Knowledge Nuggets
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April 2009 ARS Suggests . . .
ARS Suggests . . .Evaluating the quality of your advertising research
The path to clarity in advertising decision-making is via quality advertising measurement, process, and knowledge. And while data and research quality is critical to maximizing the return on every advertising dollar and to helping advertisers make better business decisions; all research is not created equal. But how do you discern the quality of your advertising research approach?
ARS is relentlessly committed to quality in all that we do. That's why we created an eight-point Quality Checklist featured in our article, "Quality In, Quality Out" which was published in the April edition of Quirks Marketing Research Review. This checklist will enable marketers to determine the quality of the measurements they are using.
Data show that the business opportunity for improved advertising research quality is significant: by following ARS guidance a ten-share brand in a $2 billion category can cut its media by 27 percent and research budget by 14 percent - and still increase its market share one full point!
To request the full ARS Quirks article, email us at info@arsgroup.com.
Contact ARSgroup today to find out how to maximize your advertising investments
April 2009 ARS Suggests . . .
You can only expect what you inspect . . . the importance of research quality in marketing decision making
The long-held notion that "half my advertising is wasted, I just don't know which half" is leaving many advertisers unsure of how to prudently invest their marketing dollars. According to American Business Media, "When times are good, you should advertise; when times are bad, you must advertise." The path to clarity in advertising decision making is via quality advertising measurement, process, and knowledge.
But how do you discern the quality of your advertising research approach?
Since it is becoming more and more clear that all advertising research is not created equally, ARSgroup has developed a simple eight-point Quality Checklist (to be unveiled in the April issue of Quirk's Marketing Research Review) to help advertisers determine the quality of the measurements they are using.
The business opportunity for improved advertising research quality is significant: in a recent ARSgroup case study, a ten-share brand in a $2 billion category was able to cut its media by 27 percent and ad testing costs by 14 percent—and still increase its market share one full point!
Look for our coming article in Quirk's and call us to find out how you can maximize your advertising investments during these trying economic times.
Understanding how to compete against private label brands…
Many in marketing preach that it is not wise to cut advertising spending during recessionary times. Our data clearly support that persuasive advertising is an extremely effective way to defend and grow share during times of spending cuts. In fact, the findings from independent marketing mix modeling firms who regularly audit ARS® predictions for our clients show that the quality of your message (as measured by an ARS score) is 4 X more important to the sales outcome than spending alone. The Implication: you can cut your spending and still increase advertising-driven sales by managing the quality of your message with ARSgroup services.
Further, in these trying times, many consumers are tempted to "trade down" to a private label product from a branded alternative in order to save money. However, as our classic Journal of Advertising Research study ("How to Effectively Compete Against Private Label Brands") shows, persuasive advertising is a very effective way to defend against this very real situation. The Implication: you can effectively keep consumers from "trading down" to private labels by managing the quality of your message with ARSgroup services.
It must be noted that not all advertising research is created equally and that no other research firm's persuasion metrics stand up to the predictive power of those of the ARSgroup. ARS Persuasion does not equal "persuasion" from another vendor. But don't take our word for it, ARSgroup is the only market research firm to win a supplier "Excellence Award" from P&G – for the quality of our work – and ARSgroup is the only firm that can consistently demonstrate independently audited PROOF of the predictive power of our tools & techniques.
To request our classic ARS case study, "How to Effectively Compete Against Private Label Brands", email info@arsgroup.com.
January 2009 ARS Suggests . . .
Understanding how to advertise effectively during a recession...building effective 15" ads
Even though study after study indicates the business value of maintaining advertising support during recessionary times, the reality is that advertisers are looking to save everywhere they can. One way to maintain advertising share of voice, while also reducing media costs during tough times is to utilize 15" ads.
Developing effective, cost-efficient ads can be difficult, so when should you use a 15" ad versus a 30" ad? What are the cautionary elements when developing these ads? When are they most effective and what's the best way to develop them?
The latest white paper from ARSgroup's "Advertising During a Recession" knowledge series, "Building Effective 15 Second Ads," can answer these questions.
To request your free copy of this white paper, simply email us at info@arsgroup.com.
December 2008 ARS Suggests . . .
Understanding effective advertising during a recession...
Due to the overwhelming response to ARSgroup's recent white paper "Advertising During a Recession", we are continuing to share our knowledge on the subject by re-releasing the white paper.
