Timberland is using mobile advertising to specifically push its mens’ Earthkeepers collection. The ads are running in New York, Boston and Chicago and appear in applications such as the New York Post iPhone app.

“What we are seeing from consumers on mobile is increasing adoption across smartphones and tablets, especially with our core demographic,” said Brian McGovern, senior manager of global and digital advertising at Timberland, Stratham, NH.

“We want to make sure that we are relevant, designing for mobile and allocating some budget dollars to show up in mobile,” he said.

Sales driver
The creative for the Timberland ads include animation to read, “Earthkeepers collection. Made with natural and recycled material.”

The ads are location-based and show users a landing page that lists the nearest stores.

Consumers can click-through on a store’s link for directions via Google Maps and a click-to-call feature.

Alternatively, consumers can shop from the landing page through Timberland’s mobile site.

Users are directed to the product page for the Earthkeepers shoe on the brand’s mobile site.

From there, consumers can browse photos of the shoes, learn about the fit and sizing, read reviews and buy products. Users with a PayPal account can speed up the check-out process by logging in.

Mobile boots
Timberland has been in the mobile space for while.

For instance, last year Timberland partnered with Lucky magazine on a campaign with Microsoft Tags to promote its fall products via style booklets (see story).

In this case, mobile advertising works in Timberland’s favor because it targets two groups of mobile shoppers.

Although mobile commerce is rapidly growing, there are still consumers that are wary of buying directly from their handset. Therefore, a store locator feature that can give users directions to the nearest location is a smart way to incorporate mobile.

Additionally, honing in one particular product gives users a specific reason to interact with an ad.

Moreover, unlike a lot of mobile ads, the ad reroutes users to the specific landing page on the mobile site versus Timberland’s homepage, which will likely lead to higher conversions for users that want to buy right then and there.

“For smaller retailers that specialize in one type of product a brand ad can be beneficial, but by far the more successful tactic is being as targeted as you can,” said Mike DiMarco, director of media at FiddleFly, Columbia, MD.

Mr. DiMarco is not affiliated with Timberland. He commented based on his expertise on the subject.

“Timberland is known for boots but they also sell hiking gear, jackets and men’s and women’s apparel, so placing an ad for the brand doesn’t address any specific target audience,” he said. “Talking about an individual shoe speaks to the pain of that item’s specific demographic.”

Final Take
Lauren Johnson is associate reporter on Mobile Commerce Daily, New York