The quality of ad creative is often judged on qualitative measures–its feel, its tone, how “right” it is for a brand–but its affect on sales has just been made more mathematical with a new study from ComScore ARS.
The study looked at several test campaigns and assessed their relative creative quality according to ComScore ARS’ “persuasion score,” which measures changes in purchasing behaviour “with and without exposure to the creative.”
It found that ad quality contributed to a 52% change in sales activity. In comparison, media plans (measured by variables such as “GRPs, wearout and continuity/flighting of airing”) were shown to have only a 13% effect on sales changes. Factors such as price, distribution and promotion contributed a 35% change.
“In the digital media industry in Canada, we tend to spend a great deal of effort on optimizing the media plan–and rightfully so, because it is extremely important,” said Brent Bernie, president of comScore Canada, in a statement. “When one considers, however, the fact that the quality of the creative used in the ad can have such a significant impact on sales outcomes, we can begin to see why it is also essential to optimize creative strategy and messaging on the front end of the planning process. While front-end testing may not be second nature to digital advertisers just yet, we ignore its importance at our own peril.”
What do you think about ComScore’s findings? Have you say in the comment section below.
