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Five ways to use syndicated research
to measure advertising effectiveness
Experian Simmons DataStream
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An Experian Simmons white paper
Five ways to use syndicated research
to measure advertising effectiveness
Executive summary
Advertising effectiveness measurement is a top priority for marketers, but measurement
programs have left much to be desired — until now. With the introduction of Experian Simmons
DataStream, the industry’s first syndicated research service for measuring advertising
effectiveness, marketers now have the ability to track their advertising campaigns on a weekly
basis.This white paper provides five examples of how Experian Simmons DataStream can be
used to measure advertising effectiveness by monitoring shifts in consumer behavior, attitudes,
opinions, and brand usage.
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Page 1 | Five ways to use syndicated research to measure advertising effectiveness
Five ways to use syndicated research
to measure advertising effectiveness
Rapid shifts in media and advertising consumption challenge marketers
Today, media, marketing and advertising professionals are forced to operate in an extremely
challenging environment. Media and advertising consumption is constantly being transformed by
new technology. For example, consumers are now less faithful to one medium, switching freely
between old and new formats, due in part to developments like the transferability of video across
multiple screens. In addition, new developments and rapid changes in consumer opinions,
attitudes and behavior — heightened by the still hostile economic environment — make it difficult
for marketers to keep pace with their increasingly fragmented target audience.
Improving advertising effectiveness measurement is a market imperative
The above-mentioned challenges have created an increased need for accurate, timely and
relevant consumer insights and advertising measurement data. Marketers must demonstrate that
money spent on marketing efforts drives measurable results.
According to Forrester Research, two of marketers’ top challenges are:
• Measuring the effectiveness and efficiency of their media strategy. Media strategy effectiveness
and efficiency measurement is top-of-mind for 86 percent of marketing leaders.
• Justifying their media budget decisions to management. Forty-six percent of marketing leaders list
media budget justification as the third most important media planning challenge. (See Figure 1.)
Figure 1: Marketing leaders rate media measurement and accountability as top challenges
“Please select the five main media planning challenges you've faced in 2009 among the categories below.”
Measuring the effectiveness of my
media strategy and its efficiency
Coordinating the traditional and the new media
agencies I work with
Justifying my media budget decisions
to management
Choosing the right media agency
Television commercial clutter
The increasing cost of television
Measurement issues
Television commercial skipping
I'm satisfied with my media strategy
Base: 79 marketing leaders (multiple responses accepted)
0
20
40
60
80
100
Source: September 2009 Global Marketing Leadership Online Survey, Forrester Research, Inc.
The Future Of Media Measurement, Forrester Research, Inc., January 2010
An Experian white paper | Page 2
Five ways to use syndicated research
to measure advertising effectiveness
Current measurement programs come up short
The measurement programs that marketers have been using to measure advertising
effectiveness and to glean consumer insights have offered only a partial solution to marketers
because:
• Advertising measurement custom studies are costly and limited. Marketers have resorted to
custom studies in an attempt to gauge the effectiveness of their advertising and promotional
campaigns. Such custom studies can cost up to six figures, and they are limited in time and
scope. For example, these studies do not always offer access to competitive intelligence or the
ability to trend consumer data.
• Point-of-sale (POS) data lacks purchase motivators or media consumption variables.
Syndicated services that offer POS data do not offer insight into other variables, such as
consumer purchase motivations, attitudes, behavior, and opinions on media consumption.
Five ways to measure advertising effectiveness with syndicated research: Experian
Simmons DataStream
Experian Simmons DataStream is the industry’s first syndicated service that enables advertisers,
agencies and media companies to measure advertising effectiveness by linking consumer
behavior to advertising campaigns, promotions and media exposure.
This service provides weekly tracking of nearly 40,000 consumer variables, such as media
properties, consumer attitudes and brand preferences, from the Simmons National Consumer
Study (NCS). It also allows users to plot trends on which they can overlay the timing of
advertising and promotional campaigns.These breakthrough tracking capabilities help marketers
understand advertising effectiveness by demonstrating the impact of their advertising activities
in quantifiable terms. Below are five ways that advertisers, agencies and media companies can
leverage Experian Simmons DataStream to make more informed business decisions and create
high-impact media strategies.
Page 3 | Five ways to use syndicated research to measure advertising effectiveness
Five ways to use syndicated research
to measure advertising effectiveness
1. Demonstrate campaign impact
In 2009, Gatorade ran the “G Campaign” prior to and during the Super Bowl. As a result of this
media campaign centered on a particular event, the percentage of Gatorade drinkers increased
by 15 percent for those who watched the Super Bowl.This is 5 percentage points higher than the
percentage increase in Gatorade drinkers who did not watch the Super Bowl. (See Figure 2.)
