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ADVERITSING MANAGEMENT IMS 705

KARISHMA SIROHI

Unit-I:

Advertising - Definition, Objectives, Functions and Classification of Advertising, Advertising in

Comparison to other tools of Marketing Communication, Advertising as a Career, AIDA

Concept, Consumer Behaviour & Advertising

Unit-II:

Social, Economical, Ethical and Legal Aspects of Advertising; Advertising Organization:

Advertising Agency- Types & Function of Advertising Agency; Functions of Advertising

Department and Advertising Manager

Unit-III:

Creative Strategy: Creative Process, Copy Strategy: Print Advertising- Elements & Layout, TVC

(Television Commercial) Planning and Production; Source Factors; Message Factors;

Advertising Appeals & Execution Styles

Unit-IV:

Media planning and Strategy: Media Alternatives, Media Planning & Buying, Developing Media

Strategies, Advertising Budget - Approaches and Procedure, DAGMAR Approach

Unit-V:

Advertising Effectiveness: The Rationale of Testing; Types of Advertising Evaluation:

Pretesting, Post Testing and Progress Testing, Benefits and Limitations of Advertising

Evaluation. Retail Advertising, International Advertising; Trends in Advertising

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2 UNIT 3

CREATIVE STRATEGY

Advertising creativity is the ability to generate fresh, unique, and appropriate ideas that can

be used as solutions to communications problems. To be appropriate and effective, a creative

idea must be relevant to the target audience. Many ad agencies recognize the importance of developing advertising that is creative and different yet communicates relevant information to

the target audience. The Creative Process

Young’s model of the creative process contains five steps:

1. Immersion. Gathering raw material and information through background research and immersing yourself in the problem.

2. Digestion. Taking the information, working it over, and wrestling with it in the mind. 3. Incubation. Putting the problems out of your conscious mind and turning the information

over to the subconscious to do the work. 4. Illumination. The birth of an idea—the “Eureka! I have it!” phenomenon. 5. Reality or verification. Studying the idea to see if it still looks good or solves the

problem; then shaping the idea to practical usefulness.

Young’s process of creativity is similar to a four-step approach outlined much earlier by English sociologist Graham Wallas:

1. Preparation. Gathering background information needed to solve the problem through

research and study. 2. Incubation. Getting away and letting ideas develop.

3. Illumination. Seeing the light or solution. 4. Verification. Refining and polishing the idea and seeing if it is an appropriate solution.

Creative Strategy Development

Advertising Campaigns: which is a set of interrelated and coordinated marketing communication activities that center on a single theme or idea that appears in different media across a specified time period. Determining the unifying theme around which the campaign will

be built is a critical part of the creative process, as it sets the tone for the individual ads and other forms of marketing communications that will be used. A campaign theme should be a strong

idea, as it is the central message that will be communicated in all the advertising and other promotional activities. The creative strategy is based on several factors, including identification of the target audience;

the basic problem, issue, or opportunity the advertising must address; the major selling idea or key benefit the message needs to communicate; and any supportive information that needs to be

included in the ad. Once these factors are determined, a creative strategy statement should describe the message appeal and execution style that will be used. Many ad agencies outline these elements in a document known as the copy or creative platform.

Copy Platform: The written copy platform specifies the basic elements of the creative strategy. Different gencies may call this document a creative platform or work plan,

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3 creative brief, creative blueprint, or creative contract. The account representative or manager assigned to the account usually prepares the copy platform.

Copy platform outline

1. Basic problem or issue the advertising must address.

2. Advertising and communications objectives. 3. Target audience. 4. Major selling idea or key benefits to communicate.

5. Creative strategy statement (campaign theme, appeal, and execution technique to be used).

6. Supporting information and requirements. Many copy platforms also include supporting information and requirements (brand identifications, disclaimers, and the like) that should appear in any advertising message. One

of the major challenges for the creative team is determining the major selling idea that will be used as the basis of the campaign.

The Search for the Major Selling Idea: An important part of creative strategy is

determining the central theme that will become the major selling idea of the ad campaign. The major selling idea should emerge as the strongest singular thing you can say about your product or service. This should be the claim with the broadest and most meaningful

appeal to your target audience. Once you determine this message, be certain you can live with it; be sure it stands strong enough to remain the central issue in every ad and

commercial in the campaign. Several approaches can guide the creative team’s search for a major selling idea and offer solutions for developing effective advertising. Some of the best-known approaches

follow: Using a unique selling proposition: The concept of the unique selling proposition

(USP) was developed by Rosser Reeves, former chair of the Ted Bates agency, and is described in his influential book Reality in Advertising. Reeves noted three characteristics of unique selling propositions:

1. Each advertisement must make a proposition to the consumer. Not just words, not just product puffery, not just show-window advertising. Each advertisement must

say to each reader: “Buy this product and you will get this benefit.” 2. The proposition must be one that the competition either cannot or does not offer.

It must be unique either in the brand or in the claim.

3. The proposition must be strong enough to move the mass millions, that is, pull over new customers to your brand.30

Creating a brand image: In many product and service categories, competing brands are

so similar that it is very difficult to find or create a unique attribute or benefit to use as the major selling idea. Many of the packaged-goods products that account for most of the

advertising dollars spent in the United States are difficult to differentiate on a functional or performance basis.

Finding the inherent drama: Another approach to determining the major selling idea is

finding the inherent drama or characteristic of the product that makes the consumer purchase it. The inherent drama approach expresses the advertising philosophy of Leo

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4 Burnett, founder of the Leo Burnett agency in Chicago. Burnett said inherent-drama “is

often hard to find but it is always there, and once found it is the most interesting and

believable of all advertising appeals. Positioning: The basic idea is that advertising is used to establish or “position” the

product or service in a particular place in the consumer’s mind. Positioning is done for companies as well as for brands.

Appeals and Execution Styles: The advertising appeal refers to the approach used to

attract the attention of consumers and/or to influence their feelings toward the product, service, or cause. An advertising appeal can also be viewed as “something that moves people, speaks to their wants or needs, and excites their interest.”1 The creative execution style is the way a

particular appeal is turned into an advertising message presented to the consumer.

Advertising Appeals: Hundreds of different appeals can be used as the basis for advertising messages.

1. Informational/Rational Appeals: Informational/rational appeals focus on the

consumer’s practical, functional, or utilitarian need for the product or service and emphasize features of a product or service and/or the benefits or reasons for owning or

using a particular brand. The content of these messages emphasizes facts, learning, and the logic of persuasion. Rational-based appeals tend to be informative, and advertisers using them generally attempt to convince consumers that their product or service has a

particular attribute(s) or provides a specific benefit that satisfies their needs. Their objective is to persuade the target audience to buy the brand because it is the best

available or does a better job of meeting consumers’ needs. Weilbacher identified several types of advertising appeals that fall under the category of rational approaches, among them feature, competitive advantage, favorable price, news, and product/service

popularity appeals. A. Feature appeal: Ads that use a feature appeal focus on the dominant traits of the

product or service. These ads tend to be highly informative and present the customer with a number of important product attributes or features that will lead to favorable attitudes and can be used as the basis for a rational purchase decision.

Technical and high-involvement products such as automobiles often use this type of advertising appeal.

B. Competitive advantage appeal: When a competitive advantage appeal is used, the advertiser makes either a direct or an indirect comparison to another brand (or brands) and usually claims superiority on one or more attributes.

