Research & Data Quality

Navigating Identity Loss: Measurement and Targeting in a Privacy-First Era

  • ARF
  • ARF Analytics Council

How is the loss of digital identifiers reshaping advertising research? This guide, by the ARF Analytics Council, offers advertising researchers a deep dive into the privacy-first landscape, covering regulatory impacts, measurement challenges and practical identity solutions—from synthetic IDs to advanced modeling—to enable successful targeting and attribution in a fragmented ecosystem.

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Testing AI’s Strategic IQ: Can Generative Models Think Like Top Executives?

  • ARF ORIGINAL RESEARCH
  • ARF

The ARF tested whether generative AI can adopt executive personas and provide credible, role-specific strategies. This experiment highlights how AI performs when “thinking like” organizational leaders, its limitations in institutional logic and feasibility, and how human-in-the-loop feedback can refine outputs and create nuanced and worthwhile results.

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Alternative Explanations: Can AI Rethink Its Own Reasoning?

  • ARF

Can AI challenge its own conclusions rather than merely reinforcing them? In this ARF experiment, researchers explored whether large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT can go beyond efficiency and exhibit deeper critical thinking skills. By prompting AI to evaluate and compare hypotheses—including its own—this study reveals how LLMs can serve as interpretive collaborators in research and theoretical reasoning.

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The ARF Metrics Survey: Insights into Advertising Strategies

  • ARF
  • ARF

The ARF Metrics Survey explores critical trends in advertising strategies, including budget allocation, metric usage and targeting solutions. Drawing on insights from agencies and brand-side advertisers, the findings reflect shared priorities, notable differences and challenges in evaluating and optimizing campaign performance. The study highlights the dominance of digital channels, with high-priority channels such as digital video, social media, SEM and television receiving significant budget allocations.

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PG VS R: The Psychology of Prompted Thought

  • ARF; MSI

Can sanitized AI tools truly capture the nuance required for advertising and brand research? Is a less restrained one more likely to produce skewed results? This comparative deep dive, from ARF and MSI explores how two popular large language models—ChatGPT-4o and Grok 3—respond when prompted with complex topics. The findings highlight how content moderation affects not only tone and specificity, but the very boundaries of inquiry. For advertising researchers navigating sensitive brand perception topics, understanding these model tradeoffs is essential.

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The 2025 Guide on Using AI for Advertising Research

  • ARF ORIGINAL RESEARCH

This update to the ARF’s first comprehensive handbook, released last year, provides an exploration into the burgeoning technology’s transformative role in marketing and advertising research. It covers the integration of AI into marketing strategies, ethical considerations, future trends and practical case studies. This handbook is an essential guide for advertising research professionals looking to leverage any of the latest AI platforms while ensuring ethical and impactful outcomes.

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The State of Privacy-First Marketing & Redefining Performance

  • ARF
  • INSIGHTS STUDIOS

How we use data today looks different given evolving regulations, platform changes, consumers expectations of data transparency, and more. Our Insights Studio on January 30 explored the latest developments in data privacy and how they are impacting marketing strategies. Panelists unveiled strategies to establish consumer trust and effectively market, while aligning with privacy regulations.

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