Madison Avenue is missing out on in-app advertising
Don’t be scared.
That’s the message Madison Avenue needs to hear regarding in-app mobile advertising.
Despite mobile being the dominant screen today, with most of that time spent inside of apps, many of the largest agencies and advertisers are still resisting the shift. Now, make no mistake, in-app is growing. But it’s not growing at the rate it could be.
Why? It comes down to longstanding myths about mobile in-app advertising, which I’ll break down for you now.
Myth #1: In-app inventory is low quality
This is the most pervasive myth, and, to be fair, it didn’t come out of nowhere. Like the open web, the app ecosystem has a (very) long tail. Not every app is premium, and not every app deserves a brand’s investment.
But, also like the open web, quality is a sliding scale.
Over the past few years, for example, we’ve seen a wave of high-quality, beloved apps introduce ad models. From ChatGPT to The New York Times’ latest game, premium environments with ads have arrived in ways that simply didn’t exist before. These are experiences users trust and spend real time in, and they’re exactly the kinds of environments brands should and must be part of.
At the same time, technology has improved dramatically to support more premium media-buying. AI and deep learning are now being used to optimize and curate inventory in SSPs and exchanges, helping advertisers identify not just premium opportunities, but the most valuable ones across the long tail. That’s a meaningful shift from the blunt, scale-at-all-costs approaches we’ve seen in the past.
On top of that, there has also been real progress on quality control in mobile, with vendors recognizing it can’t be pure lip service. Many adtech platforms have tightened up their standards for the apps they allow into their ecosystems, filtering out low-quality supply before it ever reaches buyers. This is more essential than ever with the rise of vibe coding
In short, the tools to filter for better quality are here. The perception just hasn’t caught up. But, with more education, that can change.
Myth #2: The ad formats are bad
This one is also, unfortunately, rooted in a historic reality.
In-app has long been a performance-focused channel, and for years that led to fairly aggressive techniques and strategies to drive conversions at all costs, resulting in interruptive formats, forced engagement, and ad overload (and, to some degree, some players are still doing this). It worked, to a point. But it also created poor user experiences and reinforced negative perceptions about the category overall.
Today, that model looks very different.
User sentiment and behavior has forced the issue and forced change. Heavy ad load, as an example, has led to “banner blindness” and diminishing ROI. In response, the mobile space has shifted toward more thoughtful, higher-impact formats that capture attention in new ways.
Today, many apps are building branded experiences in-app that feel truly native and engaging. Think custom integrations, interactive formats, and “live events” that add to and enhance the experience not disrupt it. Gaming, in particular, has become a proving ground for this, but we’re also seeing it extend to other genres like microdramas, ecommerce, and prediction markets.
At the same time, the industry has adapted to the post-ATT landscape through advances in contextual signals, AI-driven optimization, and measurement, enabling advertisers to deliver smarter execution and more effective creative. Advertisers can now create experiences that are both creatively engaging AND performance-driven, pairing better data with better creative. AI will only accelerate this.
So, the idea that in-app equals bad ads is no longer true. And brand advertisers should know that.
Myth #3: “We already cover in-app through Big Tech”
For many advertisers, in-app starts and ends with Big Tech companies like Meta, TikTok, and YouTube. While this is entirely understandable given how prolific (and effective) these platforms are, that’s a narrow view of a broader ecosystem that leaves a lot of value on the table.
Beyond the walled gardens, there’s a vast and growing landscape of apps spanning gaming, utility, streaming, retail, finance, AI chat, and more, each with loyal and engaged audiences. This is the full open in-app ecosystem, and it offers the same kind of opportunity that advertisers have come to value across channels like CTV and podcasts, where the long tail is extensive but also valuable for reaching specific, engaged audiences.
Ignoring that ecosystem means missing a massive and meaningful share of consumer attention.
You can chase it in other channels or you can diversify and find real value in-app.
Closing the gap
The reality is clear: Consumer behavior has completely shifted, but ad budgets haven’t fully followed. If you’re an agency buying media for clients, you’re doing them a disservice by not committing to more in-app buying. If you’re a brand, you should be all in.
In-app is no longer a niche channel. It should be a core part of your media landscape. To drive greater confidence, it’s important to recognize the evolutions that have occurred and lean into them to ensure campaigns perform and are on-brand. Ultimately, the opportunity isn’t just to spend more in-app. This is a moment to rethink how the channel is evaluated altogether, moving past outdated assumptions and engaging with it as it exists today, not five years ago.
The longer the misperceptions stick, the longer advertisers will be out of touch with the people they’re trying to reach.