C. Favorable price appeal: A favorable price appeal makes the price offer the dominant point of the message. Price appeal advertising is used most often by

retailers to announce sales, special offers, or low everyday prices. Price appeal ads are often used by national advertisers during recessionary times.

D. News appeals: News appeals are those in which some type of news or

announcement about the product, service, or company dominates the ad. This type of appeal can be used for a new product or service or to inform consumers of

significant modifications or improvements. This appeal works best when a company has important news it wants to communicate to its target market.

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5 E. Product/service popularity appeals: Product/service popularity appeals stress

the popularity of a product or service by pointing out the number of consumers

who use the brand, the number who have switched to it, the number of experts who recommend it, or its leadership position in the market. The main point of this

advertising appeal is that the wide use of the brand proves its quality or value and other customers should consider using it.

2. Emotional Appeals: Emotional appeals relate to the customers’ social and/or

psychological needs for purchasing a product or service. Many consumers’ motives for their purchase decisions are emotional, and their feelings about a brand can be more

important than knowledge of its features or attributes. Advertisers for many products and services view rational, information-based appeals as dull. Many advertisers believe appeals to consumers’ emotions work better at selling brands that do not differ markedly

from competing brands, since rational differentiation of them is difficult. 3. Combining Rational and Emotional Appeals: In many advertising situations, the

decision facing the creative specialist is not whether to choose an emotional or a rational appeal but, rather, determining how to combine the two approaches.

Advertising Execution: Creative execution is the way an advertising appeal is presented. Once the specific advertising appeal that will be used as the basis for the advertising message has been

determined, the creative specialist or team begins its execution. An advertising message can be presented or executed in numerous ways:

• Straight sell or factual message • Animation • Scientific/technical evidence • Personality symbol

• Demonstration • Fantasy • Comparison • Dramatization • Testimonial • Humor

• Slice of life • Combinations

Straight Sell or Factual Message: This type of ad relies on a straightforward

presentation of information concerning the product or service. This execution is often used with informational/rational appeals, where the focus of the message is the product or

service and its specific attributes and/or benefits. Straight-sell executions are commonly used in print ads. A picture of the product or service occupies part of the ad, and the factual copy takes up the rest of the space.

Scientific/Technical Evidence: In a variation of the straight sell, scientific or technical evidence is presented in the ad. Advertisers often cite technical information, results of

scientific or laboratory studies, or endorsements by scientific bodies or agencies to support their advertising claims.

Demonstration: Demonstration advertising is designed to illustrate the key advantages

of the product/service by showing it in actual use or in some staged situation. Demonstration executions can be very effective in convincing consumers of a product’s

utility or quality and of the benefits of owning or using the brand.

Comparison: The comparison execution approach is increasingly popular among

advertisers, since it offers a direct way of communicating a brand’s particular advantage over its competitors or positioning a new or lesser known brand with industry leaders.

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6 Testimonial: This approach can be very effective when the person delivering the

testimonial is someone with whom the target audience can identify or who has an interesting story to tell. The testimonial must be based on actual use of the product or service to avoid legal problems, and the spokesperson must be credible.

Slice of Life: This type of ad portrays a problem or conflict that consumers might face in their daily lives. The ad then shows how the advertiser’s product or service can resolve

the problem.

Animation: An advertising execution approach that has become popular in recent years

is animation. With this technique, animated scenes are drawn by artists or created on the computer, and cartoons, puppets, or other types of fictional characters may be used. Cartoon animation is especially popular for commercials targeted at children.

Personality Symbol: Another type of advertising execution involves developing a central character or personality symbol that can deliver the advertising message and with

which the product or service can be identified. Personality figures can also be built around animated characters and animals.

Fantasy: An execution technique that is popular for emotional types of appeals such as image advertising is fantasy. Fantasy executions are particularly well suited for

television, as the commercial can become a 30-second escape for the viewer into another lifestyle. The product or service becomes a central part of the situation created by the advertiser. Cosmetics ads often use fantasy appeals to create images and symbols that

become associated with the brand.

Creative Tactics:

The design and production of advertising messages involve a number of activities, among them writing copy, developing illustrations and other visual elements of the ad, and bringing all of the

pieces together to create an effective message.

Creative Tactics for Print Advertising: The basic components of a print ad are the headline, the body copy, the visual or illustrations, and the layout (the way they all fit together). The headline and body copy portions of the ad are the responsibility of the copywriters; artists, often

working under the direction of an art director, are responsible for the visual presentation. Art directors also work with the copywriters to develop a layout, or arrangement of the various components of the ad: headlines, subheads, body copy, illustrations, captions, logos, and the like.

Headlines: The headline is the words in the leading position of the ad—the words that will be read first or are positioned to draw the most attention. Headlines are usually set in

larger type and are often set apart from the body copy or text portion of the ad to give them prominence. Most advertising people consider the headline the most important part

of a print ad. The most important function of a headline is attracting readers’ attention and interesting them in the rest of the message. While the visual portion of an ad is obviously important, the headline often shoulders most of the responsibility of attracting

readers’ attention. Types of Headlines: There are numerous headline possibilities.

Direct headlines: Direct headlines are straightforward and informative in terms of the message they are presenting and the target audience they are directed toward. Common types of direct headlines include those offering

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7 a specific benefit, making a promise, or announcing a reason the reader should be interested in the product or service.

Indirect headlines: Indirect headlines are not straightforward about identifying the product or service or getting to the point. But they are often

more effective at attracting readers’ attention and interest because they provoke curiosity and lure readers into the body copy to learn an answer or get an explanation. Techniques for writing indirect headlines include

using questions, provocations, how-to statements, and challenges.

Body Copy: The main text portion of a print ad is referred to as the body copy (or

sometimes just copy). While the body copy is usually the heart of the advertising message, getting the target audience to read it is often difficult. The copywriter faces a

dilemma: The body copy must be long enough to communicate the advertiser’s message yet short enough to hold readers’ interest. Body copy content often flows from the points made in the headline or various subheads, but the specific content depends on the type of

advertising appeal and/or execution style being used.

Visual Elements: The visual portion of an ad must attract attention, communicate an idea

or image, and work in a synergistic fashion with the headline and body copy to produce an effective message. In some print ads, the visual portion of the ad is essentially the message and thus must convey a strong and meaningful image. Many decisions have to

be made regarding the visual portion of the ad: what identification marks should be included (brand name, company or trade name, trademarks, logos); whether to use photos

or hand-drawn or painted illustrations; what colors to use (or even perhaps black and white or just a splash of color); and what the focus of the visual should be.

Layout: A layout is the physical arrangement of the various parts of the ad, including the

headline, subheads, body copy, illustrations, and any identifying marks. The layout shows where each part of the ad will be placed and gives guidelines to the people working on

the ad. The layout can also guide the art director in determining the size and type of photos. The agency should get client approval of the layout before moving on to the more

costly stages of print production. Creative Tactics for Television:

TV is a unique and powerful advertising medium because it contains the elements of sight, sound, and motion, which can be combined to create a variety of advertising appeals and

executions. Like print ads, TV commercials have several components. The video and audio must work together to create the right impact and communicate the advertiser’s message.

Video: The video elements of a commercial are what is seen on the TV screen. The

visual portion generally dominates the commercial, so it must attract viewers’ attention and communicate an idea, message, and/or image. A number of visual elements may have

to be coordinated to produce a successful ad. Decisions have to be made regarding the product, the presenter, action sequences, demonstrations, and the like, as well as the

setting(s), the talent or characters who will appear in the commercial, and such other factors as lighting, graphics, color, and identifying symbols.

