Yieldmo summarizes their top 5 mobile ad experiments of 2014. These are all really interesting veins to mine: intentionality, engagement, viewability, urgency, and user interruption.

Intentionality is incredibly important in mobile. I suspect that the accidental click problem is much larger than any of us want to admit.

However, what I'm really encouraged by is the inclusion of user interruption:

Imagine recapping the day’s tweets on your phone. Suddenly, someone wrenches the device from your hands and shoves an ad in your face. It sounds awful doesn’t it? It also sounds like a lot of mobile advertising today. At Yieldmo, we’re constantly experimenting with how to deliver pleasant ads that keep users on the page and engaged with the content they came for. Worried that this will harm the ad’s performance? You’d be surprised.

I think user experience, holistically, is the biggest opportunity in digital advertising, mobile or otherwise. Furthermore, I suspect that, in the short/medium term, there is more easy ground to be taken in identifying and avoiding negative user experiences than there is in doubling down on positive experiences. But these are two sides of the same coin and so any real progress here, whether towards positive experiences or away from negative ones, is more than welcome. I have a lot more to say about this topic, but I'll leave that for another day.

I think Yieldmo are my favorite ad tech startup right now.