Companies use a variety of research techniques to gauge the effectiveness of their advertising. Among the most common are surveys, analyses of social media reactions, and the measurement of brain activity. Sometimes, more than one approach is used, with each having its own strengths and weaknesses. According to a recent G&R study, consumers are still most confident about surveys, social media monitoring is preferred by a significant minority, and brain activity measurement is relatively unknown but growing. Most consumers (63%) think that opinion surveys are the best way to get at reaction to the advertising that they watch. A strong minority (23%) thinks that social media monitoring does the best job. Few people (3%) feel that brain activity studies are the best way to go.
The majority of people (84%) said they would be willing to participate in an opinion study. However, only 28% said they would participate in social media monitoring and 20% said they would participate in brain activity monitoring.
Reaction to knowing that a company uses brain activity studies to assess advertising response is mixed. Twenty-seven percent of people said their opinion of the company would be increased, but 13% said it would be decreased. Sixty percent of people said their opinion would be unchanged.
The ranking of the various types of studies is similar, regardless of gender. That is, men are no more likely than women to feel that one type of study is better. However, men are less likely than women to say that they would participate in social media monitoring and more likely to say that they would participate in brain activity studies.
Younger people (ages 18-34) tend to hold the newer technologies in higher regard than older people (ages 35-49 and 50-65). They are also more likely to participate in such studies and hold companies that use them in higher esteem.
People with higher incomes and more advanced education are also more likely to favor the newer technologies. However, they are not more likely to participate in such studies and hold companies that use them in higher esteem.
According to Scott Purvis, President of G&R, “Surveys have taken their share of knocks recently, particularly in the context of their ability to predict elections. However, they continue to hold the confidence of consumers, at least for understanding advertising reactions. Social media activity is also an accepted source for gauging reactions for many people. Consumer Neuroscience is less well known to people, but the number of people open to participating in it is increasing and closing in on social media monitoring.”
About G&R:
G&R is an advertising and marketing research company based in Pennington, New Jersey. Founded by George Gallup and Claude Robinson, G&R has helped companies understand the effectiveness of their advertising and improve its contribution to their business for 70 years. For the last 20 years, the company has tracked the quality of Super Bowl advertising by polling viewers on the day after the game about commercials they remember, their reactions to them and attitudes towards the viewing experience.
Press Contact:
Stefanie Dursin
(609) 730-1550 x119
stefanie.dursin@gandrllc.com
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