Only 11 percent of both brands and agencies responding to eMarketer said mobile represented a line item in their 2010 budgets; nineteen percent said they were "experimenting but have no future plans at all;" and 36 percent of brands said it was simply not part of their plans.
But with the spread of smart phones and devices that facilitate easier Web searching, advertisers will find themselves faced with more options for reaching consumers on their phones, and are already preparing to take advantage of them.
EMarketer projects spending on mobile ads to reach $593 million next year, and $830 million in 2011. By 2013, the report says that number will reach $1.56 billion, 9.9 percent of total spending on display advertising.
"Mobile will grow considerably more quickly than online ad spending as a whole, more in line with emerging online formats such as digital video," Elkin said. The report also noted that widespread experimentation today is making marketers -- and consumers -- more comfortable with ads on mobile devices, and will pay off in the coming years.
Of course, talking about mobile is talking about many different things: search, display and SMS texting, to name a few. As for where marketers will put this money, eMarketer predicts the steepest rise to come in money spent on search, from 18 percent of the total in 2008 to 37 percent in 2013. Meanwhile, SMS will see a decline in share as messaging options become more sophisticated, from 60 percent in 2008 to 28 percent in 2013. Display is expected to grow its share, from 22 percent last year to 35 percent in 2013.
