Mobile advertising is really growing into its own, as we see different verticals taking shape.  According to Millennial Media’s September SMART report, six of its advertising verticals saw triple-digit, year-over-year growth.  All six were top-ranking verticals this time last year as well, showing the trends are holding steady.  One vertical that got a lot of attention last month was women.

The targeting around female mobile users has been manifested a number of ways, towards moms, shoppers, daters… you name it.  October was also Breast Cancer Awareness month, so a great deal of marketing was aimed at the most affected gender.

Millennial Media finds that 32% of moms own a smartphone in 2010, a 60% increase from last year.  Incidentally, there was a 60% increase in the number of moms that access the mobile Internet weekly.  This is going to be a very decisive group for targeting through mobile means, as is any marketing campaign.

Looking at the verticals witnessing growth, entertainment stayed steadily at the top.  It saw a 315% increase rate year-over-year.  Millennial notes brand involvement as a driving factor, as smartphones become an accepted form of entertainment marketing.

Finance shot up 800%, as banking institutions are benefiting from their newfound access to consumer’s pockets.  Mobile websites and applications have contributed to this growth.  Retail and restaurants also climbed up the ladder, with a 745% increase.  It’s important to note that the fastest-growing verticals are service-based, and this demonstrates the evolution of the mobile industry.

The ways brands are engaging with consumers is through demographic targeting, with traffic-to-site conversions remaining the primary campaign destination in Q3.  Custom landing pages are then growing in importance. Video is also growing, as there are more ways to take advantage of this medium now.