Audio: The audio portion of a commercial includes voices, music, and sound effects.

Voices are used in different ways in commercials. They may be heard through the direct presentation of a spokesperson or as a conversation among various people appearing in

the commercial. A common method for presenting the audio portion of a commercial is

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8 through a voice-over, where the message is delivered or action on the screen is narrated or described by an announcer who is not visible. A trend among major advertisers is to

have celebrities with distinctive voices do the voiceovers for their commercials.

Planning and Production of TV Commercials: One of the first decisions that has to be made in planning a TV commercial is the type of appeal and execution style that will be used. Television is well suited to both rational and emotional advertising appeals or combinations of the two.

Various execution styles used with rational appeals, such as a straight sell or announcement, demonstration, testimonial, or comparison, work well on TV.

Planning the Commercial: The various elements of a TV commercial are brought together in a script, a written version of a commercial that provides a detailed description

of its video and audio content. The script shows the various audio components of the commercial—the copy to be spoken by voices, the music, and sound effects. The video portion of the script provides the visual plan of the commercial—camera actions and

angles, scenes, transitions, and other important descriptions. The script also shows how the video corresponds to the audio portion of the commercial. Once the basic script has

been conceived, the writer and art director get together to produce a storyboard, a series of drawings used to present the visual plan or layout of a proposed commercial. The storyboard contains still drawings of the video scenes and descriptions of the audio that

accompanies each scene. Like layouts for print ads, storyboards provide those involved in the production and approval of the commercial with a good approximation of what the

final commercial will look like. In some cases an animatic (a videotape of the storyboard along with the soundtrack) may be produced if a more finished form of the commercial is needed for client presentations or pretesting.

Production: Once the storyboard or animatic of the commercial is approved, it is ready to move to the production phase, which involves three stages:

1. Preproduction—all the work and activities that occur before the actual shooting/ recording of the commercial.

2. Production—the period during which the commercial is filmed or videotaped and

recorded. 3. Postproduction—activities and work that occur after the commercial has been filmed and

recorded.

Preproduction

Selecting a director

Choosing a production Company

Bidding

Cost estimation and timing

Production timetable Set construction

Location Agency and client

approvals

Casting Wardrobes

Preproduction meeting

Production

Location versus

set shoots

Night/weekend

shoots

Talent

arrangements

Postproduction

• Editing

• Processing • Recording sound effects • Audio/video mixing

• Opticals • Client/agency approval

• Duplicating • Release/shipping

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9

Client Evaluation and Approval of Creative Work: While the creative specialists have much

responsibility for determining the advertising appeal and execution style to be used in a campaign, the client must evaluate and approve the creative approach before any ads are

produced. A number of people on the client side may be involved in evaluating the creative work of the agency, including the advertising or communications manager, product or brand managers, marketing director or vice president, representatives from the legal department, and sometimes

even the president or chief executive officer (CEO) of the company or the board of directors. Guidelines for Evaluating Creative Output: Basic criteria for evaluating creative

approaches are discussed next: Is the creative approach consistent with the brand’s marketing and advertising

objectives?

Is the creative approach consistent with the creative strategy and objectives? Does it communicate what it is supposed to?

Is the creative approach appropriate for the target audience? Does the creative approach communicate a clear and convincing message to the

customer?

Does the creative execution keep from overwhelming the message? Is the creative approach appropriate for the media environment in which it is

likely to be seen? Is the ad truthful and tasteful?

Source Factors: To develop an effective advertising and promotional campaign, a firm must

select the right spokesperson to deliver a compelling message through appropriate channels or media. Source, message, and channel factors are controllable elements in the communications model. Word-of-mouth information transmitted from one individual to another is often perceived

as more reliable and trustworthy than that received through more formal marketing channels such as advertising. We use the term source to mean the person involved in communicating a

marketing message, either directly or indirectly. A direct source is a spokesperson who delivers a message and/or demonstrates a product or service. An indirect source, say, a model, doesn’t actually deliver a message but draws attention to and/or enhances the appearance of the ad. Some

ads use neither a direct nor an indirect source; the source is the organization with the message to communicate. Herbert Kelman developed three basic categories of source attributes: credibility,

attractiveness, and power. Each influences the recipient’s attitude or behavior through a different process:

Source Credibility: Credibility is the extent to which the recipient sees the source as

having relevant knowledge, skill, or experience and trusts the source to give unbiased, objective information. There are two important dimensions to credibility, expertise and

trustworthiness. A communicator seen as knowledgeable—someone with expertise—is more persuasive than one with less expertise. But the source also has to be trustworthy—honest, ethical, and believable. The influence of a knowledgeable source will be lessened

if audience members think he or she is biased or has underlying personal motives for advocating a position (such as being paid to endorse a product). Information from a

credible source influences beliefs, opinions, attitudes, and/or behavior through a process known as internalization, which occurs when the receiver adopts the opinion of the

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10 credible communicator since he or she believes information from this source is accurate. Once the receiver internalizes an opinion or attitude, it becomes integrated into his or her

belief system and may be maintained even after the source of the message is forgotten. Applying Expertise: Companies use a variety of techniques to convey source expertise.

Sales personnel are trained in the product line, which increases customers’ perceptions of their expertise. Marketers of highly technical products recruit sales reps with specialized technical backgrounds in engineering, computer science, and other areas to ensure their

expertise. Spokespeople are often chosen because of their knowledge, experience, and expertise in a particular product or service area. Endorsements from individuals or groups

recognized as experts, such as doctors or dentists, are also common in advertising. Applying Trustworthiness: Finding celebrities or other figures with a trustworthy image

is often difficult. Many trustworthy public figures hesitate to endorse products because of

the potential impact on their reputation and image. Advertisers use various techniques to increase the perception that their sources are trustworthy. Hidden cameras are used to

show that the consumer is not a paid spokesperson and is making an objective evaluation of the product. Disguised brands are compared.

Using Corporate Leaders as Spokespeople: Another way of enhancing source

credibility is to use the company president or chief executive officer as a spokesperson in the firm’s advertising. Many companies believe the use of their president or CEO is the

ultimate expression of the company’s commitment to quality and customer service.

Source Attractiveness: A source characteristic frequently used by advertisers is attractiveness,

which encompasses similarity, familiarity, and likability. Similarity is a supposed resemblance between the source and the receiver of the message, while familiarity refers to knowledge of the

source through exposure. Likability is an affection for the source as a result of physical appearance, behavior, or other personal traits.

Applying Similarity: Marketers recognize that people are more likely to be influenced

by a message coming from someone with whom they feel a sense of similarity. If the communicator and receiver have similar needs, goals, interests, and lifestyles, the

position advocated by the source is better understood and received. Similarity is used in various ways in marketing communications. Companies select sales people whose

characteristics match well with their customers’.

Applying Likability: Using Celebrities: Advertisers recognize the value of using spokespeople who are admired: TV and movie stars, athletes, musicians, and other

popular public figures. It is estimated that nearly 20 percent of all TV commercials feature celebrities, and advertisers pay hundreds of millions of dollars for their services.

Applying Likability: Decorative Models: Advertisers often draw attention to their ads by featuring a physically attractive person who serves as a passive or decorative model

rather than as an active communicator. Research suggests that physically attractive communicators generally have a positive impact and generate more favorable evaluations of both ads and products than less attractive models.

