This post is part of the Method a Month Series. Look for a new post each month and learn how our unique methods can help you with custom market research solutions and brand decision clarity.
I have a very sports-centered household. My husband is content watching the same SportsCenter on ESPN over and over all morning on Saturday and I’m more knowledgeable and interested in sports than some of our guy friends. Needless to say, we’ve been watching a lot of college basketball over the past two weeks between the conference tournaments and the first weekend of March Madness. For March Madness specifically, ad space sold quickly and gets pricier as the tournament progresses, and is the most lucrative postseason event.
One thing I’ve noticed while watching the games this year is the heavy reliance on basketball themes and personalities in commercials. Companies must weigh the benefits of tying commercials to a specific theme with the challenge of connecting their products to that particular topic and brand strategy, so that it makes sense and resonates with the viewer (example: Charles Barkley and Capital One). In addition, because dedicated viewers will end up watching hours and hours of television, they will end up seeing the same commercials repeatedly (though I am still enjoying all of the “It’s Not Your Fault” ads for Coke Zero.) How can companies avoid the potential distrust and burnout that may come with themed advertisements?
The Pert Group recommends our proprietary copy testing method, Ad Assess, to get the most out of your advertising and to optimize your ad spend. We can help determine whether your messages are effective and which ad elements are most compelling to your audience. Ad Assess provides not only a quantitative evaluation, but also in-depth, qualitative insights to provide a complete picture of what resonates and what modifications are needed.
Respondents view multiple advertising ideas and evaluate those ideas for attention, motivation, branding, and buzz. They also are asked to indicate their purchase interest, so our experts can provide a robust hierarchy of ad preference. When testing ad concepts, quantitative results often prompt more questions; knowing why the audience responded in a certain way can be even more valuable than just the response itself. Ad Assess uncovers these answers by performing qualitative interviews with the same people who provided the quantitative results.
Having market research experts at The Pert Group perform your ad testing with Ad Assess will save you time and money. Let us know if we can help your brand’s next creative endeavor! In the meantime, I’m going to do my best to avoid any more “bracket busters” (hello, Florida Gulf Coast University) during the rest of the tournament and sit back and appreciate (or ignore) the commercials.
This concludes our Method a Month Series. We hope you’ve enjoyed learning more about what The Pert Group can offer you. Contact us for more information about Ad Assess or any other method discussed on our blog.
