Entry 4: Research and Evaluation in Advertising

How to Advertise Research

PHOTO: Advertising Research. Photograph. Http://www.accelerantresearch.com/advertising-research.php.

In order to be effective in advertising a firm must find a way to gain some insight into the customers they are trying to engage in their advertising. This can be done in a number of ways, but to achieve the best outcome the firm must determine the most effective way.

Advertisers can acquire information about their target market in a number of ways, including surveys, secret shoppers, focus groups, as well as physiological testing. These are just a few of the ways advertising can find out how to attract their audience and are also the most popular. With all the different types of research it is easy to see that firms need to decide which type or types of research will be most effective for a particular product being advertised. 

The Knowledge Base says that a survey is, “one of the most important areas in applied social research,” which is because researchers get accurate answers to the questions that they need to be successful. In the early days of market research the most logical thing for research firms to do was to survey a large group of people to get opinions on the products. This normally consisted of having people fill out questions on pieces of paper which would then have to be individual read and examined to come to the best conclusion for the product. As the years rolled on this became time consuming and costly.

Today many companies offer surveys online and in exchange for going to the website participants would receive a coupon off their next purchase or be entered in some kind of drawing to win prizes. These incentives that were added to the survey research method helped to make the results reached more accurate because people would choose to do the survey instead of feeling like they had to do it. 

This new way of only surveying people who used the product also helped to improve the survey’s results. Most surveys consist of multiple choice questions instead of short answers so the company can quickly see what answers were readily picked and draw their conclusions in a much more organized manner. The online surveys also brought in only the target market to answer the questions because only the people who use that product or service would respond to the survey as opposed to a group of random people who could or could not use the product. 

In the case of researching how to improve a service or business as a whole many firms use secret shoppers. Service providers like internet and cable companies, restaurants, and retail stores use this method to evaluate their customer service. Since customer service is the key to any service based company they need unbiased opinions on the experience customers have when they use that company. Secret shoppers are people who are hired by the company to use the services provided and give their honest opinion on how the company performed and what can be done to improve. This works really well to provide information on customer service since it is not something that can be counted like a product can. 

PHOTO: Insight. Photograph. Http://www.insightasia.com/communicationresearch.html.

Focus groups and psychological testing have become very popular and cost effective over recent years. Today most of these groups and tests are coupled together to help a firm fully understand their target market. This kind of research normally consists of talking to people and seeing how they feel about using a product. Psychological test are also done to get to the core of the people that are using the product. By studying how consumer react to certain action and even to words advertisers can make their ads as affect as possible. Kurt Mortensen, author of “How to Use Word Choice in Marketing” says that choosing the right words is critical to any advertising and marketing strategy. Mortensen says that, “[Advertisers] word choices psychologically lead you to believe that their product is the best,” which means that they need to do their research to make sure every word gives the meaning the firm wants them to. 

By using all these methods to research how to make an advertisement great sometimes you have to wonder what some advertising agencies thought when they made their campaigns. I happen to think that the reason some ads fail is because they do not do the proper research and just assume their ad will work. This is where companies go wrong. When firms do not take the proper action to research how their ad will be seen in the public’s eye they run the risk of wasting their money and even being seen in a bad way by consumers. 

VIDEO: "CK "banned" Ad." YouTube. Web. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vZVk21Pco-c>.

Business Pundit cites many failed attempts at trying to advertise products without proper research. Calvin Klein, which is famous for is sexually filled ads, had a campaign in the 1990’s featuring ads of young teenagers in the basement almost naked besides their jeans and appeared to be filmed using a hidden camera. Behind the camera comes a man's voice that compliments the youth in what is mostly seen in a perverse way. Because proper research was not done many people with teenagers and suburban homes became furious. The commercials were so bad that the FBI investigated to see if there was any foul play in the making of these advertisements. I think that Calvin Klein was attempting to communicate that the jeans they sell look good on anyone, but what it came out as in the campaign commercials was a sex offender's at home movie collection.

When it comes to advertising research, it has to be done. Businesses that rely on their instincts and not the research will surely fail. With all the different types of research methods there is no excuse not to do it. You would not buy a car without researching the best option and advertisers should not produce a campaign until they do the same.

Word Count:1,007

References 

Mortensen, Kurt. "How to Use Word Choice in Marketing." Ezine Articles. 6 Mar. 2006. Web. 14 Oct. 2011. <http://ezinearticles.com/?How-to-Use-Word-Choice-in-Marketing&id=288268>.

Ryan. "9 Poorly Conceived Marketing Campaigns | Business Pundit." Business Pundit: Your Daily Dose of Smart Business Opinion. 18 Feb. 2010. Web. 15 Oct. 2011. <http://www.businesspundit.com/9-poorly-conceived-marketing-campaigns/>.

"Survey Research." Social Research Methods. Research Methods Knowledge Base, 20 Oct. 2006. Web. 15 Oct. 2011. <http://www.socialresearchmethods.net/kb/survey.php>.

Entry 3: Concepts and Theories of Advertising

Giving the Product an Identity

PHOTO: Miller, Howard J. Rosie the Riveter. 1942. Photograph.

