Creative Way to Test Advertising – Part One
Years of watching TV ads, reading ads in magazines and newspapers and seeing billboards and ads shown with the previews in movies, have trained Americans how to watch ads, what to listen for and when to be charmed or disgusted with what they see. They know when the spokesperson is authentic and when he/she has been paid to tout a product or service. They know how before and after pictures have been retouched to make a case and they know what promises are likely to be fulfilled when they buy a product and service and when they are buying “hope.”
Advertisers are challenged to present ads that are interesting, engaging, break through the clutter of other ads and make the product or service one that can be remembered in the minds of consumers so it is purchased the next time that product/service category presents itself in the marketplace.
Smart advertisers know it is wise to test ad concepts, strategies and executions before deciding on which ad to run widely for consumers to see. That’s where qualitative research can play a key role in helping advertisers understand the effect ads have on consumers.
It is up to the qualitative research consultant to devise questions and activities that get below top-of-mind reactions from consumers. As well, the researcher must determine what emotions are generated in the minds of consumers, what message is remembered and what image of the product/service/manufacturer is left when the ad has been viewed.
It is of little importance in the scheme of ad review if consumers “like” or “dislike” an ad. One past pundit said it well: “It doesn’t matter what they say about you in the press as long as they spell your name right.” Some of the most remembered ads are those that are unpleasant, loud or brash. Not only is the ad remembered, but the product/service as well.
A good example of this type of ad: A 1960’s record store that sold albums of pop music in the Washington DC, Maryland, Virginia area, Kemp Mill Records, named after a local geographic site. An announcer with an annoying voice blurted: “Kemp Mill breaks the records!” followed the sound of a hammer hitting and breaking a stack of vinyl records. The crashing sound, well known by every teenager in the tri-state area reminded them where they could find their album and at a discount, and KMR remained one of the largest sellers of records for years. Talk to any baby boomer today from the area and mention the name Kemp Mill Records and all will remember the tag line. That’s a pretty powerful memory for a store that has been out of business for decades.
Many remember the whiny old lady who kept saying “Where’s the Beef” providing another example an ad going against the grain and becoming memorable through the annoyance factor.
In a focus group or IDI, respondents are shown an ad [e.g., on a monitor, via storyboard or marker comp or they listen to a radio spot] and then asked to review it and make comments. Sometimes they see an ad at the draft stage and sometimes closer to being finished.
What is important to advertisers can be measured on four dimensions:
- Believability
- Relevance
- Uniqueness
- Motivation
Before diving into these areas, it is good to get reactions to the ad overall and progress from the general to the specific down a logical path to understand the impact of the ad and the message it leaves behind.
A good way to get below top-of-mind and into the thinking of respondents is to start with questions like this:
“What is this ad about? [What story is being told?]
““What elements of the ad stand out in your memory?”
“What is promised if you buy this product or service?
This approach lets the researcher see if respondents can report on the context of the ad and the single overarching theme. For example, respondents see an ad for dog food and the dog is a puppy with a red bow around his neck and the dog plays with a 10-year-old boy who throws a stick that the dog chases, and the voiceover says: “Feed your puppy XX and he’ll grow up to be strong.” After viewing the ad, one would expect to hear this story reported by respondents: “This ad is about a little boy who has gotten a puppy for his birthday and if he wants the puppy to grow up strong and healthy, so he can always bring back the stick, you should feed him X brand of food.”
That would be a “clear read” and all the insight one would need about the “message” of the ad. It is not wise to ask: “What is the message of this ad?” because consumers don’t think about messages. They think about stories.
After understanding the “story” and the “underlying message” of the ad, now it is up to the researcher to perform the BRUM test on the ad shown to consumers to get beyond the message.
- Is the ad believable? This “B” of the BRUM test is meant to see if the ad makes sense, supports the notion of “willing suspension of disbelief” and hangs together as the story unfolds. The key questions to ask respondents to uncover the degree of believability include:
- Does this ad make sense – how clear is the story?
- How credible is what is promised?”
- Does this ad hang together and move logically from point to point, from beginning to end?
When ads don’t make “sense” to consumers, they feel frustrated or stupid and they translate that discomfort into not liking the product/service and the company that presents it. When an ad makes “sense,” consumers feel empowered and “knowing” and they tend to think well of the product/service even if they are not the desired target for the product. This carryover benefit reaches not only the targeted consumer but makes the non-targeted consumer one to carry “word-of-mouth” praise when the subject around that product/service comes up in conversation.
- The R in the BRUM test stands for relevance and refers to who the ad is supposed to talk to. For example, an ad for vacation travel to Disneyland is aimed primarily at parents and kids, while an ad for a new Day Spa site is primarily aimed at women. The questions to ask respondents around this issue:
- Who Is this ad talking to –you or someone else?
- If it, is you…what is promised – and how much do you want that promise to be true?
- If it is talking to someone else –who is that person – and how are they different from you?
Most researchers know when they hear the dreaded comment of “Oh, it would be good for seniors” and creators had teens in mind, they know the relevance factor is way off. If some respondents say that it is talking to them and others say it is not, it is fertile ground to explore in discussion to tease out the dichotomy.
The degree to which an ad “talks” to the intended targeted consumer is an important factor how well that ad may work in the marketplace.
Look out for part two coming up next week!
Written by: Naomi Henderson, CEO & Co-Founder