Creative & Branded Content

• Targets & Segments
• Article

Current Opportunities and Challenges VR Presents for Advertisers

• Journal of Advertising Research

Before the resurgence in interest in AI, virtual reality was the technology everyone was excited about. Despite the hype, advertisers have been slow to adopt VR environments. Why is this? This study, which was recently made available early online on the Journal of Advertising Research’s website, explores the potential and challenges of VR environments for advertising in its current state.

Widespread adoption has stalled, the study finds, due to obstacles such as limited reach, anticipated lack of ROI, lack of technical expertise and poor interoperability. However, the metaverse offers unique opportunities for advertisers, leaving a sort of resonating impact that other media cannot convey, because they do not engage the user in as immersive an experience as VR offers.

• Targets & Segments
• Article

How Virtual Mirrors Influence Attitudes about Beauty Products

• Journal of Advertising Research

Augmented reality holds much promise for advertising. However, little research has investigated the impact of it or virtual mirrors in advertising. This study, recently published in the Journal of Advertising Research, focuses on how self-referencing, self-awareness, self-focused attention and self–brand relationships affect consumer attitudes and purchase intentions within this new virtual frontier. The research highlights the potential of augmented reality to enhance consumer engagement and satisfaction by allowing users to visualize products on themselves in real-time.

The authors conducted a laboratory experiment with university students to investigate the effects of viewing perspectives, types of endorsements and the use of beauty filters in virtual mirrors. The findings suggest that while virtual mirrors can enhance product attitudes, they do not significantly influence purchase intentions. The study provides valuable insights for marketers on tailoring augmented reality advertising strategies to different cultural contexts.

More analysis and the full study is available to ARF members.

• Past Event Highlights
• Article

SHOPPER 2024 -- COMPETING FOR TODAY’S SHOPPER: TOOLS, TECHNOLOGIES & TRENDS

At SHOPPER 2024, practitioners and academics shared research-based insights on retail media networks (RMN), AI, influencer marketing and live shopping. The industry’s leading experts revealed which tools, technologies and trends are shaping the ever-evolving shopper landscape and what brands need to know to stay ahead.

• Targets & Segments
• Article

Racial Minority Representation Increases Advertising Effectiveness in Mortgage Markets

Explore the impact of racial minority representation in TV advertisements on consumer choices in the mortgage market in this new MSI working paper. The study employed a double machine learning model to control for high-dimensional video and text features, ensuring robust estimates. Its findings reveal that higher minority presence can significantly increase TV advertising effectiveness.

• Creative & Branded Content
• Article

Are Virtual Influencers More Effective in Real-World Settings?

• Journal of Advertising Research

Virtual influencers are computer-generated personas that engage with audiences on social media and in the metaverse. This study explores whether virtual influencers are more effective in advertising when they include real-world elements, such as interacting with real humans or endorsing real-world products. The research is grounded in the Computers Are Social Actors (CASA) framework and investigates how social cues and product types influence consumer perceptions of authenticity and attitudes toward both the influencer and the brand.

The findings suggest that virtual influencers are perceived as more authentic and favorable when they are shown alongside real humans and endorse real-world products. This perceived authenticity positively impacts consumer attitudes toward the virtual influencer and the brand, providing valuable insights for advertisers looking to leverage virtual influencers in their marketing strategies.

More analysis and the full study is available to ARF members.

• Creative & Branded Content
• Article

Music’s Impact on Visual Scene Interpretation in Media

The study explores how music influences the emotional and semantic interpretation of visual scenes in media. It employs a large-scale empirical approach to assess both implicit and explicit participant responses to various audio-visual combinations, revealing music's nuanced effect on semantic attribute ratings.

• Creative & Branded Content
• Article

Generative AI Can Make Ad Creative Better Than Humans Alone

Have we reached the John Henry moment in ad creative where the machine can outperform a human in creating visuals for ads? Not quite. Generative AI does have a place in creative, however. This Marketing Science Institute (MSI) working paper found that GenAI when trained on ads which were rated the most effective by consumers can create ad visuals and text that outperform the originals in KPIs related to the purchase funnel and brand associations. Yet, the human element has not been cut out just yet. In fact, it might be pivotal to the process. The human AI combo saved time and effort and created pleasing visuals while maintaining a brand’s distinctive positioning.

• Creative & Branded Content
• Article

How Implied Explosions Boost Perfume Ads’ Appeal

This study investigates how the concept of “implied explosion” in advertisements can significantly enhance consumers' perception of a perfume's intensity and persistence, leading to higher purchase intentions. Discover how both visual and textual cues can be leveraged to create a more impactful consumer experience.