• by Laurie Sullivan  @lauriesullivan, August 29, 2019

A study has found that direct-to-consumer (D2C) brand advertisers have higher click-through and conversion rates on mobile inventory than on desktop inventory.

The LiveIntent study analyzes dozens of D2C brands running marketing campaigns with LiveIntent, which reaches 250 million verified people monthly.

The findings suggest the click-through rate (CTR) for D2C brands is three times higher on phones than on desktop, and the conversion rates for D2C brands is 50% higher on phones than on PCs.

Kerel Cooper, senior vice president, global marketing, at LiveIntent, attributed a high CTR and conversion rate to the high usage rate of email on mobile compared to desktop.

In an email to Digital News Daily, Cooper said mobile devices were not optimized for actual purchases in the past, adding that D2Cs "have been pioneers in building mobile-friendly purchase pages." D2C checkout pages have the "luxury of simplicity," he said, because D2C brands are often "singularly focused on one product -- a toothbrush or a mattress. The simplicity lends itself to an easier checkout than, say, a big box store, which has thousands of products to purchase.”

Mobile increases clicks and conversions and keeps costs down. The data shows that D2C brands have a 25% lower cost per conversion (CPC) on mobile inventory compared to the rate on desktop computers.

D2Cs have always spent heavily on marketing and advertising, Cooper said, because it was the only way to get around the disadvantage of not being in big-box stores.

“They need a hefty budget to create relationships with customers to make up for not being around foot traffic,” he said, pointing to changes in the D2C model that has become so popular.

Evidently the LiveIntent platform has been flooded with D2C brands that sell everything from apparel to furniture to wellness tools to bedding, he said. DTCs launch direct relationships with consumers when they understand how simple it can be to run acquisition campaigns in incremental inventory.

As for D2C product ads, they seem to perform best in consumer-focused publications like newsletters that are about shopping tips, travel news, or general news.