We are witnessing a media explosion worldwide and the question is: can media measurement companies run fast enough to keep up? Traditional media such as print, TV, radio, cinema and outdoor, have in recent years been joined by other platforms such as the internet and online gaming. Consumer generated media, for instance blogs, online communities, forums and social networks, are on the rise. There is a feverish search for effective point-to-point and tailored media, for personal and interactive communication. Metrics can provide certainty, and this means that research continues to play a role in audience measurement. Valuable information has been collected on media reach and exposure: initially this was done separately for each media and later on for several media at once. However, research also shows that these numbers say little about the impact on the consumer. What is the reader doing? Is the viewer really watching and is the listener really listening? Real success should be measured in terms of involvement, engagement, the quality of attention, and in terms of transactions and behaviour. Therefore, in addition to the traditional tools such as diaries and surveys, increasing use is being made of new technologies including portable people meters and PDAs. In this issue of Research World, Sheila Byfield and Adam Phillips guide us through the current media landscape. It is a snapshot because media and research will demand even more attention for real attention in the near future.
This paper presents the results of the first basic survey in Germany to show the effectiveness in principle of radio as an advertising medium. Described are the effective mechanisms of radio advertising in relation to actual exposure, both generally and with regard to specific target groups and reception conditions. A supplementary illustration is provided by the results of three campaigns analysed in the study.
This paper examines advertiser and agency perspectives on single source data. The authors present a method of evaluating different single source systems based on the informational need for which each service was designed to address. The "focal point" of each system impacts its design and therefore the quality of each data element reported. While both parties share many of the same informational needs (i.e., targeting, media selection), it is likely that the "focal point" of their primary systems would differ. Mr. Godbeer points out that his primary interest as an advertiser is accountability'the ability to quantify the sales impact of advertising, consumer and trade promotion. Mr. Philport maintains that the quality of media measurement in single source systems varies by the system's primary purpose. Advertising agencies are most interested in systems with high quality media measurement. Therefore, Young & Rubicam has launched an extensive investigation into the quality and utility of one such media-focused single source system; ScanAmerica. Conclusions from this stage of Y&R's investigation reveal that it is possible to achieve accurate media measurement within a single source panel, and that single source data provide a reliable and different perspective of the value of television vehicles when compared with demographic targets Mr. Godbeer, working with a different set of informational priorities, mentions that it is unlikely that advertisers will support a purely media-focused single source service and that media data, while necessary, will be added-value. He also notes that an ideal single source system would not merely report television viewing behavior, but exposure to all media. Both authors conclude that communication between all interested parties is necessary so that new products are developed to meet the needs of advertisers, agencies and the media
Up to now, the evaluation of media plans as part of an advertising strategy has only been possible at the level of the communication medium. For the medium television, supplementary data concerning the advertising medium, i.e. the spot ratings, are available. A new model of media planning has been developed for the evaluation of media plans, a model which links, in a special dataset, media exposure, average reach and advertising exposure. This model has been developed in cooperation of advertisers, agencies and clients of TV audience research.
This paper discusses the process involved in a network's acquiring the rights to telecast the Olympics and examines the role research played in NBC's decision to acquire the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona. The paper will provide a brief historical perspective of telecasting the Olympics, including the nature of the coverage, the amount of air time, the audience attraction and the "rights fees". Research is intimately involved in the decision- making process which starts with estimating Olympics rating performance four years in advance of the events. What factors go into these estimates? Why are they important? Networks and advertisers pay a premium for these events. How can this be justified? Over time, the cost of acquiring the rights to telecast the Olympics increased dramatically. There was more need to examine critically the value of the Olympics for the network managements and the advertisers. This paper also reports on the research studies conducted by NBC designed to deal with the answers to these questions. The Olympics have become one of the premiere advertising and merchandising events of the 20th century. This paper will examine how a U.S. television network prepares for the Olympics. I will discuss from a historical perspective the ratings of the Olympics, how much the networks paid for their rights, the factors that go into the decision to acquire rights, the nature of the coverage and the audience performance. I will also examine the role research plays in this process and then review two studies conducted by NBC Research. One was designed to make the coverage more appealing to viewers and the other to help advertisers assess the value of the Olympics as an advertising and promotion vehicle.
In recent times we notice a worldwide trend in media research to move beyond the vehicle contacts towards exposure to the advertising message. This is an easy task in the case of electronic media, if one believes in meter data. With print media we are facing difficulties to measure the exposure to an advertising page, at least if we are looking for large scale readership surveys including many titles, in most cases more than 100. However, there are attempts such as MPX = multiple page exposure or additional qualitative criteria to qualify the exposure to the medium. In Germany this qualitative approval seems to be the most advanced, based on 35 characteristics. The follow-up survey of Yardsticks for Exposure Quality linked the Quality Index with criteria of advertising effectiveness, so that one can show the effect achieved by media planning based on quality indeces. The result is: Media schedules based on exposure with a higher quality lead to steeper and more rapid increases in the effect than with those exposures of a lower quality.
What strategy should be adopted by researchers who want to help media planning? The traditional route has been to provide databases on media exposure, and these will continue to be required though their design, and access to them, could be improved. A study of actual media decisions and campaign evaluations suggests that media exposure data play a comparatively small part in media choice. The way forward is unlikely to be by providing a greater depth of information in this area. It is suggested that researchers study the users' needs more carefully, for example by observation (media case histories) and by consultation. Eight methodologies in data collection and analysis are recommended.
The belief in the potential for direct targeting of television advertising has grown out of five years' experience conducting fourteen Commercial Recognition Studies. In total, one hundred and five housewife- targeted commercials, forty five men-targeted commercials and sixty adult-targeted commercials have been the subject of our investigation.
The objective of media planning is to establish, within the framework of the budget for a specific advertising target, the optimum cost-effective combination of carriers for the advertising in question. As a rule, the selection of the media is based on the available media usage analyses.
The paper presents the objectives, the method, some results and forms of utilisation of a survey (ISJ Survey) on the reading habits, as regards the periodical press, of Italian children and young people (aged between 6 and 17), on exposure to other advertising media and on the interests and consumption of youngsters, in the age groups considered.
The problem considered here is the measurement of advertising effectiveness, especially when the results are to be used to help decide how much to spend and what media types to use. We have found two techniques useful: area tests; and consumer surveys in which the informants media exposure is estimated as well as her behaviour, awareness, etc. Area tests by themselves are often disappointing. Variations between areas make the results hard to interpret; tests may be abandoned or conclusions drawn from them too early. Single-source data, including media-product surveys, are now a well-understood aid to campaign planning; they are less often used but are also very helpful in post-campaign evaluation. Despite technical weaknesses and the caution needed in interpretation we have found their analysis often indicates how advertising is working. A case history is given in which media-product surveys were carried out in addition to area tests of both advertising weight and media type. Measurements made before the campaign allowed us to rule out any natural association which might have existed between media habits and product awareness. The results showed, contrary to a naive interpretation of the area test results, that press was effective in combination with television.