Recent economic conditions have advertisers faced with the dilemma of how to advertise wisely and effectively with shrinking ad budgets. Some companies are scaling back on their advertising dollars, but is this a wise choice? ARSgroup's white paper, "Advertising During a Recession", answers this question and provides additional insights on how to best navigate as a marketer during these challenging times.
You can obtain a free copy of this ARS white paper as well as other case studies, webinars, and ARSgroup knowledge pieces by emailing us at info@arsgroup.com.
October 2008 ARS Suggests . . .
Understanding how to optimize your digital messages. . .
The marketing landscape continues to proliferate as marketers search for new and effective ways to reach consumers. To help navigate these changing waters, ARSgroup first launched our highly successful Impact Campaign test last year. Continuing innovation to meet the shifting market now allows us to launch an adaptation of our Impact testing service for the digital space. So, what do we mean by digital?
iMedia (display ads, rich media ads, broadband video)
Mobile (SMS, Internet, search, video)
Search (including paid search)
E-Commerce
Websites (sponsorships, content integration)
CRM
Interactive forums (social networking, file sharing, blogs)
Digital advertising offers a unique opportunity to build meaningful, long-term consumer relationships. It also offers a distribution channel (via mobile phones and handhelds) which allows brands to:
-Effectively target their message
-Provide a way to deliver rich media content in an experiential way
-Reach consumers when and where they are receptive, "content on the go"
As always, ARSgroup uses meaningful (validated and reliable), consumer metrics, metrics tied directly to in-market performance. Our approach provides marketers with actionable insights into creating effective digital ads.
September 2008 ARS Suggests . . .
Understanding how to align entertainment and ad content for maximum value. . .
The entertainment industry is one of the few sectors which grow during tough economic times. So, how can advertisers take advantage of this growth trend to better promote their brands and thus improve ROI? Correspondingly, how can entertainment companies understand the consumer value of their content and identify the brands to pursue for powerful product integration and branded entertainment opportunities? The key is identifying the equity and preference overlaps between brands, entertainment franchises, and talent.
By understanding the consumer, their media consumption patterns, their entertainment likes/dislikes, and their brand preferences, both entertainment and advertising content creators can amplify their success.
ARSgroup is bringing fact-based, consumer-focused ROI guidance to the branded entertainment, endorsement & sponsorship decision making process. Learn more by requesting our branded entertainment case study. Contact us at info@arsgroup.com to request a copy.
July 2008 ARS Suggests . . .
Understanding what makes an effective ad. . .
With an economic recession, smart advertising is essential to increase the odds of a return on your marketing investment. But how do you build an effective advertising campaign? ARSgroup looks deeper into elements of effective campaigns in the first video "What Makes a Strong Ad?" of our new YouTube video series on "Ad Effectiveness".
July 2008 ARS Suggests . . .
Understanding how to advertise effectively during a recession. . .
Due to the recent economic slow-down, advertisers are faced with the dilemma of how to advertise wisely and effectively with shrinking ad budgets. Some companies are scaling back on their advertising dollars, but is this a wise choice? ARSgroup whitepaper, "Advertising During a Recession", answers this question and provides additional insights on how to best navigate as a marketer in these challenging times.
You can obtain a free copy of this ARS whitepaper as well as other case studies, webinars and other ARSgroup knowledge pieces emailing us at info@arsgroup.com to request a copy.
June 2008 ARS Suggests . . .
Understanding how to achieve ROI from your integrated marketing campaign. . .
The advertising game is changing. Given the emergence of multiple touchpoints, today's consumer sees individual brands everywhere. Therefore, content evaluation by individual contact choice, while helpful in understanding individual financial values, is limited by design. Winning brands in today's marketplace achieve success by using multiple advertising touchpoints, so the consumer sees your brand everywhere with consistency and synergy in the advertising message.
ARSgroup has been leading the industry by providing its customers with overall direction and rich diagnostics based on target consumers' responses to the holistic plan. After evaluating the plan, ARS helps manage the financial risk by identifying the drivers of success and specific areas of opportunity for the individual elements tested, thereby better guiding marketing spend prior to launch.
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To obtain a copy of the latest ARS blinded campaign case study, please contact us at info@arsgroup.com.
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To read the most recent article in the media about ARSgroup campaign product published in the latest issue of Research Business Report, click here.
Understanding the power of advertising quality. . .
Brands that have the most success during recessionary times are those that maintain or grow their advertising presence among consumers. But how does a brand do this while media budgets are under stress?