Figure 2: 15 percent more Super Bowl viewers drink Gatorade after the “G Campaign”
2. Examine customer retention gained from advertising
In December 2008, McDonald’s introduced McCafés in approximately 7,000 locations. At that
time, on average 17.1 percent of McDonald’s customers also visited Starbucks. Once the
McCafé campaign began in May 2009, the average number of McDonald’s customers who also
visited Starbucks decreased by 2 percentage points, showing the immediate positive effect of
the advertising campaign. (See Figure 3.)
Figure 3:The McCafé campaign helps McDonald’s retain customers
An Experian white paper | Page 4
Five ways to use syndicated research
to measure advertising effectiveness
3. Determine promotional effectiveness for customer acquisition
Before the beginning of the NASCAR season in February 2009, the number of NASCAR fans
who visited Ask.com had decreased to an average of 4.4 percent. Once the NASCAR season
began, featuring Ask.com as a sponsor, the number of NASCAR fans who visited Ask.com
increased to an average of 5.7 percent. (See Figure 4.)
Figure 4: 5.7 percent more NASCAR fans use Ask.com after Ask.com’s NASCAR season sponsorship
4. Determine the value of a media’s audience based on an advertiser’s target consumer
Environmentally conscious consumers are an important segment for advertisers given their
propensity to spend more on products and services that align with their attitudes. A media
company demonstrated its ability to reach this audience by showing that the percentage of
consumers willing to pay more for environmentally friendly products is increasing among their
network audience (Network 1) while it is decreasing among a key competitor’s audience
(Network 2). (See Figure 5.)
Figure 5:The percentage of “Green Wallet” consumers increases by 30 percent among a network’s audience
Page 5 | Five ways to use syndicated research to measure advertising effectiveness
Five ways to use syndicated research
to measure advertising effectiveness
5. Detect changes in consumer perception due to advertising
Mercedes-Benz andVolkswagen ran advertising campaigns on a certain television network
between April and July 2009. During that time, the network’s percentage of car shopping
viewers with positive attitudes toward foreign cars increased by over 50 percent. (See Figure 6.)
Figure 6: The Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen campaigns have a positive influence on attitudes
toward foreign cars
For the first time, a syndicated service measures advertising effectiveness
In the past, marketers and their agency and media partners had to rely on advertising
measurement programs that lacked the depth and breadth of data for comprehensive analysis of
advertising effectiveness. For the first time, through Experian Simmons DataStream, a weekly
syndicated service measures and evaluates advertising effectiveness by monitoring shifting
consumer behavior, attitudes and opinions and tracking brand performance.
An Experian white paper | Page 6
Five ways to use syndicated research
to measure advertising effectiveness
Supplemental material
Methodology
The data source for the Experian Simmons DataStream syndicated service is the stream of
consumer, media and lifestyle data that comes in on a daily basis for eventual incorporation into
the Simmons National Consumer Study (NCS). It has the same rigorous sample design, and it
contains most of the adult personal variables that are available in the NCS.Variables that are not
available include statistically constructed psychographic scales or average issue audience
estimates.
The data is plotted on a trend line that allows users to view changes in consumer behavior and
other variables along time. Stringent execution of sample management procedures and yearround data collection yield weekly samples that can be considered statistically equivalent and, as
such, comparable across time periods.The most recent data is available in the Experian Simmons
DataStream six calendar weeks from the time the question is fielded until the first one-week
estimate is complete.
About Experian Simmons
Experian Simmons is a research service offered by Experian Marketing Services.The Simmons
National Consumer Study has been chronicling the American consumer for more than 50 years.
From the products that all Americans buy and the brands they prefer to their Internet shopping
behaviors, attitudes and lifestyles and the media that they use, the Simmons studies survey more
than 30,000 American consumers each year to deliver reliable national and local data. Learn more
at www.experiansimmons.com.
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About Experian Marketing Services
Experian Marketing Services helps leading marketers turn customers into brand advocates. By
focusing on three core areas of excellence — data, platforms and analytics — Experian provides
the world’s leading brands with the insight, technology and expertise they need to effectively
target and engage their most profitable customers across the marketing ecosystem.We do this
through a full suite of marketing services, including email marketing, addressable advertising,
on-demand data enrichment, modeling and analytics, strategic services, and consumer and
competitive insights. Learn more at www.experianmarketingservices.com.
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