Source Power:

The final characteristic in Kelman’s classification scheme is source power. A source has power

when he or she can actually administer rewards and punishments to the receiver. As a result of this power, the source may be able to induce another person(s) to respond to the request or position he or she is advocating. The power of the source depends on several factors. The source

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11 must be perceived as being able to administer positive or negative sanctions to the receiver (perceived control) and the receiver must think the source cares about whether or not the receiver

conforms (perceived concern). The receiver’s estimate of the source’s ability to observe conformity is also important (perceived scrutiny).

Message Factors: This section examines the structure of messages and considers the effects

of different types of appeals used in advertising.

Message Structure: Marketing communications usually consist of a number of message points

that the communicator wants to get across.

Order of Presentation: A basic consideration in the design of a persuasive message is

the arguments’ order of presentation. Should the most important message points be placed at the beginning of the message, in the middle, or at the end? Presenting the strongest arguments at the beginning of the message assumes a primacy effect is

operating, whereby information presented first is most effective. Putting the strong points at the end assumes a recency effect, whereby the last arguments presented are most

persuasive.

Conclusion Drawing: Marketing communicators must decide whether their messages

should explicitly draw a firm conclusion or allow receivers to draw their own conclusions. Research suggests that, in general, messages with explicit conclusions are more easily understood and effective in influencing attitudes. However, other studies

have shown that the effectiveness of conclusion drawing may depend on the target audience, the type of issue or topic, and the nature of the situation.

Message Sidedness: Another message structure decision facing the marketer involves message sidedness. A one-sided message mentions only positive attributes or benefits. A two-sided message presents both good and bad points. One-sided messages are most

effective when the target audience already holds a favorable opinion about the topic. They also work better with a less educated audience. Two-sided messages are more

effective when the target audience holds an opposing opinion or is highly educated. Two-sided messages may enhance the credibility of the source.

Refutation: In a special type of two-sided message known as a refutational appeal, the

communicator presents both sides of an issue and then refutes the opposing viewpoint. Since refutational appeals tend to “inoculate” the target audience against a competitor’s

counterclaims, they are more effective than one-sided messages in making consumers resistant to an opposing message. Refutational messages may be useful when marketers

wish to build attitudes that resist change and must defend against attacks or criticism of their products or the company.

Message Appeals: One of the advertiser’s most important creative strategy decisions involves

the choice of an appropriate appeal.

Comparative Advertising: Comparative advertising is the practice of either directly or

indirectly naming competitors in an ad and comparing one or more specific attributes. Comparative advertising may be particularly useful for new brands, since it allows a new

market entrant to position itself directly against the more established brands and to promote its distinctive advantages. Direct comparisons can help position a new brand in the evoked, or choice, set of brands the customer may be considering. Comparative

advertising is often used for brands with a small market share.

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12 Fear Appeals: Fear is an emotional response to a threat that expresses, or at least

implies, some sort of danger. Ads sometimes use fear appeals to evoke this emotional response and arouse individuals to take steps to remove the threat. Fear appeals are more effective when the message recipient is self-confident and prefers to cope with dangers

rather than avoid them. They are also more effective among nonusers of a product than among users. Thus, a fear appeal may be better at keeping nonsmokers from starting than

persuading smokers to stop.

Humor Appeals: Humorous ads are often the best known and best remembered of all advertising messages. Advertisers use humor for many reasons. Humorous messages

attract and hold consumers’ attention. They enhance effectiveness by putting consumers in a positive mood, increasing their liking of the ad itself and their feeling toward the

product or service. And humor can distract the receiver from counterarguing against the message.

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13 UNIT 4

MEDIA PLANNING AND STRATEGY

Media planning is the series of decisions involved in delivering the promotional message to the prospective purchasers and/or users of the product or brand. Media planning is a process, which

means a number of decisions are made, each of which may be altered or abandoned as the plan develops. The media plan is the guide for media selection. It requires development of specific media objectives and specific media strategies (plans of action) designed to attain these

objectives. Once the decisions have been made and the objectives and strategies formulated, this information is organized into the media plan. The medium is the general category of available

delivery systems, which includes broadcast media (like TV and radio), print media (like newspapers and magazines), direct mail, outdoor advertising, and other support media. The media vehicle is the specific carrier within a medium category. Reach is a measure of the

number of different audience members exposed at least once to a media vehicle in a given period of time. Coverage refers to the potential audience that might receive the message through a

vehicle. Finally, frequency refers to the number of times the receiver is exposed to the media vehicle in a specified period.

The Media Plan The media plan determines the best way to get the advertiser’s message to the market. In a basic sense, the goal of the media plan is to find that combination of media that enables the marketer to

communicate the message in the most effective manner to the largest number of potential customers at the lowest cost.

Problems in Media Planning: These problems include insufficient information, inconsistent terminologies, time pressures, and difficulty measuring effectiveness.

Insufficient Information

Inconsistent Terminologies

Time Pressures

Difficulty Measuring Effectiveness

Developing the Media Plan:

1. Market Analysis and Target Market Identification: The situation analysis stage of the overall promotional planning process involves a complete review of internal and external

factors, competitive strategies, and the like. In the development of a media strategy, a market analysis is again

performed, although this time the focus is on the media and delivering the message.

To Whom Shall We Advertise?

What Internal and External Factors Are Operating?

Where to Promote?

2. Establishing Media Objectives: Media objectives are the goals for the media program and should be limited to those

that can be accomplished through media strategies. An example of media objectives is this: Create awareness in the

target market through the following:

evaluation and follow up

media strategy development and implementation

establishment of media objectives

market analysis

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14 • Use broadcast media to provide coverage of 80 percent of the target market over a six-month period.

• Reach 60 percent of the target audience at least three times over the same sixmonth period.

• Concentrate heaviest advertising in winter and spring, with lighter emphasis in summer and fall.

3. Developing and Implementing Media Strategies: Having determined what is to be

accomplished, media planners consider how to achieve these objectives. That is, they develop and implement media strategies, which evolve directly from the actions required

to meet objectives. Criteria considered in the development of media plans:

The media mix

Target market coverage

Geographic coverage

Scheduling

Reach versus frequency

Creative aspects and

mood

Flexibility

Budget considerations

4. Evaluation and Follow-Up: All plans require some evaluation to assess their performance. The media plan is no exception. In outlining the planning process, we stated

that objectives are established and strategies developed for them. Having implemented these strategies, marketers need to know whether or not they were successful. Measures of effectiveness must consider two factors: (1) How well did these strategies achieve the

media objectives? (2) How well did this media plan contribute to attaining the overall marketing and communications objectives? If the strategies were successful, they should be used in future plans. If not, their flaws should be analyzed.

