Download Ad Research

Advertising &
Promotion
Research
Dr. Close
Role of Research
• Defined as:
– “the planning, collecting, and analyzing information to improve
marketing decisions.”
• A decision Support System (DSS)
• Keep isolated marketing managers in touch with markets.
• What’s hot? What’s not?
• DSS: Interactive, flexible, discovery-oriented & accessible
• Create customer profiles via database marketing
• Used to assist in determining market segments
• Plays a key role in helping creatives understand the audience
• Used to make go/no go ad decisions & when to pull ads
• Used to evaluate agency performance
• I will review research steps in general first
• Then I will cover developmental and copy testing (slightly different
from traditional marketing research)
Internet Changes Collection
Methods
Research Steps
1. Identify the problems (or opportunity)
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Is the most difficult and important (Cingular
wireless: product failures: cast about reasons:
lack of image; $300 million BBDO)
Book: often outside specialists must understand
situation.
Budget constraints an issue.
Step 2: Research Methods
2. Plan Research Design & Collect
Data
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Quick and cost effective (eliminates need)
Secondary data (Vans: law; skatepark)
– Information already collected and or published
– Study information already available
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End: decide if information is still needed
If so, conduct a new, original (primary) research
study
Market research is what I do almost every day!
Research Methods, cont.
Plan to gather data: surveys
2b. If primary data, have to collect data
yourself
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Questioning: survey (Scales)
– Set of questions to collect information directly from
subjects (open or closed ended)
– Self administer or in person (at events, malls)
– Problem: low response rates 10% is good, 36% diss)
– Problem (from low response): representative
– Online surveys
(zoomerang.com.surveymonkey.com)
Marketing Research Process
Plan to gather data: novel methods
2b. Depth interviews & Focus Groups
• Brainstorming session with 6 to 12 customers
• May involve projective techniques
– Allow consumers to project thoughts & feelings onto
neutral stimuli
• May also use association tests
– Ask consumers to express thoughts or feelings after
hearing a brand or seeing a logo
An Interesting Focus Group
I like the Green
Bottle- it speaks
to me. It’s not
easy being green.
I think the bottle
should be more
yellow.
Research Methods, cont.
Plan to gather data: experiments
2b. Data
• Experimenting
– Two similar groups
» Differ on one item of importance
» Hold all else constant
– Advantage: causation (Eckerd; 20 stores; POP; Atkins
death)
– Disadvantage: naturalism (is it so fake?) LeSportsac vs
K-Mart
– Look on the back of a prescription drug print ad….that is
an experiment
Research Steps
3. Analyze the data (not just interesting)
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Run cross-tabs
Hypothesis testing
Association Measures
Regression Analysis
Structural Equation Models
Research Steps
4. Clean/Interpret data
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Solve with statistics
Issues:
– Reliability: consistency (same result in repeated trials;
scale for weight)
– Validity: measure what you intend to (accurate
standardized tests
– Statistical software assists you
Make sure your data has:
1. Reliability: The research method
produces consistent findings over time
2. Validity: The information generated is
relevant to the research questions being
investigated
3. Trustworthiness: Usually applied to
qualitative data; does the data seem to
make sense?
4. Meaningfulness: An assessment of
limitations of the data
SPSS, SAS, Lisrel, Amos
Research Steps
5. Prepare/Present Report or Manuscript
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Solve objectives clearly
Search for the “better question” (ask about food
quality in dining hall; everyone talks about price or
location)
Tailor to audience (executive or expert scholars
6.Follow up
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How could your improve?
Was a decision made based on your study?
Build a relationship
Account Planning versus
Developmental Advertising
Research
Planning differs from traditional research in 3 ways:
Account Planner
Ad Researcher
An account planner works
with an account executive
Research handled by the ad
research department
Researchers put in more
prominent role
Researchers involved when
needed
Emphasize qualitative &
naturalistic research
Emphasize quantitative
research
And, Developmental Advertising
& Promotion Research Methods
May Differ from the Research
Steps
It is:
• Used to assist in determining market segments
• Plays a key role in helping creatives understand
the audience
• Used to make go/no go ad decisions & when to
pull ads
• Used to evaluate agency performance
Developmental Advertising
Research gives:
• Idea Generation. An agency often invents new,
meaningful ways of presenting a brand to a target
audience
• Concept Testing seeks feedback designed to
screen quality of new ideas or concepts
• Audience Definition. Once a target segment have
been identified, planning proceeds with developing a
meaningful message
• Audience Profiling. Creatives need to know as
much as they can about the people to whom their
ads will speak
Developmental Advertising
Research Methods
Besides the traditional research
methods discussed, developmental
ad methods include:
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Projective Techniques
Association Tests
Dialogue Balloons
Story Construction
Sentence & picture completion
Zaltman Metaphor Elicitation Technique
(ZMET)
Developmental Advertising
Research Methods
(con’t)
More methods include
• Field Work (A personal favorite in my event
marketing research)
– Embedded consumption: Learn from the
experiences of the consumer through direct
observation
– Creative brief: outline of essential creative ideas
(will focus on this in the creative unit)
Different from Copy Research
• Research on the actual ads
• Used to judge the ads against a
standard
• Sometimes a source of agency
conflict
Motives & Expectations in
Copy Research
• Account team wants assurance that the ad does what it
is supposed to
• Client wants to see how well an ad scores against
average commercial of its type
• Creatives often don’t like message testing because it
creates a report card & “artists” resent getting report
cards from businesses
• Message-testing research can yield important data that
management can use to determine the suitability of an
ad
Check your Spelling.
Twice.
Evaluative Criteria in Copy
Research
• “Getting It”
– Do consumers understand the ad?
• Knowledge
– Tests of recall & recognition
• Attitude change
– Determine where a brand stands
• Feelings & emotions
• Physiological changes
– Changes in eye movements or respiration
• Behavioral intent
– Do people say they will buy the product
• Actual Behavior
– Did people buy the product?
What sort of “feelings
& emotions” do you
think research would
uncover for this ad?
Copy Research Methods
• Communication Tests
– Are consumers getting the message?
• Resonance Tests
– To what extent does the ad ring true?
• Thought Listings
– Determine the thoughts that occur during exposure
• Recall Tests
– How much does the viewer remember from the
message?
Copy Research Methods
(con’t)
• Recognition Tests
– Do people remember seeing an ad or sponsor?
• Attitude Change Studies
– Measure attitudes before & after exposure
• Frame by Frame tests
– Tracks emotional responses within an ad
• Physiological Tests
– Eye tracking, psychogalvanometer, voice response
analysis
Copy Research Methods
(con’t)
• Pilot Testing
– Split cable, split run, split list
• Direct Response
– Track consumer inquiries or direct responses
• Single Source Data
– Use UPC product codes to track behavior from the TV to the
checkout counter
Another thought on testing
• No single method is perfect
• Researchers are employing more
naturalistic methods to understand how
people use media (& products)
Audience definition is an important
part of the advertising/promotion
research process. Any ideas on the
audience for this ad?