Assessing Ad Message Effectiveness

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Chapter Twelve
Assessing Ad Message Effectiveness
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Chapter Twelve Objectives

• Explain the rationale and importance of message
  research.
• Describe the various research techniques used to
  measure consumers recognition and recall of
  advertising messages.
• Illustrate measures of physiological arousal to
  advertisements.

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Chapter Twelve Objectives

• Explicate the role of persuasion measurement,
  including pre- and post- testing of consumer
  preference.
• Explain the meaning and operation of
  single-source measures of advertising
  effectiveness.
• Examine some key conclusions regarding television
  advertising effectiveness.

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Overview of Advertising Research
Its not easy or inexpensive but the value
outweighs the drawbacks.

• More than 80 of advertisers and agencies pretest
  television commercials before airing them on a
  national basis.

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What Does Advertising Research Involve?
Media Effectiveness (covered later)
Message Research

• To test effectiveness of messages
• Pretesting ads during developmental stages
• Posttesting to determine if messages achieve
  their established objectives

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Four Stages At Which Ad Message Research Might Be
Conducted

1. Copy development stage
2. Rough stage
3. Final production stage
4. After the ad has been run in the media

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Industry Standards for Message Research
PACT Principles
Principle 1 provide measurements that are
relevant to the advertising objectives Principle
2 requires agreement about how the results will
be used in advance of each specific
test Principle 3 provides multiple measurements
because single measurements are generally
inadequate
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Industry Standards for Message Research
PACT Principles
Principle 4 based on a model of human response
to communications Reception of a
stimulus Comprehension of the stimulus The
response of the stimulus Principle 5 allows for
consideration of whether the advertising stimulus
should be exposed more than once
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Industry Standards for Message Research
PACT Principles
Principle 6 recognizes that a more finished
piece of copy can be evaluated more
soundly Alternative executions be tested in the
same degree of finish Principle 7 system
provides controls to avoid the bias normally
found in the exposure context
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Industry Standards for Message Research
PACT Principles
Principle 8 takes into account basic
considerations of sample definition Requires
that the sample be representative of the target
audience Principle 9 can demonstrate reliability
and validity A reliable test is one that yields
consistent results A valid test is one that is
predictive of the marketplace performance
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What Can Be Learned from Message Research?

• Message research is needed to diagnose an
  advertisements prospective equity-enhancing and
  sales-expanding potential.
• The ARF assessed which of 35 measures best
  predicts the sales effectiveness of television
  commercials. The only definitive conclusion of
  their study is that no one measure is universally
  appropriate or best.

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Message Research Methods
Qualitative Message Research
Quantitative Message Research
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Quantitative Message Research
Measurement
Understanding
Control
Improvement
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Illustrative Message Research Methods
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Advertising Research Methods
Message Research Methods
Recognition Recall
Physiological Arousal
Persuasion
Sales Response
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Message Research Methods

• Starch readership service (magazines)
• Bruzzone tests (TV)
• Burke day-after recall (TV)

Recognition Recall
Physiological Arousal
Persuasion
Sales Response
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Starch Readership Service
Measures the primary objective of a magazine
adto be seen and read Examines reader awareness
of ads in consumer magazines and business
publications Readers are classified
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Starch Readership Service
Classifications Notedremember having previously
seen the ad in the issue being
studied Associatednoted the ad and saw or read
some part of it that clearly indicated the name
of the brand or advertiser
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Starch Readership Service
Classifications Read Someread any part of the
ads copy Read Mostread half or more of the
written material in the ad
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Starch Readership Service
Indices are developed ADNORM index compares an
advertisements scores against other ads in the
same product category as well as the same size
(e.g., full page) and color classifications
(e.g., four-color ads)
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Measures of Recognition Recall

• 39 of people noted the ad,
• 37 associated it,
• 27 read some of it, and
• 10 read most of the body copy contained in the
  ad.

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Measures of Recognition Recall

• 58 of people noted the ad,
• 54 associated it,
• 39 read some of it, and
• 39 read most of the body copy contained in the
  ad.

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Starch Readership Service

• Kia Sorento ad Adnorm index scores
• 72 (noted)
• 74 (associated)
• 73 (read some)
• 59 (read most)
• The ad performed 28 worse than the average noted
  score for similar ads.