Media characteristics:

Media Advantages Disadvantages

Television Mass coverage

High reach

Impact of sight, sound, and motion

High prestige

Low cost per exposure

Attention getting

Favorable image

Low selectivity

Short message life

High absolute cost

High production costs

Clutter

Radio Local coverage

Low cost

High frequency

Flexible

Low production costs

Well-segmented audiences

Audio only

Clutter

Low attention getting

Fleeting message

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15 Magazines Segmentation potential

Quality reproduction

High information content

Longevity

Multiple readers

Long lead time for ad placement

Visual only

Lack of flexibility

Newspapers High coverage

Low cost

Short lead time for placing ads

Ads can be placed in interest sections

Timely (current ads)

Reader controls exposure

Can be used for coupons

Short life

Clutter

Low attention-getting capabilities

Poor reproduction quality

Selective reader exposure

Outdoor Location specific

High repetition

Easily noticed

Short exposure time requires short ad

Poor image

Local restrictions

Direct mail High selectivity

Reader controls exposure

High information content

Opportunities for repeat exposures

High cost/contact

Poor image (junk mail)

Clutter

Internet and

interactive

media

User selects product information

User attention and involvement

Interactive relationship

Direct selling potential

Flexible message platform

Limited creative capabilities

Websnarl (crowded access)

Technology limitations

Few valid measurement

techniques

Limited reach

BROADCAST MEDIA:

TELEVISION: It has often been said that television is the ideal advertising medium. Its ability

to combine visual images, sound, motion, and color presents the advertiser with the opportunity to develop the most creative and imaginative appeals of any medium. However, TV does have

certain problems that limit or even prevent its use by many advertisers. Merits and Demerits of T.V:

Merits

Mass coverage

High reach

Impact of sight, sound, and motion

High prestige

Low cost per exposure

Attention getting

Favorable image

Demerits

• Low selectivity • Short message life

• High absolute cost • High production costs

• Clutter

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16 Use Television Advertising When...

The budget is large enough to produce high quality commercials.

The media budget is sufficient to generate and sustain the number of exposures needed. The market is large enough and reachable efficiently through a specific network, station,

or program. There’s a genuine need for a medium with high creative potential to exert a strong

impact.

Buying T.V. Timing:

A number of options are available to advertisers that choose to use TV as part of their media mix. They can purchase time in a variety of program formats that appeal to various types and sizes of audiences. Decisions have to be made regarding national or network versus local or spot

purchases, selection of specific stations, sponsorship versus participation, different classes of time, and appropriate programs.

Network versus Spot: A basic decision for all advertisers is allocating their TV media budgets to network versus local or spot announcements. Most national advertisers use

network schedules to provide national coverage and supplement this with regional or local spot purchases to reach markets where additional coverage is desired.

Network Advertising: A common way advertisers disseminate their messages is

by purchasing airtime from a television network .A network assembles a series of affiliated local TV stations, or affiliates, to which it supplies programming and

services. These affiliates, most of which are independently owned, contractually agree to preempt time during specified hours for programming provided by the networks and to carry the national advertising within the program. The networks

share the advertising revenue they receive during these time periods with the affiliates.

Spot and Local Advertising: Spot advertising refers to commercials shown on local TV stations, with time negotiated and purchased directly from the individual stations. All non network advertising done by a national advertiser is known as

national spot advertising; airtime sold to local firms such as retailers, restaurants, banks, and auto dealers is known as local advertising. Local advertisers want

media whose coverage is limited to the geographic markets in which they do business. This may be difficult to accomplish with TV, but many local businesses are large enough to make efficient use of TV advertising.

Syndication: Advertisers may also reach TV viewers by advertising on syndicated programs, shows that are sold or distributed on a station-by-station, market-by market basis. A syndicator seeks to sell its program to one station in

every market. There are several types of syndicated programming. Off-network syndication refers to reruns of network shows that are bought by individual

stations. First-run syndication refers to shows produced specifically for the syndication market. The first-run syndication market is made up of a variety of shows, including some that did not make it as network shows.

Methods of Buying Time: In addition to deciding whether to use network versus spot advertising, advertisers must decide whether to sponsor an entire program, participate in a

program, or use spot announcements between programs. Sponsorship of a program and

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17 participations are available on either a network or a local market basis, whereas spot announcements are available only from local stations.

1. Sponsorship: Under a sponsorship arrangement, an advertiser assumes responsibility for the production and usually the content of the program as well as the advertising that

appears within it. In the early days of TV, most programs were produced and sponsored by corporations and were identified by their name.

2. Participations: Most advertisers either cannot afford the costs of sponsorship or want

greater flexibility than sole sponsorship permits. Nearly 90 percent of network advertising time is sold as participations, with several advertisers buying commercial

time or spots on a particular program. An advertiser can participate in a certain program once or several times on a regular or irregular basis. Participating advertisers have no financial responsibility for production of the program; this is assumed by the network or

individual station that sells and controls the commercial time. 3. Spot Announcements: spot announcements are bought from the local stations and

generally appear during time periods adjacent to network programs (hence the term adjacencies), rather than within them. Spot announcements are most often used by purely local advertisers but are also bought by companies with no network schedule (because of

spotty or limited distribution) and by large advertisers that use both network and spot advertising.

RADIO: Radio has survived and flourished as an advertising medium because it offers advertisers certain advantages for communicating messages to their potential customers.

Merits and Demerits of Radio:

Merits

• Local coverage

• Low cost • High frequency

• Flexible • Low production costs • Well-segmented audiences

Demerits

• Audio only

• Clutter • Low attention getting

• Fleeting message

Buying Radio Time: The purchase of radio time is similar to that of television, as advertisers can make either network, spot, or local buys.

Network Radio: Advertising time on radio can be purchased on a network basis using

one of the national networks. Using networks minimizes the amount of negotiation and administrative work needed to get national or regional coverage, and the costs are lower

than those for individual stations. However, the number of affiliated station on the network roster and the types of audiences they reach can vary considerably, so the use of network radio reduces advertisers’ flexibility in selecting stations.

Local Radio: By far the heaviest users of radio are local advertisers; nearly 79 percent of radio advertising time is purchased from individual stations by local companies. Auto

dealers, retailers, restaurants, and financial institutions are among the heaviest users of

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18 local radio advertising. But a number of radio advertisers are switching to local cable TV because the rates are comparable and there is the added advantage of TV’s visual impact.

ADVERTISING BUDGET

MEANING

An estimation of a company's promotional expenditures over a period of time. An advertising

budget is the money a company is willing to set aside to accomplish its marketing objectives. A

business can set its budget as a percentage of sales, at the same level as its competitors, as the

amount required to meet a certain objective, as the entirety of its profits or as a function of the

units of product it wants to sell among others.

“Advertising budget is an estimated amount an organization decides to invest in its promotional

expenditures over a period of time. An advertising budget is the money a company set aside to

accomplish its marketing objectives."

In order to keep the advertising budget in line with promotional and marketing goals, a business

owner should start by answering several important questions:

1. Who is the target consumer?

Who is interested in purchasing the product or service, and what are the specific demographics

of this consumer (age, employment, sex, attitudes, etc.)? Often it is useful to compose a

consumer profile to give the abstract idea of a "target consumer" a face and a personality that

can then be used to shape the advertising message.

2. What media type will be most useful in reaching the target consumer?

3. What is required to get the target consumer to purchase the product? Does the product

lend itself to rational or emotional appeals? Which appeals are most likely to persuade the

target consumer?

4. What is the relationship between advertising expenditures and the impact of advertising

campaigns on product or service purchases? In other words, how much profit is likely to be

earned for each dollar spent on advertising?

Answering these questions will help to define the market conditions that are anticipated and

identify specific goals the company wishes to reach with an advertising campaign. Once this

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19 analysis of the market situation is complete, a business must decide how best to budget for the task

and how best to allocate budgeted funds.

BUDGETING APPROACHES

The theoretical approaches to establishing the promotional budget are seldom employed. In smaller

firms, they may never be used. Instead, a number of methods developed through practice and

experience are implemented. This section reviews some of the more traditional methods of setting

budget and the relative advantages and disadvantages of each. First, you may understand two

things: (1) many firms employ more than one method, and (2) budgeting approaches vary accordin

g to the size and sophistication of the firm.

