A key takeaway is that riders in crowded subway trains are good targets for mobile advertising, according to the study by Emory University, New York University, Temple University and China?s Sichuan University. The study surmises that, as crowding invades consumers? personal space, they adaptively turn inwards and become more susceptible to mobile ads, which may be seen as a welcome relief from their environment.  

?Crowdedness in public transportation, where commuters are often squeezed against strangers with little else to do, is annoying, and yet ironically an opportune moment for mobile ads,? said Dr. Xueming Luo, marketing professor at Temple University. 

 

?After a threshold, the more crowded the subway with more strangers around, the more purchases of mobile ads sent to smartphone users who are commuting in crowd subway trains,? he said. 

The study is published in the INFORMS journal Marketing Science.  

The study is based on data from a large telecom provider who randomly sent targeted mobile ads to individual users for digital services such as video streaming, measured purchase rates and surveyed those who made a purchase as well as those who did not. 

Using a sample of 14,972 mobile phone uses, the study found that, on average, the purchase rate was 2.1 percent when there were fewer than two people per square meter. The purchase rate jumped to 4.3 percent when there were five people per square meter. 

In order to rule out the possibility that the result could arise because crowded peak hours are better times for shopping, the results were controlled for the time of day, day of week and idiosyncratic differences in individual mobile use. 

The findings show that the better response rates hold true even when unexpected train delays underground or street traffic halts aboveground cause sudden crowdedness. 

Welcome relief?
Crowding is often associated with negative emotions such as anxiety and risk-avoidance. With more consumers responding to mobile ads under these circumstances, this suggests a positive aspect to ads, where users recognize them as a welcome relief in a crowded environment. 

With consumers who live in cities commuting an average of 48 minutes each way and global mobile spending expected to exceed $100 billion, the study makes a strong case for marketers to integrate hyper-contextual targeting into their marketing strategies.  

While the findings suggest marketers should consider the crowdedness of a consumer?s environment as a way to boost the effectiveness of hyper-contextual mobile advertising, the report also points out that not all crowded place may produce similar results. For example, consumers at a crowded restaurant or stadium may focus on food, companions or a game rather than ads. 

It is also important to keep in mind that different people react to crowdedness in different ways. 

?This year is omnipresence of mobile targeting and online/offline world integrations of smartphone users, so cutting edge ads have to be smarter and more targeted to help smartphone users in real-world situations,? Dr. Luo said.