Gartner: Smartphones & GPS Fuel Mobile Ad Growth Spurt by 2013

Mobile marketing’s time to shine may be here, or at least just around the corner. By 2013, research firm Gartner reports that mobile ad spend will surpass $13 billion. The new report states that this year alone, mobile ads will grow 74 percent to $913.5 million.

But 74% growth this year is nothing compared to the expected explosion of mobile ad spend in 2011 due to an increase in mobile spending from ad agencies and divisions. By 2013, Gartner expects mobile ad spend to surpass $13 billion. Asia-Pacific will lead the growth, followed by North America and Europe, says the report.

Gartner predicts that local-based targeting will be one of the main types of mobile marketing set to take off, with the improvement of GPS technology making location-targeting more appealing to marketers.

The overall growth in mobile ad spend signifies a shift in marketing mindsets all over to embrace all forms of digital strategies. Fueling the growth is the rapid adaption of smartphones such as the iPhone and Blackberry, which Gartner expects to account for 45.5 percent of all mobile phone sales in 2013, up from just over 9 percent in 2008.