TOP UP APPROACHES

Anytime management takes complete control over budget allocations, it streamlines the business

accounting process and ensures a company stays on firm financial track. Budget maintenance is

important to companies for which even small cost overruns can be financially damaging. In the

top-down approach to promotional budgeting, upper management determines an appropriate

financial allowance for the promotion, and lower-level employees are expected to work with the

budget to the best of their ability.

Affordable method

With this method, advertisers base their budgets on what they can afford. Of course, arriving at a

conclusion about what a small business can afford in the realm of advertising is often a difficult

task, one that needs to incorporate overall objectives and goals, competition, presence in the

market, unit sales, sales trends, operating costs, and other factors.

Arbitrary method

Perhaps an even weaker method than the affordable method for establishing a budget is arbitrary

allocation, in which virtually no theoretical basis is considered and the budgetary amount is often

set by fiat. That is, the budget is determined by management solely on the basis of what is felt to

be necessary. The arbitrary allocation approach has no obvious advantages. No systematic thinking

has occurred, no objectives have been budgeted for, and the concept and the purpose of advertising

and promotion have been largely ignored. Other than the fact that the manager believes some

monies must be spent on advertising and promotion and then picks a number, there is no good

explanation why this approach continues to be used.

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20 Percentage of Sales Method

Due to its simplicity, the percentage of sales method is the most commonly used by small

businesses. When using this method an advertiser takes a percentage of either past or anticipated

sales and allocates that percentage of the overall budget to advertising. But critics of this method

charge that using past sales for figuring the advertising budget is too conservative, that it can stunt

growth. However, it might be safer for a small business to use this method if the ownership feels

that future returns cannot be safely anticipated. On the other hand, an established business, with

well-established profit trends, will tend to use anticipated sales when figuring advertising

expenditures. This method can be especially effective if the business compares its sales with those

of the competition (if available) when figuring its budget.

Competitive Parity

While keeping one's own objectives in mind, it is often useful for a business to compare its

advertising spending with that of its competitors. The theory here is that if a business is aware of

how much its competitors are spending to advertise their products and services, the business may

wish to budget a similar amount on its own advertising by way of staying competitive. Doing as

one's competitor does is not, of course, always the wisest course. And matching another's

advertising budget dollar for dollar does not necessarily buy one the same marketing outcome.

Much depends on how that money is spent. However, gauging one's advertising budget on other

participants' in the same market is a reasonable starting point.

Return on Investment Method

In the ROI budgeting method, advertising and promotions are considered investments, like plant

and equipment. Thus, the budgetary appropriation leads to certain returns. Like other aspects of the

firm’s efforts, advertising and promotion are expected to earn a certain return. While the ROI

method looks good on paper, the reality is that it is rarely possible to assess the returns provides by

the promotional effort—at least as long as sales continues to be basis for evaluation.

BOTTOM-UP APPROACHES

When management asks for input from lower-level employees about the financial resources they

need to develop an effective promotion, it creates a sense of teamwork and cohesiveness, a vital

element of business success. The budgeting process becomes a collaborate effort rather than an

us-versus-them approach. Bottom-up promotional budgeting involves lower-level employees

outlining their ideas for the wisest uses of funds, explaining their reasoning and having a

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21 discussion with management about available resources and expectations. Following this system,

employees are likely to feel their concerns are heard and respected. Even if they don’t ultimately

end up with an ideal budget, all parties understand each other's outlook and expectations and can

work together to make the most of the budget they have. Management can feel a loss of financial

control by following a bottom-up approach to promotional budgeting. Supervisors may fear that

lower-level employees will pad their budgets, incur unnecessary expenses or fail to utilize money

wisely if they have more input over and access to financial resources. Management also may

surmise that cost overruns will be greater with the bottom-up approach. Alternatively, the

approach can mean increased performance pressure on lower-level employees. Management may

argue that departments had their input on budgetary needs and, therefore, that all promotions

should be successful, which ultimately may not be the case.

Bottom-up approach includes following methods:

Objective and task method

Payout planning

Quantitative models

Objective and Task Method

Because of the importance of objectives in business, the task and objective method is considered

by many to make the most sense and is therefore used by most large businesses. The benefit of this

method is that it allows the advertiser to correlate advertising expenditures with overall marketing

objectives. This correlation is important because it keeps spending focused on primary business

goals. With this method, a business needs to first establish concrete marketing objectives, often

articulated in the "selling proposal," and then develop complementary advertising objectives

articulated in the "positioning statement." After these objectives have been established, the

advertiser determines how much it will cost to meet them. Of course, fiscal realities need to be

figured into this methodology as well. Some objectives (expansion of area market share by 15

percent within a year, for instance) may only be reachable through advertising expenditures

beyond the capacity of a small business. In such cases, small business owners must scale down

their objectives so that they reflect the financial situation under which they are operating.

PAYOUT PLANNING

To determine how much to be spend, marketer often develop a payout plan that determines the

investment value of the advertising and promotion appropriation. The basic idea is to project the

revenue the product will generate, as well as the costs it will incur, over 2 or 3 years. Based on

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22 expected rate of return, the payout plan will assist in determining how much advertising and

promotion expenditure will be necessary when the return might be expected. The product would

lose money in year1, almost break even in year 2, and finally begin to show substantial profits by

the end of the year 3.

QUNATITATIVE MODELS

Attempts to apply quantitative models to budgeting have met with limited success. For the most

part, these methods employ computer simulation models involving statistical techniques such as

multiple regression analysis to determine the relative contribution of the advertising budget to

sales.

There are some other methods

Market Share method

Unit Sales method

All Available Funds method

Market Share Method

Similar to competitive parity, the market share method bases its budgeting strategy on external

market trends. With this method a business equates its market share with its advertising

expenditures. Critics of this method contend that companies that use market share numbers to

arrive at an advertising budget are ultimately predicating their advertising on an arbitrary guideline

that does not adequately reflect future goals.

Unit Sales Method

This method takes the cost of advertising an individual item and multiplies it by the number of

units the business wishes to sell. This method is only effective, of course, when the cost of advertising a single unit can be reasonably determined.

All Available Funds Method

This aggressive method involves the allocation of all available profits to advertising purposes. This

can be risky for a business of any size it means that no money is being used to help the business

grow in other ways (purchasing new technologies, expanding the work force, etc.). Yet this

aggressive approach is sometimes useful when a start-up business is trying to increase consumer

awareness of its products or services. However, a business using this approach needs to make sure

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23 that its advertising strategy is an effective one and that funds which could help the business expand

are not being wasted

FACTORS AFFECTING ADVERTISING BUDGET

Before finalizing the advertising budget of an organization or a company, one has to take a look on

the favorable and unfavorable market conditions which will have an impact on the advertising

budget. The market conditions to watch out for are as follows:

Frequency of the advertisement

Compensation and clutter

Market share of the product

Product life cycle stage

1. Frequency of the Advertisement

This means the number of times advertise has been shown with the description of the product or

service, in the granted time slots. So here, if any company needs more advertising frequency for its

product, then the company will have to increase its advertising budget.

2. Competition and clutter

The companies may have many competitors for its product. And also there plenty of

advertisements shown which is called clutter. The company has to then increase their advertising

budget.

