Scrolling, Mobile Ads, and the Three Second Attention Window

I believe our scrolling culture has caused us to lose some of our ability to pay attention. I can even notice my own attention span has gotten shorter. When I am scrolling through Facebook, TikTok, or Instagram, if something does not catch my attention almost immediately, I am probably going right past it. I honestly think marketers have about three seconds to get someone's attention before they keep scrolling.

This makes mobile advertising more important than ever. According to Digital Applied, "Mobile devices originate 75% of eCommerce traffic, 91% of social media sessions, and roughly three-quarters of all digital ad impressions served worldwide" (Digital Applied Team, 2026). This shows that a large amount of searching, shopping, and social media activity is happening from our phones instead of computers. I mean, think about it. Being in my 40s, I probably do not spend nearly as much time on my phone as the younger generation. I don't even think some of them brush their teeth without checking Instagram. It is pretty apparent that mobile marketing is going to be extremely important for almost any business moving forward.

The numbers also show how much advertising dollars have shifted toward mobile. "Mobile now absorbs 74% of total digital advertising investment worldwide, per eMarketer mobile forecast" (Digital Applied Team, 2026). That is a huge percentage of advertising dollars going toward reaching people on their phones, but it makes sense considering the way people are searching and shopping today. Our textbook supports this shift, explaining that "spending on ads that are accessible via desktop browsers has decreased significantly over the past few years with mobile ads taking the lead" (Zahay, 2024, p. 203). With businesses competing for people's attention on such a small screen, it also makes sense why mobile advertising can be more expensive. The textbook states, "Mobile ads, which are typically more expensive and yield higher revenue, have increased steadily year over year" (Zahay, 2024, p. 204).

For me, three strategies stand out when trying to get someone's attention and encourage them to click. First, an ad has to grab attention quickly. I think there is more to this than simply making an advertisement pretty or attention-grabbing. Second, it needs to be appealing to your specific target market. It is not enough for an ad to just look good. It needs to connect with the people you are actually trying to reach. What grabs my attention in my 40s may be completely different from what catches the attention of someone who is 20. Knowing your target market can help determine everything from the image and wording to the platform you advertise on. Third, there needs to be a clear reason to click. If you get someone's attention but they do not understand what you want them to do next, the advertisement really did not accomplish much. Whether it is Shop Now, Learn More, Schedule Now, or another call to action, people need to know what the next step is. As our textbook explains, "Clearly, mobile searching and shopping habits have had a dramatic impact on the paid search industry" (Zahay, 2024, p. 204).

As a real estate agent, I can see both sides of collecting consumer data. From a marketing perspective, having access to someone's interests, searches, demographics, and location can be extremely valuable. I would rather spend my advertising dollars reaching people who are actually interested in buying or selling a home in the areas I serve than showing my ads to thousands of random people. For example, location data could allow me to show an advertisement to someone who is physically in Overland Park instead of wasting that same advertising dollar on someone hundreds of miles outside of the market I serve. If I can target someone who has been searching for homes in Overland Park or looking up information about buying their first home, that advertising dollar is much more valuable to me. Consumer data can make advertising more targeted, more personal, and hopefully more effective.

On the consumer side, though, it can get a little creepy. We have probably all had the experience of searching for something or even talking about something and then suddenly seeing advertisements for it everywhere. Sometimes I find myself thinking, how in the world did my phone know that? Location data takes that feeling even further because our phones can potentially provide information about where we are and where we go. I understand why that information is valuable as a marketer, but as a consumer, I also want to know what information is being collected, who has access to it, and what they are doing with it.

I think that is where digital marketers have to find a balance. Consumer data gives us an incredible opportunity to put the right advertisement in front of the right person, but there is a fine line between personalized marketing and making someone feel like they are being watched.