• Jose Cuervo Especial Tequila ad
• 107 (noted)
• 108 (associated)
• 105 (read some)
• 229 (read most)
• The ad performed slightly above average noted
  score for similar ads.

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Bruzzone Tests

• Bruzzone test provides advertisers with a test
  of consumer recognition of television
  commercials. Anything identifying the brand is
  removed, to test whether viewers remember the
  name of the advertiser.

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Measures of Recognition Recall
Bruzzone test

• Advertising Response Model (ARM) links responses
  to the 27 descriptive adjectives to consumers
  attitudes toward both the ad and the advertised
  brand and to purchase interest.

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ARM for the Thanking the Troops Commercial
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Measures of Recognition Recall
Bruzzone test

• Provides valid prediction of actual marketplace
  performance along with being relatively
  inexpensive
• Doesnt provide a before-the-fact indication
• Tests offer important info for evaluating a
  commercials effectiveness and whether it should
  continue to run
• Tests are performed online

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Measures of Recognition Recall
Burke Day-After Recall Testing

• Used to assess the effectiveness of test
  commercials and to ID strengths and weaknesses
• (1) Claimed-recall scoresindicate the
  percentage of respondents who recall seeing the
  ad
• (2) Related-recall scoresindicate the percentage
  of respondents who accurately describe specific
  advertising elements

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Measures of Recognition Recall
Burke Day-After Recall Testing

• Coke execs reject recall as a valid measure
• 1) Recall simply measures whether an ad is
  received but not whether the message is accepted
• 2) Recall is biased in favor of younger consumers

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Measures of Recognition Recall
Burke Day-After Recall Testing

• 3) Recall scores generated by ads are not
  predictive of sales performance
• 4) Day-after recall testing is biased against
  certain types of advertising content
• Understate the memorability of commercials that
  employ emotional or feeling-oriented themes and
  are biased in favor of rational or
  thought-oriented commercials

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Day-After Recall Vs. Masked-Recognition Research
Findings
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Message Research Methods

• Psychogalvanometer
• Pupilometer

Recognition Recall
Physiological Arousal
Persuasion
Sales Response
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Measures of Recognition Recall
Measures of Physiological Arousal

• Ads that are better liked are more likely to be
  remembered and to persuade
• Efforts are now made to measure consumers
  affective and emotional reactions to ads

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Measures of Recognition Recall
Measures of Physiological Arousal

• Galvanometermeasures minute levels of
  perspiration in response to emotional arousal
• Pupillometric testsmeasure pupil dilation
• Advertising researchers use changes in
  physiological functions to indicate the actual,
  unbiased amount of arousal resulting from ads.

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Message Research Methods

• Ipsos-ASI NextTV method
• Rscs ARS Persuasion method

Recognition Recall
Physiological Arousal
Persuasion
Sales Response
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Measures of Persuasion

• Used when an advertisers objective is to
  influence consumers attitudes toward and
  preference for the advertised brand.

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Measures of Persuasion
Ipsos-ASI NextTV Method

• Performs ad research in more than 50 countries
• Tests television commercials in consumers homes
• Tells consumers to evaluate a TV program, but
  actually evaluating the commercials within the
  program

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Measures of Persuasion
Ipsos-ASI NextTV Method

• One day after viewingpersonal contact with
  sampled consumers and measure their reactions to
  the TV program and the advertisements
• Measures message recall and persuasion

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Measures of Persuasion
Ipsos-ASI NextTV Method

• Persuasion measured by
• Consumers attitudes toward advertised brands
• Shift in brand preferences
• Brand-related purchase intent and frequency

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Measures of Persuasion
Ipsos-ASI NextTV Method

• Tests in a natural environment
• Assesses the ability of TV commercials to break
  through the clutter
• Determines how well tested commercials are
  remembered after this delay period
• Allows the use of a representative national
  sampling

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Measures of Persuasion
The ARS Persuasion Method--rsc

1. Respondents indicate what brands they prefer to
   receive among a basket of optionsthe pre
   measure.
2. After exposure to a television program
   respondents again indicate what brands they would
   prefer to receive if their name were selected in
   a drawingthe post measure.

