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Summary
As media multitasking becomes the norm rather than the exception, advertisers face growing challenges in capturing and sustaining audience attention. This research demonstrates that introducing unfamiliar cues—such as technical or uncommon terms—into ad content can trigger selective attention and meaningfully improve ad recall, but only when audiences are multitasking in ways that are congruent with the message. Across multiple experimental studies, the findings show how curiosity-driven engagement can help ads break through distraction and be remembered more effectively.