Over the years many advertising firms have had to come up with new and interesting concepts to keep consumers interested in their products. Advertisements have always needed to catch the attention of their target market so that the product being advertised gets sold. If the product’s advertisement does not get the attention it needs then the product could be a bust. It seems like it is either hit or miss when it comes to advertising a product. 

Concepts and theories in advertising is what makes advertising work. Without having a plan of action to try to sell a good or service the product fails. One of the best marketing concepts that has ever been used is the concept of connecting the product to an emotion. When products like laundry soap and potato chips can be connected to feelings that consumers can bond with then the product is a success. Emotions could possibly range from love and desire, to freedom and respect as well as limitless others.

Once these bonds are made with a product using advertising then most of the time a consumer that feels the bond will become lifelong users of the product. Focusing on emotion is a way of “Neuromarketing” with means that the marketing and advertising strategies are focused on the emotional and basic instincts of the human desires to sell products. 

Neuromarketing.com, a website devoted to where brain science and marketing meet, explains that using emotion in advertising verses rational thinking can improve the success of an advertisement by 15%. This can make a big difference for companies trying to sell their products. Neuromarketing.com also goes on to say that bigger brands normally have more success with the emotional advertisements then smaller brands because they have more recognizable names to consumers.

Gerald Zaltman, a Harvard Professor, wrote a book that said that 95% of buying decisions are made on a subconscious level which means that advertisers have a better chance gaining a large target market when they appeal to the consumer’s emotions. By using ads that show emotions and connecting with the consumer on a deeper level then just here is a need and there is a solution the consumer feels a deeper connection with the product. When these connections are made most customers become loyal to a brand and are willing to pick it over other competitor products even if the product costs more. 

This brand loyalty can be seen prominently in the division between Mac and PC owners. These computers are advertised in very similar ways. They start by telling you that the computer is not just a technology to be used, but it is a loyal friend that will always be there for you and never let you down. I know from my experience with advertising that I have chosen a PC by HP because of the high quality and connection I feel to the company. HP has offered me many warranties and virus protection software that made me feel comforted and secure in my decision. I had an emotional connection with the computer because I felt there was trust and not just because the computer filled my online and typing needs. 

VIDEO: "Mothers Day Band." Kay Jewelers Co. Apr.-May 2008. 9 Nov. 2008. Web. 1 Sept. 2011.

Other advertising industries, like jewelry stores, use the emotion that you feel when you love someone to sell their products. Kay Jewelers Company normally uses the feeling of love in almost every commercial to make the product seem like it will provide the customers with love. They tell you that if you love someone you will buy them a piece of jewelry and then you both will share that love that you feel. Advertisers know that there is no real love for their product but if they can connect their product to an event or feeling that everyone desires then they will be able to sell more. If advertisers just say our jewelry is pretty and sparkly so buy it then the company would never make a profit.

The basic marketing feeling that emotional advertisements need to achieve is to make the customer feel like they don’t just need or want the product, but they desire the product. Car commercials are great examples of communicating the feeling of desire. They normally consist of the car being driven on country roads or going really fast down a freeway. They also hint that by buying the car it will make you more attractive to people or make you seem more respected. Many American made cars like to focus on their vehicles providing freedom for whoever drives them, the most famous of these ads being the Dodge Challenger Freedom commercial. So because of those emotions you desire the car being shown and are willing to consider buy that car or remembering it when you decide to buy a new vehicle. Today’s advertisements make the product desirable, which is the key to selling products. 

Advertisers achieve this emotional marketing by doing large amounts of research to find out how consumers feel when they use the product and study old ways of advertising products using emotion to help to create a campaign for the product. Once this campaign is start even more money goes into trying to find ways to make it better. Product campaigns can be made over many times and be in productions for months before it is seen by the public. 

However, many advertising companies have tried connecting their products to a feeling and have not seen the fruits of their labor. Normally a company becomes too symbolic with their ads as they try to make a connection that consumers do not understand. Song Airlines a branch of Delta Airlines focused all of its advertising strategy on connecting with the consumer on a deeper level than just advertising the airline. Song tried to make its commercials totally emotion based and what happened was no one knew what the commercials were for. Song Airlines is a great example of a small company starting out and putting too much emotion into advertising. That is why Neuromarketing.com says that smaller businesses and unknown businesses have a harder time using emotional ads because they have no foundation or brand recognition. 

When it comes to today’s advertisements using emotion is the new strategy and when executed right can be extremely profitable for its company.

“Emotion-based ads may be more difficult to create, but the stats say it’s worth the effort.” (Neuromarketing.com) 

WORD COUNT:1093

References

"Emotional Ads Work Best | Neuromarketing." Neuroscience Marketing - Brain, Behavior, and Neuromarketing. 27 July 2009. Web. 30 Sept. 2011. <http://www.neurosciencemarketing.com/blog/articles/emotional-ads-work-best.htm>.

 Pisacane, Nick. "Research Oriented Creatives." Emotional Advertising. Web. 28 Sept. 2011. <http://emotionaladvertising.com/ResearchOriented.htm>.