ARS Persuasion Score Post for target brand
Pre for target brand
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Measures of Persuasion
The ARS Persuasion Method--rsc

• The ARS Persuasion score simply represents the
  post-measure percentage of respondents preferring
  the target brand minus the pre-measure percentage
  who prefer that brand
• A positive score indicates a shifted preference
  toward the target brand
• A higher-scoring commercial generates greater
  sales volume and larger market share gains

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Measures of Persuasion
The ARS Persuasion Method--rsc

• ARS Persuasion scores are valid predictors of
  in-market performance
• The higher the score, the greater the likelihood
  that a tested commercial will produce positive
  sales gains when the focal brand is advertised
  under real-world, in-market conditions

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Predictive Validity of ARS Persuasion Scores
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Message Research Methods

• AC Nielsens SCANTRACK
• IRIs BehaviorScan

Recognition Recall
Physiological Arousal
Persuasion
Sales Response
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Measures of Sales Response

• Single-Source Systems
• Gather purchase data from panels of
• households using
• (1) electronic television meters
• (2) optical laser scanning of universal product
  codes (UPC) at retail checkout
• (3) split-cable technology

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Measures of Sales Response
Nielsens SCANTRACK

• SCANTRACK collects purchase data by having panel
  households use handheld scanners
• Panelists record purchases of every bar-coded
  product purchased regardless of the store where
  purchased

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Measures of Sales Response
Nielsens SCANTRACK

• Use handheld scanners to enter
• Any coupons used
• Record all store deals
• Record in-store features that influenced their
  purchasing decisions

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Measures of Sales Response
IRIs BehaviorScan

• IRI knows what items each household purchases by
  linking up optically scanned purchases with ID
  numbers
• Members provide IRI with detailed demographic
  information

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Measures of Sales Response
IRIs BehaviorScan

• Single source data consists of
• (1) household demographic info
• (2) household purchase behavior
• (3) household exposure to new television
  commercials that are tested under real world
  test conditions

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Measures of Sales Response
IRIs BehaviorScan

• Uses optically scanned purchase data to know
  exactly which commercial each household had the
  opportunity to see and how much of a brand is
  purchased

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Measures of Sales Response
IRIs BehaviorScan

• Two types of tests are offered (1) weight tests
  and (2) copy tests
• Weight testspanel households are divided into
  test and control groups
• Copy testsholds the amount of weight constant
  but varies commercial content

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Conclusions by rsc

• Ad copy must be distinctive
• Ad weight without persuasiveness is insufficient
• The selling power of advertising wears out over
  time
• Advertising works quickly if it works at all

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Conclusion 1 All Commercials Are Not Created
Equal Ad Copy Must Be Distinctive

• Commercials having strong selling propositions
  are distinctive and tend to achieve higher ARS
  Persuasion scores.
• Commercials for new brands tend to be most
  persuasive, but commercials for established
  brands can be made persuasive via brand
  differentiation.

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Illustration Of a Commercial With a Strong
Selling Proposition
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Evidence from Frito-Lays Copy Tests
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Conclusion 2More is Not Necessarily Better
Weight Is Not Enough

• Ad weight means the number of gross rating points
  (GRP) that support an advertising campaign.
• An ineffective ad (not distinctive or persuasive)
  has no likelihood of increasing sales even if the
  ad weight is doubled or tripled.

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Relations Among Advertising Weight,
Persuasion Scores, and Sales.
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The Role of Sales-Effective Advertising for an
Undisclosed Campbell Soup Brand
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The Relationship Between Media Weight and
Creative Content

• 47 commercials for established brands were tested
  and classified as
• Rational information
• Heuristic appeals
• Affectively based cues
• Finding increased advertising weight led to
  significant sales increases in sales only for
  commercials using affective cues.

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Conclusion 3All Good Things Must End
Advertising Eventually Wears Out

• Advertising ultimately wears out and must be
  refreshed to maintain or increase brand sales.
• Familiar brands have been shown to wear out more
  slowly than unfamiliar brands.

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Conclusion 4Dont Be Stubborn Advertising Works
Quickly or Not at All

• Some advertisers tend to hang in there and wait
  for an ad to increase sales.
• Most of the sales impact occurs in the first
  three months of a new ad.
• Sunk costs are an issue to consider, but if an
  ad is not working at first, it probably never
  will.