Last week, we wrote about using branded new media applications for marketing. Today, InStat released new research that projects the number of mobile application-compatible devices will grow to about 140 million by 2013, creating a vast new market for advertisers.
Newer app stores -- Google's Android Market and RIM's forthcoming BlackBerry App World -- will challenge the Apple App Store's domination of the marketplace.
As with other emerging formats, one of the hurdles for marketers is the lack of standard metrics to gauge campaign performance of branded applications. Companies like AdMob, Medialets and Zumobi are now trying to develop was to measure the branding and marketing impact of mobile apps to help the category gain greater legitimacy.
Depending on what advertisers want to track, it may be possibleto customize the app itself to measure performance.
"You can put some feedback tools right in the app to track things like how many minutes, how many times somebody used it, and whether they passed it on," said David Chamberlain, an In-Stat analyst. "That kind of information is available if marketers want to use it."
