If your product only works on a computer, don't run phone ads that ask people to install it. Someone scrolling Instagram won't switch to a laptop to finish. Either ask for something they can do on the phone, such as an email for a beta list, then send the install link by email, or show the ad only to people on desktop.
A founder raised this on a mentoring call. They'd built a Chrome extension for designers and planned to make Instagram their main ad channel. Their worry: people see the ad on their phone, land on the page, and the extension is a desktop thing. At best they save it for later.
Why the install never happens
Chrome Web Store Help describes extensions as a way to customize Chrome on your desktop. From a phone, the most a viewer can do is tap Add to Desktop in Chrome while signed in, and the extension only installs the next time they open Chrome on their computer. So a phone viewer who likes the ad hits a wall. Moving from phone to laptop in the middle of a scroll is close to impossible, and most won't remember to do it later.
There's a second cost. If the ad's only ask is an install nobody can do, you also don't capture who was interested. You're paying for what is, in practice, a branding campaign, with no list to follow up with.
Option one: change the ask
Keep the mobile audience and give the ad a step people can finish on the phone. Our suggestion on the call was a beta program:
- Offer a reason to join. Extra credits, early access to new features or priority support for beta members.
- Collect the email on Meta. Meta's instant forms collect details without people leaving Facebook or Instagram, and may prefill contact information for people who've already shared it with Meta.
- Follow up where they can install. Email the install link, so they open it at their computer. Then bring the first group into a small community such as a Discord server and watch how they use it. A customer may come out of it too.
- Test it against a plain sign-up. The founder asked whether a straight sign-up on a mobile-friendly page would do. It might. Run both as separate campaigns and keep the one that gets more people through.
Option two: show the ad only on desktop
If you'd rather only pay for people who can install today, Meta lets you exclude devices. In the ad set, edit Devices and operating systems and untick mobile. Meta notes that opting out of Mobile or Desktop turns Advantage+ placements off, so expect a smaller audience.
Instagram doesn't mean phone only, either. Meta says Instagram Feed, Stories and Reels ads also run on desktop and mobile web. On Facebook, the right column placement only appears to people on computers.
On Google Search, device targeting works through bid adjustments, and Target ROAS, Maximize conversions and Maximize conversion value accept a device adjustment of -100% only (with Target CPA, a device adjustment changes the CPA target instead). Performance Max doesn't support device bid adjustments. For more on where Performance Max spends on mobile, see the mobile app leak.
The takeaways
- A phone viewer can't install a desktop product from the ad, so don't make that the ask.
- Ask for an email on the phone, then send the install link to open at a computer.
- A beta program with a few perks gives people a reason to sign up now.
- On Meta, excluding mobile under Devices and operating systems turns Advantage+ placements off.
- On Google Search, device targeting runs through bid adjustments. Performance Max takes none.
Common questions
Can I run Meta ads only on desktop?
Yes. In Meta Ads Manager, edit Devices and operating systems in the ad set and untick the devices you want to exclude. Meta notes that opting out of Mobile or Desktop turns Advantage+ placements off. Facebook's right column placement only appears to people on computers.
Do Instagram ads show on desktop?
Some do. Meta says Instagram Feed ads appear in the mobile app and on desktop and mobile web browsers, and Instagram Stories and Reels ads also run on desktop and mobile web.
Can people install a Chrome extension on their phone?
Chrome Web Store Help describes extensions as a way to customize Chrome on your desktop. From a phone, a viewer signed in to Chrome can tap Add to Desktop, but the extension only installs the next time they open Chrome on their computer. Plan the ad as if a phone viewer can't install it then and there.
What call to action works for a desktop app in mobile ads?
One the person can finish on the phone. We'd ask for an email, for example to join a beta with a few extra perks, then send the install link by email so they can open it at their computer. A plain sign-up on a mobile-friendly page is the other option worth testing.
Can Google Ads stop showing ads on mobile?
Google's device targeting works through bid adjustments, and on Search, Smart Bidding strategies such as Maximize conversions accept a device adjustment of -100% only. Performance Max doesn't support device bid adjustments.