In the run-up to Christmas 2015, online retailer Shop Direct was looking to capitalise on changing consumer behaviour to drive sales on mobiles and tablets for its Very.co.uk brand.

Working with mobile marketing firm Somo and cross-platform ad-serving and attribution company Medialets, it set out to promote the brand on mobile and tablet, setting itself an ambitious target of driving a 7:1 return on its marketing spend.

Somo proposed an integrated campaign that would highlight the latest sale offers and fashion ranges, plus free, next-day delivery. The campaign employed multiple formats, including display, rich media, video, audio, footer and interstitial banners, as well as SMS to target users doing their Christmas shopping in physical stores, to remind them how easy and hassle-free online shopping is by comparison.

Ads appeared across a number of networks, including Shazam, Spotify, MailOnline and Google, but also but also linked to the brand’s above-the-line marketing activity. The campaign also leveraged location- and weather-targeting to vary the creative according to the prevailing weather conditions in different parts of the country.

While Somo executed the campaign, Medialets delivered detailed data on views, clicks, and purchases, enabling Shop Direct to measure the incremental value of the campaign and Somo to optimise activity while the campaign was still live.

The campaign outperformed its KPIs, delivering an ROI of 18:1, more than twice the targeted 7:1 outcome. Very.co.uk mobile sales grew by 51 per cent year-on-year, accounting for 63 per cent of the brand’s total online sales over the Christmas shopping period.