers to engage with photos and video, browse different products, read reviews and view a list of online retailers where products can be purchased from, including prices and shipping offers. 

?CPG marketers need to offer additional features on mobile to attract buyers,? said Guillaume Lelait, general manager of Fetch. 

?Mobile payments, geo-location, and deep-linking have been features that have led to seamless purchases by consumers,? he said. ?Deep-linking would be the most beneficial strategy to take for Pantene, if they construct a meaningful app.

?Merging content and commerce should appear seamless to the consumer, and engaging enough in order to feel less like an intrusive ad experience and more like a fun ecommerce experience.?

The campaign is an example of how consumer packaged goods manufacturers are increasingly focusing on merging mobile advertising, content and commerce to address how millennials are spending a significant chunk of time consuming content and shopping from their smartphones. However, simply adding a buy button and product reviews stops short of taking full advantage of mobile?s ability to reach the right audience and the right time with engaging content. 

The Pantene banner ad at the top of the Huffington Post?s mobile news feed expands to an on-site experience with video and photos as well as a big ?shop now? button. The visual content features singer and actress Selena Gomez, who is popular with younger consumers. 

Clicking on the ?shop now? button takes users to a landing page where they can browse different products, read reviews and see a list of different online retailers where they order, including price and shipping offers.

 

?As for Pantene, banner ads may not be enough to target consumers who are looking for a great ecommerce experience,? Mr. Lelait said. Banner ads require more effort to elicit engagement as opposed to video and images. 

?There is a lack of technological innovation and creativity when it comes to most banner ads,? he said. 

?Pantene needs to develop an omnichannel mobile experience for consumers to identify with their brand.?

One mass-market beauty brand that has found success on mobile is Unilever?s Dove, with the brand active on Snapchat, Instagram and other popular platforms. 

?Dove has rendered a complete shopping experience and a brand image that many woman can relate to,? Mr. Lelait said. ?If Pantene can uniquely generate a mobile commerce experience, they will see a lot of progress.?

For product placements on major platforms to be effective, they need to be natively integrated or focused on granular targeting, per Mr. Lelait. 

In comparison, banner ads can be intrusive and lacking in incentive for potential buyers. 

CPG marketers should also focus on visually stimulating platforms such as Pinterest, Instagram and Snapchat. 

A number of CPG marketers are looking to merge mobile content and commerce. 

Mondelez has been actively pursuing this strategy for a number of its brands. For example, the company?s Oreo brand recently enabled fans to personalize cookie packaging with holiday motifs on a mobile-optimized site, part of a longer-term initiative to drive mcommerce with fun digital experiences (see story). 

P&G?s Pantene campaign reflects the company?s efforts to reduce agency fees while getting more out of mobile and social (see story). 

?Millennials appreciate brands who create an engaging mobile commerce experience,? Mr. Lelait said. 

?CPG brands in the fashion, beauty, and health sectors have seen tremendous success by granular targeting on major platforms and creating meaningful video and mobile content,? he said. 

?CPG marketers on mobile who have struggled have been the ones who lack rich media for their audience as well as a customized shopping experience.?