The company is running mobile banner ads within Pandora’s platform. Additionally, the company has its own radio station – G Series Fit Station – within Pandora.

“Every brand should be getting their feet wet in mobile advertising,” said Wilson Kerr, Boston-based location-based services consultant. “Mobile is new and there is a lot of buzz to sort through, but the fact is that 50 percent of Americans will own a smartphone this year, 79 percent of those surveyed use their smartphone while shopping, and 54 percenet use theirs to locate retailers nearby.

“For any brand that sells products through retail, these numbers should answer the question for them,” he said. “Mobile is the future of advertising and smart brands are testing ways to take maximum advantage.”

Mr. Kerr is not affiliated with Gatorade. He commented based on his expertise on the subject.

Gatorade did not respond to press inquiries.

Fit for mobile
Gatorade’s mobile banner ads lead consumers to an optimized landing page that features the company’s G Series Fit products and shows users how they can “make their workout work harder.”

The mobile banner ad

The page, which lets users scroll up or down for information, promotes the new products such as Gatorade’s new Prime – a 4oz punch that includes 25g of carbohydrate energy.

Consumers can also learn about the Perform drink, which has 25 calories or Recover, which features 12g of protein.

Consumers can learn more about the products

Users can share the products with friends and family via Twitter and Facebook.

Additionally, the ad features videos between Gatorade’s partnership with NFL Films, which documents 14 rookies on their journey from combine training to their first NFL game.

Users can watch the episodes via their mobile device.

Consumers can also share the videos with friends and family.

Via the mobile banner ad, consumers can also browse the company’s other products including G Series and G Series Pro.

“Mobile should offer a great opportunity for Gatorade to serve up information on their products, since I assume the ads will be tailored to the songs played on the Pandora station,” Mr. Kerr said. “If Gatorade can extrapolate response rates based on what songs are being played – or categories, they can very likely garner some powerful metrics that move beyond simple branding exposure.

“I can imagine them serving an ad for a new tropical fruit flavor during a Jimmy Buffet song, for example,” he said. 

Mobile target
Running targeted mobile banner ads on Pandora is a big advantage for Gatorade.

They are able to reach their target audience and engage with them on the most personal device they own – their handset.

The mobile banner ads not only help drives consumers in-store to try the new beverages, but also help build on the business and consumer relationship.

“As mobile commerce grows exponentially, mobile advertising should be right behind, since sales conversion allow ROI to be calculated and campaigns adjusted,” Mr. Kerr said.

“As more and more brands that sell consumer-direct leap into the mobile advertising game, agencies are increasingly having to educate themselves and offer up plans, strategies, and pilots. What I call ‘real word trigger points’ are the next big frontier as brands merge mobile marketing and traditional media like out of home and print,” he said.

“Gatorade is mixing radio and mobile in a way that should result in a refreshing new way to get their message across.”