3. Market Share

To get a good market share in comparison to their competitors, the company should have a better

product in terms of quality, uniqueness, demand and catchy advertisements with resultant

response of the customers. All this is possible if the advertisement budget is high.

4. Product Life Cycle Stage

If the company is a newcomer or if the product is on its introduction stage, then the company has

to keep the budget high to make place in the market with the existing players and to have

frequent advertisements. As the time goes on and product becomes older, the advertising budget

can come down as then the product doesn’t need frequent advertising.

MEDIA SCHEDULING

Once a business decides how much money it can allocate for advertising, it must then decide where

it should spend that money. Certainly the options are many, including print media (newspapers,

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24 magazines, direct mail), radio, television (ranging from 30-second ads to 30-minute infomercials),

and the Internet. The mix of media that is eventually chosen to carry the business's message is

really the heart of the advertising strategy.

Selecting Media

The target consumer, the product or service being advertised, and cost are the three main factors

that dictate what media vehicles are selected. Additional factors may include overall business

objectives, desired geographic coverage, and availability (or lack thereof) of media options.

Kim T. Gordon, author, marketing coach and media spokesperson offers three general rules to

follow when trying to select a media vehicle for advertising in an article entitled "Selecting the

Best Media for Your Ad."

RULE NUMBER 1: Eliminate Waste

The key to selecting the right media source is to choose the source "that reaches the largest

percentage of your particular target audience with the least amount of waste." Paying to reach a

larger number of people may not serve well if the audience reached has only a small percentage of

likely customers of your product. It may be preferable to advertise in a paper or magazine with a

smaller distribution if the readers of that paper or magazine are more likely to be in the market for

your product or service.

RULE NUMBER 2: Follow Your Customer

Here again, the objective is to go to the sources used most by your target market, especially a

source that that audience looks to for information about your type of product or service. Gordon

explains that advertising "in search corridors—such as the Yellow Pages and other directories—is

often a cost-efficient solution. They're the media customers turn to when they've made a decision

to buy something."

RULE NUMBER 3: Buy Enough Frequency

We are constantly bombarded with advertisements and images and in order to penetrate the

consciousness it is important to be seen with some frequency. Gordon emphasizes that it is

"essential to advertise consistently over a protracted period of time to achieve enough frequency to

drive your message home."

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25 SCHEDULING CRITERIA

The timing of advertisements and the duration of an advertising campaign are two crucial factors in

designing a successful campaign. There are three methods generally used by advertisers in

scheduling advertising. Each is listed below with a brief explanation.

Continuity—This type of scheduling spreads advertising at a steady level over the entire

planning period (often month or year, rarely week), and is most often used when demand for a

product is relatively even.

Flighting—This type of scheduling is used when there are peaks and valleys in product demand.

To match this uneven demand a stop-and-go advertising pace is used. Notice that, unlike

"massed" scheduling, "flighting" continues to advertise over the entire planning period, but at

different levels. Another kind of flighting is the pulse method, which is essentially tied to the

pulse or quick spurts experienced in otherwise consistent purchasing trends.

Massed—This type of scheduling places advertising only during specific periods, and is most

often used when demand is seasonal, such as at Christmas or Halloween.

ADVERTISING NEGOTIATIONS AND DISCOUNTS

No matter what allocation method, media, and campaign strategy that advertisers choose, there are

still ways small businesses can make their advertising as cost effective as possible. Writing in The

Entrepreneur and Small Business Problem Solver, author William Cohen put together a list of

"special negotiation possibilities and discounts" that can be helpful to small businesses in

maximizing their advertising dollar:

Mail Order Discounts—Many magazines will offer significant discounts to businesses that use

mail order advertising.

Per Inquiry Deals—Television, radio, and magazines sometimes only charge advertisers for

advertisements that actually lead to a response or sale.

Frequency Discounts—Some media may offer lower rates to businesses that commit to a certain

amount of advertising with them.

Stand-by Rates—Some businesses will buy the right to wait for an opening in a vehicle's

broadcasting schedule; this is an option that carries considerable uncertainty, for one never

knows when a cancellation or other event will provide them with an opening, but this option

often allows advertisers to save between 40 and 50 percent on usual rates.

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26 Help if Necessary—Under this agreement, a mail order outfit will run an advertiser's ad until that

advertiser breaks even.

Remnants and Regional Editions—Regional advertising space in magazines is often unsold and

can, therefore, be purchased at a reduced rate.

Barter—Some businesses may be able to offer products and services in return for reduced

advertising rates.

Seasonal Discounts—Many media reduce the cost of advertising with them during certain parts

of the year.

Spread Discounts—Some magazines or newspapers may be willing to offer lower rates to

advertisers who regularly purchase space for large (two to three page) advertisements.

An In-House Agency—If a business has the expertise, it can develop its own advertising agency

and enjoy the discounts that other agencies receive.

Cost Discounts—Some media, especially smaller outfits, are willing to offer discounts to those

businesses that pay for their advertising in cash.

Of course, small business owners must resist the temptation to choose an advertising medium only

because it is cost effective. In addition to providing a good value, the medium must be able to

deliver the advertiser's message to present and potential customers.

RELATIONSHIP OF ADVERTISING TO OTHER PROMOTIONAL TOOLS

Advertising is only part of a larger promotional mix that also includes publicity, sales promotion,

and personal selling. When developing an advertising budget, the amount spent on these other

tools needs to be considered. A promotional mix, like a media mix, is necessary to reach as much

of the target audience as possible.

The choice of promotional tools depends on what the business owner is attempting to communicate

to the target audience. Public relations-oriented promotions, for instance, may be more effective at

building credibility within a community or market than advertising, which many people see as

inherently deceptive. Sales promotion allows the business owner to target both the consumer as

well as the retailer, which is often necessary for the business to get its products stocked. Personal

selling allows the business owner to get immediate feedback regarding the reception of the

business' product. And as Hills pointed out, personal selling allows the business owner "to collect

information on competitive products, prices, and service and delivery problems."

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27

UNIT 5

In business, employees are generally given objectives to accomplish, and their job evaluations

are based on their ability to achieve these objectives. Advertising and promotion should not be an exception. It is important to determine how well the communications program is working and to

measure this performance against some standards. Reasons to Measure Effectiveness

Avoiding costly mistakes.

Evaluating alternative strategies.

Increasing the efficiency of advertising in general

Determining if objectives are achieved.

Reasons Not to Measure Effectiveness

Cost of measurement

Problems with research

Disagreement about what to test

Objections of creative personnel

Lack of time

Conducting Research to Measure Advertising Effectiveness:

What to Test: This section considers what elements to evaluate, as well as where

and how such evaluations should occur. 1. Source factors: An important question is whether the spokesperson being used is

effective and how the target market will respond to him or her. Or a product

spokesperson may be an excellent source initially but, owing to a variety of reasons, may lose impact over time.

2. Message Variables: Both the message and the means by which it is communicated are bases for evaluation. A number of factors regarding the message and its delivery may have an impact on its effectiveness, including the headline, illustrations, text, and layout.

3. Media Strategies: Media decisions need to be evaluated. Research may be designed to determine which media class (for example, broadcast versus print), subclass (newspaper

versus magazines), or specific vehicles (which newspapers or magazines generate the most effective results. The location within a particular medium (front page versus back page) and size of ad or length of commercial also merit examination.