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Advertising quality has been shown to be 4 times more important in generating incremental sales than media spend alone. Therefore, by improving advertising quality, a brand can increase its market position with the same (or even fewer) media dollars.
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The ARSgroup diagnostic approach, based on both the emotional and rational drivers of successful advertising, has been shown to significantly improve advertising quality.
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In fact, the average improvement equates to an extra half a share point in market for a typical brand. In a $1 billion category, this equates to $1.25 million over a quarter (a sizable return on the research investment).
During these tough economic times, a smart way to get more impact from your media spend (when less needs to do more) is to use the proven ARS approach to advertising improvement.
May 2008 ARS Suggests . . .
Understanding how to advertise during difficult economic times - maximize the ROI of your media spend!
As we enter what may become the recession of 2008, expenditures on research & development are being cut, new product introductions postponed and advertising spending decreased. Are these prudent moves to keep a company operating profitably?
ARSgroup, with its 40+ years of experience, can provide critical understanding on how to successfully grow business when cutting advertising expenditures. In past weeks, we've delivered quick tips on how your brand can thrive during these difficult times. Please contact at info@arsgroup.com for more detailed information.
Take advantage of emerging touchpoints and synergies:
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While TV is often the strongest single-reach element of a multi-media plan, other touchpoints can be just as effective at motivating consumers and are often less expensive (e.g. print and web).
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Take advantage of synergies between executions by placing media spend behind those combinations yielding the greatest total impact.
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Avoid negative interactions (often the result of unexpected executional issues).
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Both single and multiple message campaigns can be effective:
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Single message when a straightforward brand-differentiating message which appeals to a broad consumer segment had been identified.
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Multiple messages when brand differentiation cannot be communicated with a single straightforward message.
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May 2008 ARS Suggests . . .
Understanding how to advertise during difficult economic times - make every dollar of your media work for you!
As we enter what may become the recession of 2008, expenditures on research & development are being cut, new product introductions postponed and advertising spending decreased.
ARSgroup, with its 40+ years of experience, can provide critical understanding on how to successfully grow business when cutting advertising expenditures. In the passing weeks, we've been delivering quick tips on how your brand can thrive during these difficult times. Please contact us at info@arsgroup.com for more detailed information.
Understand the persuasive life of an ad and manage the wear-out of your advertising:
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As money is spent behind an ad, its selling power decreases in a predictable fashion - leading to diminishing sales returns. If you know the starting strength of the ads in your campaign, you can plan to maximize delivery of selling power and ad refreshment without wasting money.
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A very slight difference can result in a "new" ad; therefore, ad poolouts are a very cost effective way to replace ads without producing totally new ads.
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In contrast, ads are frequently replaced prematurely, when there is plenty of power remaining. If you know the starting strength of your ads, you can avoid wasting money on replacing ads too soon.
Understanding how to advertise during difficult economic times - getting more with less
As we enter what may become the recession of 2008, expenditures on research & development are being cut, new product introductions postponed and advertising spending decreased. Every day a new article is written in the media about the recession, but nothing about what advertisers should do to navigate a business in such turbulent times.
ARSgroup, with its 40+ years of experience, can provide critical understanding on how to successfully grow business when cutting advertising expenditures. In the coming weeks, we will continue to deliver quick tips on how your brand can thrive during these difficult times. Please contact us at info@arsgroup.com for more detailed information. Our first tip is:
Aggressively utilize 15-second ads - but make sure they are "good" ones:
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15-second ads are just over half the price of 30-second ads, but on average three-quarters the strength (so, you might want to use multiple 15-second ads to maintain on-air strength)
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Over 25% of the time, 15-second ads are as strong or stronger than their 30-second counterpart (when you know you have this opportunity, you win)
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Use "cut-down" versions from 30-second ads to reduce production costs in multiple execution plans while simultaneously boosting GRPs - but when cutting down the ads, clearly understand the drivers of success and don't cut them
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Use original 15-second ads to replace 30-second ads in single execution plans (build your 15-second ads "from scratch" with the end in mind that they will be 15-second ads)
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15-second ads are best used when there are clear-cut benefits/messages and when the goal is to maintain brand awareness and loyalty
Understanding your consumers' attitudes and behaviors towards personal and planetary health is vital in the development of effective sales messages . . .
