AI/ML

AUDIENCEXSCIENCE 2026

  • ARF

ARF’s annual AUDIENCExSCIENCE conference showcased the most urgent challenges and recent breakthroughs in audience measurement. Industry leaders gathered in NYC March 18-19 to examine the rapidly changing intersection of AI, marketing, media, and consumer insights. As AI shifts research workflows, alters measurement systems, and changes consumer behavior, we explored new insights on how audience measurement is adapting to rapid change. Content is currently available to conference attendees.

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The Persuasive Power of Pets: New Insights for Influencer Strategy

The Persuasive Power of Pets: New Insights for Influencer Strategy

  • ARF
  • JOURNAL OF ADVERTISING RESEARCH

A recent Journal of Advertising Research study presents the first empirical evidence that petfluencers can outperform human influencers in driving engagement and willingness to pay. Across four studies—including a real-world A/B test and controlled experiments, the researchers show that pet influencers benefit from higher perceived sincerity, and that message framing matters. When temporal cues align with consumers’ propensity to anthropomorphize animals, the persuasive impact increases further.

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Tempo Tactics: How Fast and Slow Music Shape Consumer Responses in Video Advertising

Tempo Tactics: How Fast and Slow Music Shape Consumer Responses in Video Advertising

  • ARF
  • JOURNAL OF ADVERTISING RESEARCH

A new Journal of Advertising Research study investigates how music tempo—a ubiquitous but understudied element in video advertising—interacts with regulatory focus to shape consumer purchase intentions. Analyzing 26,025 real-world video ads and running three controlled experiments, the researchers find that fast-tempo music significantly boosts purchase intention for promotion-focused ads, while tempo has no meaningful effect in prevention-focused ads. The mechanism is driven by time pressure and consumers’ reliance on heuristic vs. systematic processing. These findings offer actionable insights for advertisers optimizing creative strategy in short-form video environments.

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