For a long time I have been saying that advertising establishes familiarity with a brand that creates a sense of trust in the brand. My mantra, "The brands you know and trust are the brands you buy and use."
When faced with a buying decision where the customer has no established brand preference based on experience, he will choose the brand that he has some level of familiarity with. This familiarity usually means he has seen advertising for the brand, even if he never read the ads, and that has given the brand some level of credibility.
This is called the "mere exposure effect".
Science Daily reports this, "The majority of advertising exposure occurs when the audience's attention is focused elsewhere, such as while flipping through a magazine or browsing a web site. However, a new study reveals that even this incidental exposure to advertising may have a positive effect on consumer attitudes."
Not only does advertising have an effect on the consumer, but he doesn't even have to focus on the ad. It can be there only in his peripheral vision, and the mere exposure to the ad can still have impact!
One thing this study pointed out is that banner ads, even those that don't annoyingly flash in obnoxious colors, are being noticed by the mind when the site visitor is focused elsewhere on the page. That means the standard click-through method of measurement may be of questionable value.
It is said "the eyes are the window to the soul" and that may be doubly true in advertising. Consider this similar statement, "The eyes are a reflection of consumer goals."
That came from an article at http://www.sciencedaily.com/ about a recent study conducted in the Netherlands and Michigan that has given us some interesting insight in designing advertisements. Most marketing textbooks advance the theory that looking at ads is a predominantly "dumb process," driven by visual stimuli such as the size of the ad or the color of the text. That may not be true.
The study tracked eye movement of consumers viewing a series of ads. The consumers were divided into three groups, each with a different objective. Interestingly, each group's visual tracking of ads and their content differed according to the goals they had. This suggests the marketer needs to identify what their consumer may be looking for it their ads in order to design an ad that satisfies their goals.
I would also suggest this has profound implications for packaging as well.
We all know the images we see in ads have often been, shall we say, "enhanced"? What many of you don't know is how much. With the advent of computers and digital enhancement software like Photoshop, "how much" becomes "a lot"! This video clip will give you a pretty good idea what is possible. The first part was largely "old tech" makeup and a really good stylist, followed by good lighting and a photographer who knows what he is doing, but the last part is Photoshop.
Advertising Age has an article about marketer's phoniness. Are we what we say we are? Do we live up to the values we claim we stand for? Yet another way - do we walk the walk or just talk the talk?
"In today's experience economy, where people increasingly bypass commoditized goods and services to spend time with companies that stage engaging experiences, authenticity is becoming the new consumer sensibility. Consumers purchase offerings based on how well those purchases conform to their self-image."
In other words, purchases are an emotional personal experience, and until marketers understand that, they will remain an untrusted commodity and not a brand. As I have been saying, "The brands you use are the ones you know and trust."
The Harley Davidson Motorcycle Company has always impressed me with their solid understanding of their core market and their ability to creative ads that speak to that market by touching them at the gut level and appealing to what drives their purchase of Harleys. That is an emotional appeal, and touching the emotions of your consumer is always a good thing for building a brand. Arguably, HD is one of the best built brands in existence today.
What does a rebellious biker company like HD do for a holiday ad? Check out this ad that hits their core market. And if you think that target is the dirty, bearded, bad-assed biker covered with tattoos, you are wrong. This is aimed at middle and upper middle class males who are "bad-assed biker wannabes". The ones who buy most of their products.