4. Budgeting Decisions: A number of studies have examined the effects of budget size on advertising effectiveness and the effects of various ad expenditures on sales. Many

companies have also attempted to determine whether increasing their ad budget directly increases sales.

When to Test: Virtually all test measures can be classified according to when they are

conducted. Pretests are measures taken before the campaign is implemented; posttests occur after the ad or commercial has been in the field.

Pre-testing

Post-testing

1. Pre-testing: Pretests may occur at a number of points, from as early on as idea

generation to rough execution to testing the final version before implementing it. More

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28 than one type of pretest may be used. For example, concept testing may take place at the

earliest development of the ad or commercial, when little more than an idea, basic

concept, or positioning statement is under consideration.

The advantage of pretesting at this stage is that feedback is relatively inexpensive. Any

problems with the concept or the way it is to be delivered are identified before large amounts of money are spent in development. Sometimes more than one version of the ad

is evaluated to determine which is most likely to be effective. The disadvantage is that mock-ups, storyboards, or animatics may not communicate nearly as effectively as the final product. The mood-enhancing and/or emotional aspects

of the message are very difficult to communicate in this format. Another disadvantage is time delays. Many marketers believe being first in the market offers them a distinct

advantage over competitors, so they forgo research to save time and ensure this position. 2. Post-testing: Posttesting is also common among both advertisers and ad agencies (with

the exception of testing commercials for wearout). Posttesting is designed to (1)

determine if the campaign is accomplishing the objectives sought and (2) serve as input

into the next period’s situation analysis. A variety of posttest measures are available,

most of which involve survey research methods.

Where to Test: In addition to when to test, decisions must be made as to where. These tests may

take place in either laboratory or field settings.

1. Laboratory Tests: In laboratory tests, people are brought to a particular location where

they are shown ads and/or commercials. The testers either ask questions about them or

measure participants’ responses by other methods—for example, pupil dilation, eye

tracking, or galvanic skin response. The major advantage of the lab setting is the control

it affords the researcher. Changes in copy, illustration, formats, colors, and the like can be

manipulated inexpensively and the differential impact of each assessed. This makes it

much easier for the researcher to isolate the contribution of each factor. The major

disadvantage is the lack of realism. Perhaps the greatest effect of this lack of realism is a

testing bias. When people are brought into a lab (even if it has been designed to look like

a living room), they may scrutinize the ads much more closely than they would at home.

A second problem with this lack of realism is that it cannot duplicate the natural viewing

situation, complete with the distractions or comforts of home.

2. Field Tests: Field tests are tests of the ad or commercial under natural viewing

situations, complete with the realism of noise, distractions, and the comforts of home.

Field tests take into account the effects of repetition, program content, and even the

presence of competitive messages. The major disadvantage of field tests is the lack of

control. It may be impossible to isolate causes of viewers’ evaluations. If atypical events

occur during the test, they may bias the results. Competitors may attempt to sabotage the

research. And field tests usually take more time and money to conduct, so the results are

not available to be acted on quickly. Thus, realism is gained at the expense of other

important factors. It is up to the researcher to determine which trade-offs to make.

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29 How to Test: it is important to establish some criteria by which to judge ad and commercials.

Testing guidelines

Appropriate tests

1. Testing guidelines: PACT (Positioning Advertising Copy Testing), defines copy testing

as research “which is undertaken when a decision is to be made about whether

advertising should run in the marketplace. Whether this stage utilizes a single test or a

combination of tests, its purpose is to aid in the judgment of specific advertising

executions.”

1. Provide measurements that are relevant to the objectives of the advertising. 2. Require agreement about how the results will be used in advance of each specific

test.

3. Provide multiple measurements (because single measurements are not adequate to assess ad performance).

4. Be based on a model of human response to communications—the reception of a stimulus, the comprehension of the stimulus, and the response to the stimulus.

5. Allow for consideration of whether the advertising stimulus should be exposed

more than once. 6. Require that the more finished a piece of copy is, the more soundly it can be

evaluated and require, as a minimum, that alternative executions be tested in the same degree of finish.

7. Provide controls to avoid the biasing effects of the exposure context.

8. Take into account basic considerations of sample definition. 9. Demonstrate reliability and validity.

2. Appropriate tests: advertisers and their clients are concerned about developing

appropriate testing methods.

Objective: Explores consumers’ responses to various ad concepts as expressed in words, pictures, or symbols.

Method: Alternative concepts are exposed to consumers who match the characteristics of the target audience. Reactions and evaluations of each are sought through a variety of methods,

including focus groups, direct questioning, and survey completion. Sample sizes vary depending on the number of concepts to be presented and the consensus of responses. Output: Qualitative and/or quantitative data evaluating and comparing alternative

concepts. Market Testing of Ads: The fact that the ad and/or campaign has been implemented does not

mean there is no longer a need for testing. The pretests were conducted on smaller samples and

may in some instances have questionable merit, so the marketer must find out how the ad is

doing in the field. In this section, we discuss methods for posttesting an ad. Some of the tests are

similar to the pretests discussed in the previous section and are provided by the same companies.

Posttests of Print Ads: A variety of print posttests are available, including inquiry tests,

recognition tests, and recall tests.

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KARISHMA SIROHI

30 inquiry tests: Used in both consumer and business-to-business market testing, inquiry

tests are designed to measure advertising effectiveness on the basis of inquiries generated

from ads appearing in various print media, often referred to as “bingo cards.” The inquiry

may take the form of the number of coupons returned, phone calls generated, or direct

inquiries through reader cards. Major advantages of inquiry tests are that they are

inexpensive to implement and they provide some feedback with respect to the general

effectiveness of the ad or medium used. But they are usually not very effective for

comparing different versions or specific creative aspects of an ad.

recognition tests: Samples are drawn from 20 to 30 urban areas reflecting the geographic

circulation of the magazine. Personal interviewers screen readers for qualifications and

determine exposure and readership. Samples include a minimum of 200 males and

females, as well as specific audiences where required. Participants are asked to go

through the magazines, looking at the ads, and provide specific responses.

recall tests: Test magazines are placed in participants’ homes and respondents are asked

to read the magazine that day. A telephone interview is conducted the second day to

assess recall of ads, recall of copy points, and consumers’ impressions of the ads. Sample

size is 150 people.

Posttests of Broadcast Commercials: A variety of methods exist for posttesting broadcast

commercials. The most common provide a combination of dayafter recall tests, persuasion

measures, and diagnostics. Test marketing and tracking studies, including single-source methods,

are also employed.

Day-After Recall Tests: DAR tests may favor unemotional appeals because respondents

are asked to verbalize the message. Thinking messages may be easier to recall than

emotional communications, so recall scores for emotional ads may be lower. Program

content may influence recall. The programs in which the ad appears may lead to different

recall scores for the same brand. The net result is a potential inaccuracy in the recall score

and in the norms used to establish comparisons.

Persuasive Measures: In theater settings this is accomplished by announcing a series of

prize drawings, with viewers indicating which of the brands they would choose if they

won. In field settings, it is accomplished by taking a brand preference measure when the

video is delivered and then again the next day. Some of the services offer additional

persuasion measures, including purchase-intent and frequency-of purchase criteria.

Diagnostics: In addition to measuring recall and persuasion, copy testing firms also

provide diagnostic measures. These measures are designed to garner viewers’ evaluations

of the ads, as well as how clearly the creative idea is understood and how well the

proposition is communicated. Rational and emotional reactions to the ads are also

examined.

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KARISHMA SIROHI

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