Though true in many cases, this is particularly true in the HASSSM (Health and Sustainability Segmentation) space due to the differing and often diametrically opposed behaviors and product choices between consumers with a high concern for personal and planetary health and those with a lower level of concern. Five segments have been developed which can be used to group consumers based on his or her attitudes towards personal health and planetary health.
Three of the segments have personal and planetary health concerns relative to the rest of the population. The HASASM (Health and Sustainability Advocate) segment is strongly concerned about both personal and environmental health, and actively works to improve both. The Impressionist segment has higher concerns for health of the environment than for personal health. And the Wholesome segment has higher concern for personal health than for environmental health. (Note: Profiles for all five segments are available.)
In addition to using these segments in ad testing, brand preferences can be broken down within and across HASS. By doing this, retailers and marketers can determine which brands those most concerned about their health and the environment are buying.
Below is a table showing an example from the water purification category.
The Impressionist segment is primarily concerned about the environment and sustainability; and this segment has the lowest preference for bottled water. Both of the other groups have a high concern for health and higher rates of preference for bottled water. Through effective communication of the personal consumer benefits of replacing bottled water with a water purification system, an opportunity for greater performance is presented among the HASA and Wholesome segments.
February 2008 ARS Suggests . . .
Understanding the synergistic effects of multiple touchpoints in a campaign. . .
Dynamic digital signage, mobile devices, public event ads and in-store advertising are just a few examples of the emerging media vehicles available to marketers. A new ARS white paper, entitled Seven Key Insights from Holistic Campaign Testing to be published in the April issue of Quirk's Marketing Research Review magazine, outlines how marketers can evaluate the synergistic impact of applying these alternative contact points within their marketing plans. The white paper is available upon request today.
Below is a sneak peak of the seven insights from ARSgroup research initiatives:
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All touchpoints can be effective – television is often the strongest single element of a multi-media campaign, but the data show that other touchpoints can be just as strong.
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Strong synergies result from leveraging emotional and rational content across brand encounters – one example is pharmaceutical companies' use of television ads to convey key product information coupled with emotional benefits and print ads to convey further in-depth clinical information.
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Campaigns often move messages from "lower" to "higher" levels of communication – as consumers see multiple ads, a high-level message (corporate branding campaign) can be relayed through several lower-level messages.
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Interactions vary among respondent groups, and these group differences must be taken into account in test design – demographics and media consumption patterns need to be considered; podcast ads need to be evaluated among consumers with iPods and similar devices, for example.
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Negative interactions sometimes occur and usually result from executional issues – the unexpected effect of an executional detail such as wording or graphics may detract from the intended message.
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Single-minded or multiple messages can create effective campaigns – brands that have a straight-forward, differentiating message should focus on it in their campaign; if not, multiple campaign messages are advisable.
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Campaign synergies can impact the bottom line – experience shows that sizable sales gains can be realized by allocating media dollars across multiple ads based on their respective contributions to the campaign.
Free copies of the white paper are available upon request by emailing us at info@arsgroup.com.
January 2008 ARS Suggests . . .
Including a personal solution in your Green campaign can avoid the common pitfall of a negative tone . . .
While roughly 1 in 50 traditional TV ads have a negative tone, more than 3 in 4 green TV ads are negatively toned. This is manifested in the following differences:
Compared to traditional TV advertisements, green TV ads generally:
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do not present problem-and-solution combinations, typically leaning more towards a global problem without delivering a personal solution
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do not focus on personal relevance
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do not show user-satisfaction, again focusing on the global problem rather than how their product helps people on a personal level
These are among the elements that contribute to a generally negative or gloomy tone in the majority of green ads. By showing how a product/ service can provide a personal solution, advertisers can have a more successful campaign.
December 2007 ARS Suggests . . .
Incorporating information on company image or reputation in Green advertising has potential negative effects on an ad's sales effectiveness and on the image of the company itself. This seems to be a manifestation of the "greenwashing effect." Consumers are wary of baseless green claims made in advertising. We have observed that for both television and print advertising, effectively conveying a company's image, without substantiation of quantified environmental benefits, has proven to be a difficult undertaking.
November 2007 ARS Suggests . . .
A type of messaging effective in the green space . . .
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Ads with a specific green message (i.e., uses less plastic, 60 mpg highway) tend to influence consumers more than ads with general green messaging (good for the environment).
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Specific messaging which emphasizes a personal benefit (i.e., uses less plastic but cleans twice as much, 60 mpg highway saves you hundreds of dollars a year) is a splendid one-two punch in a green advertisement.