Watch Part 1: How Value is Created
Key Takeaways
- Linear time duration weighting is not a measure of ad effectiveness, but can be reported alongside other metrics.
- Relationship between duration and outcomes is nonlinear, and varies by channel.
- Ad time exposure is not always a direct measure of value.
- Creative aspects of advertising can have a large influence on keeping viewer attention and brand recall.
- There are clear differences by platforms but a great need for a simple metric to understand ad value.
Time, Value and Advertising Impact
Paul Donato – Chief Research Officer, Advertising Research Foundation
Summary
Paul Donato of the ARF, provided an explanation of MRC’s Cross Platform standards as a catalyst for discovering a comparable and single metric across platforms. He noted that previous studies suggest differences in ad gaze by platform, but little difference in ad recall. He pointed out that sales response and ad exposure lead to curvilinear results. Building onto this, he examined the results of an ARF study, conducted in partnership with Media Science and Merchant Mechanics, that examines second by second biometric responses to ads, looking at indicators of both cognitive and emotional responses.
In the ARF study, neuro and biometric data were collected by exposing participants to one of four viewing platforms: Linear TV, desktop, mobile video, or mobile newsfeed. In each case participants experienced 10 rotated tests ads of various exposures and length. Other elements included early and late branding within the ad, and newsfeed related content was presented in both controlled and natural exposures.
Key Takeaways
- An overall view of this ad exposure study show some indicators as being fairly flat, such as heart rate, but more often results were more curvilinear in nature, pointing to early seconds of ad exposure as having a significant effect on biometric and neuro responses in areas such as engagement, arousal or a relaxed cognitive load.
- The results of this study indicate that ad time exposure is not always a direct measure of value. Generally, ad time does yield more value but varies regarding certain metrics and platforms.
- The results show that there are “critical moments during the course of an ad” being most effective for messaging but this also varies from platform to platform.
Understanding Duration and Outcomes
Sophie MacIntyre – Ads Research Lead, Marketing Science, Meta
Summary
Sophie Macintyre of Meta, presented a study based on in vivo data, analyzing the relationship between ad view durations and conversions. In the opening Sophie noted that the growth of new surfaces in technology has led to an overwhelming amount of measurements. She pointed to the need for a single metric that can cover all media and creative and help to measure ad impact and effectiveness.
Looking at the relationship of duration and value, Meta’s study explored “scalable and real-world metrics”. The research is gleaned from Facebook campaign data covering both mobile and web. To measure value, the study focused on outcomes = 1-day view through, attributed to online conversions.
Key Takeaways
- The overall results from the Facebook study found the relationship between duration and outcomes as nonlinear, and varies by channel. Additionally, the relationship is further complicated by consumer engagement choices and the choices made by advertisers for campaigns.
- The study suggests that because of the different results from the variety of surfaces in Facebook, that there are most likely greater differences across channels, so it shouldn’t be assumed that one unit of time means the same across all other environments.
- Relationships also differ depending on how advertisers choose to set up a campaign and how consumers choose to engage with content, given the multiple ways available. This in turn also has an effect on time and value.
- In an example Macintyre noted that, viewing an ad on an iPhone was shown to have more conversions happen from viewing in shorter durations in comparison to desktop, highlighting the importance of the viewing environment, in interpreting data.
The Complex Relationship Between Time Spend and Unit Length on TV
Tristan Webster – SVP of Product, Data & Analytics, TVision
Summary
Tristan Webster of TVision, detailed the measurement of second by second of television attention, giving consideration to the central question of what happens as video ads progress through their narrative loops. In his opening, Tristan noted, in line with the other presenters, the complex relationship between time spent and unit length on TV.
To understand the viewer better, TVision measures what program or ad is playing on the TV, how that content is reaching the screen, who is in the room, and if they are actually paying attention to the television.
Key Takeaways
- Research TVision did in conjunction with Ebiquity and Lumen exemplifies viewing habits across platforms, showing the “average eyes on dwell time” with traditional television keeping viewer attention longest, then YouTube, social media and digital display being last.
- Inefficiencies increase the longer the ad, with regard to price spent by advertiser. The research presented shows a series of shorter ads delivering more value than one longer ad.
- The first few seconds of the ad mean the most when maximizing the impact of the ad.
- The decline in ad viewership is much less dramatic in traditional television with research showing the creative aspects of advertising as having a large influence on keeping viewer attention. Things like music and auditory cues can really affect viewing engagement, particularly in television.
Panel Discussion
Paul Donato – Chief Research Officer, Advertising Research Foundation
Sophie MacIntyre – Ads Research Lead, Marketing Science, Meta
Tristan Webster – SVP of Product, Data & Analytics, TVision
Moderated by: Cesar Brea – Partner, Bain & Company
Summary
In this panel discussion, the main themes from each presentation were reviewed as well as future directions for the research. Below are highlights from the conversation:
Key Takeaways
- Things are different by platform but there is a need for a simple metric, which may not be linear in nature, which point to the implications of creative quality and capturing the correct moment.
- It is useful to take into account platform and audience differences to contextualize the data.
- Ad quality leveraging creativity is important to capture the attention of the audience.
- Next research steps needs to include measuring the impact of duration on sales and other business outcomes.